A brief history of Title I evaluation efforts in Chicago illustrates the concern that the evaluation of Title I programs must serve two masters: the federal reporting mandate and local needs. (PN)

Chelimsky's five-part continuum--a model for the practice of evaluation in a political context--is reviewed. The model's conceptual framework and a question for education are discussed. By focusing on interactions between evaluators and policy actors, this model should prompt debates about unsettled issues in education policy making. (SLD)

After a discussion of the underutilization of cost analysis in education, this article offers several explanations for the relative scarcity of cost-based evaluations in education and considers the potential for greater use of such studies. Developing frameworks to unpack costs may be a way of bringing about greater use of cost-based evaluation.…

The Experience Based Career Education (EDCE) program serves as a focal point of a cast study documenting how the National Institute of Education secured Office of Education funds to demonstrate an R&D innovation. Serious questions are raised about the regulations-writing process and the use of evaluation information. (Author/LC)

The history of evaluation utilization in policy making and political features of program evaluation are discussed. A five-part continuum describes the evaluation process. Evaluation practice modifications contribute to real growth in evaluation use in congressional policy making as evaluation research improves the quality of information available…

This case history of the Colorado Study of Learning Disabilities illustrates a variety of functions an evaluation study may serve for policy shapers at the state level. The impact of the initial evaluation is followed over two years, focusing on its use by influential participants in Colorado's special education policy-shaping community. (BW)

An approach for involving beneficiaries in specifying program attributes for evaluators to address is discussed. Methods are outlined for sharing influence among program decision makers and beneficiaries. Application of this approach in the evaluation of a problem-based medical school curriculum is described, with evidence on the enhancement of…

This paper assesses the status of evaluation as a profession and examines the consequences of not attending to the manner in which the discipline evolves. Special concerns are (1) what the profession seeks to accomplish; (2) ways in which it functions; and (3) who can be identified as "professionals." (LMO)

The activities and results of a comprehensive three-year evaluation of Utah's Title IV-C programs are summarized. They demonstrated that evaluation can produce valuable outcomes in addition to complying with federal requirements. State officials gained insights into program improvement; local officials gained expertise in program operation and…

Citing the signaling and charged use distinction, examines federal expectations and need for evaluation data and extent of local capabilities to meet those expectations when secondary/transition model demonstration projects, funded by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services, were obligated to improve amount, quality, and use of…

An evaluation research capability was used to document the design and implementation of two programs in a large urban school district. This paper describes the research context, the origins of the role of resident evaluator, the broad functions of this role, and factors contributing to the usefulness of this approach. (BW)

The experience of the Dallas (Texas) Independent School District in using a policy-oriented report (the chart essay), rather than using a methods-oriented report, to communicate evaluation findings is described. Resulting changes in the research and evaluation department, and implications of use of a chart essay are discussed. (SLD)

Effects of the federal compensatory education policy on the capacity of schools to deliver high-quality services to poor children is examined with a focus on federal assessment of Chapter 1 programs. Alternatives are suggested to improve evaluation usefulness in building organizational capacity by moving beyond a sole focus on student outcomes.…

Evaluation research is no longer taught solely as a technical-scientific pursuit, but is now moving toward a policy-oriented discipline. Psychological skills in a political context can strengthen technical contributions of evaluators. (LMO)

The author advances the argument that evaluation is unique not in purpose, but in environment. The evaluator operates within ethical, organizational, and political contexts in order to achieve utilization of a context-responsive evaluation. (LMO)