Evaluation policies set an important frame of reference for how evaluations are implemented. Despite the central influence that policies play in how evaluations are conducted, little empirical work has been conducted to better understand how these policies are interpreted and implemented. This paper describes the findings of case study evaluation…

Notwithstanding significant efforts by international aid agencies, aid ineffectiveness became apparent in 1990s as the impact of continued development intervention did not endure the expected outcomes. Conventional monitoring and evaluation by those agencies is critiqued for focusing on measuring project outcomes and giving little attention to…

Using a cross-case analysis of three distinct participatory program evaluations, this paper contributes to current discourse on how evaluators create opportunities for learning. Although each team of evaluators intended to promote planned process use, post-evaluation discussions amongst them identified evidence where use emerged throughout the…

As a result of the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2002, the field of education has seen a heavy emphasis on the use of "scientifically based research" for designing and testing the effectiveness of new and existing educational programs. According to NCLB, when addressing basic cause and effect questions scientifically based…

The evaluation of residency and preceptorship programs at a medical school are briefly described. Valuable findings include identification of training deficiencies, details of actual student experiences, benefits of the program, and appraisal of student performance. (GDC)

Responsive evaluation emphasizes continually changing factors: educational issues, program observation, consideration of different values held by involved groups, and needs of the audience targeted to receive the report. Preordinate evaluation, on the other hand, emphasizes formal goals, standardized measurement instruments, and values held by the…

Using the Cognitive Research Trust (CoRT) Thinking Project as an illustration, two problems are discussed: the difficulty of deciding just what to investigate, and how to control the continual development that is necessary throughout the duration of a project. (BW)

Utilization should be defined according to the evaluation approach used and the purposes established for it. By developing a matrix that includes the dimensions of utilization and the various evaluation approaches, it is possible to plan and conduct evaluations that increase the likelihood of the desired type of utilization. (Author/LC)

The purpose of this paper is to examine the various decisions associated with evaluation, provide some sort of structure and terminology for them, and then determine where (within this structure) the crucial value judgments lie. One result of such analysis will be a definition of evaluation. (Author/CTM)

High school students, teachers, and principals were surveyed regarding their perceptions of the availability and importance of different types of evaluative information. Overall, all three groups perceived that evaluative information was only occasionally available, which indicating that such information was important. (Author/MV)

Point of entry problems are faced by evaluators when asked to start an evaluation at an inappropriate time or to perform an inappropriate study. The fundamental purpose of evaluation is to help improve services. Guidelines are presented for choosing when to do a context, input, process, or product evaluation. (GDC)

Although Israel's educational system is centralized, the syllabi of the Department of Curriculum Planning (part of the Ministry of Education) are not compulsory. Curriculum facilitators are used as the link between the Department of Curriculum Planning and the teachers in the school where the facilitator continues to teach. (RL)

Research and evaluation done in relation to the Israel High School Biology Project (IHBP) are summarized. The IHBP is located at a university and directed by university faculty but maintains direct contact with schools. The IHBP is characterized by its attention to ongoing evaluation. (SLD)