A customized guide about liberatory design thinking processes that have been tested within college settings to support changes that enhance equity in policies and practices within institutions. This research is based on case studies of several institutions, including focus group interviews with the campus design teams and an analysis of artifacts.…

This paper describes the result of a design study in which a geography course was developed and tested aiming to develop the Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) of first-year primary student teachers. This resulted in a course called "Consciously Teaching Geography" with characteristics as (1) starting from students' preconceptions and…

While participatory evaluation (PE) constitutes an important trend in the field of evaluation, its ontology has not been systematically analyzed. As a result, the concept of PE is ambiguous and inadequately theorized. Furthermore, no existing instrument accurately measures stakeholder participation. First, this article attempts to overcome these…

Drawing upon career education leaders and specialists as sources, the authors explore the status of career education by discussing definitions, program dimensions, roles of career education, program evaluation, and recommendations for the State of Mississippi. The most common definitions of career education focus on five aspects: (1) career…

Program theory can be used to improve programs and policies. This article describes a set of techniques for complicating and simplifying program theory, referred to as conceptual and action heuristics. Methods such as analyzing metaphors, clarifying concepts, mapping, component assessment, causal modeling, and decision analysis are discussed. (JAZ)

Intended to serve as a resource for school systems interested in developing a comprehensive and effective environmental education program, this model includes 10 phases addressing: committee development; environmental education goals and objectives; literature reviews; program goals; curriculum development; inservice teacher education; a…

Both evaluation and planning typically begin with an attempt to define the conceptual territory of interest; this paper presents an approach to such conceptualization. The term, structured conceptualization, is used to refer to any definable set of procedures which can help a user develop a useful conceptual representation. Structured…

A series of six papers, this synthesis of literature on rural development and evaluation offers a starting point for rural development planning and projects from the national to the local level. The current state of knowledge is assessed and application techniques and methods are pinpointed. In the introduction, operation of the Functional Network…

Presenting suggestions for conceptualizing Rural Development Act Title V program evaluations, this paper focuses upon a five-level program outcomes model which encompasses a causal sequence of anticipated shortrun, intermediate, and longrun outcomes. Examples of possible Title V measurement foci are presented for each of five outcome levels as…

The extensive sociological studies of conservation agriculture have provided considerable understanding of farmers' use of conservation practices, but attempts to develop predictive models have failed. Reviews of research findings question the utility of the conceptual and methodological perspectives of prior research. The argument advanced here…

The long-range objective of the Central Atlantic Regional Educational Laboratory (CAREL) dance program was to develop children's ability to solve problems in movement terms and to express emotional involvement and creative ideas through dance. Workshops were conducted for 15 non-specialist teachers to explore the concepts of space, time, and…

Since the 1970s, Outward Bound (OB) has borrowed psychological language and models to articulate its educational objectives and methods in terms accessible to mainstream educators. This report claims that OB's uncritical adoption of psychological language and models will undermine its commitment to certain core values of its tradition. This is…

For the thirty-third year, the Research and Theory Division of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. This is Volume #2 of the 33rd "Annual Proceedings of Selected Papers on the Practice of Educational Communications and Technology." This volume includes…

Commissioned by the Office of Career Education (OCE), this monograph provides a perspective from which the OCE could (1) examine the human services education model implemented by the authors, and (2) consider its possible usefulness in OCE's future planning and development. The focus is on the potential alliance of career education and human…

Prepared for State University of New York/Buffalo researchers participating in a state-sponsored educational financing project, this background paper focuses on the vocational education "program effects" of changing financial aid formulas and/or the rationale for organizing school districts and regional services. It scrutinizes the role of Boards…