Youth monitoring and self evaluation services were developed for fourteen youth programs in the Eastern Region, the mid-Western Region and the Western Region of the United States. The concept of youth involvement is central to these fourteen projects. Youth involvement is defined as "initial participation by project beneficiaries in the…

A process assessment was conducted to determine the effectiveness of the procedure used by the Bureau of Occupational and Adult Education, U.S. Office of Education (USOE), in conducting State Management Evaluation Reviews for Compliance (MERC) with Federal legislation and regulations governing public vocational and adult education programs. The…

Positive and negative aspects of assigning faculty in nursing specialties to teach foundations or basic nursing skills courses are discussed. Students' reactions to nursing specialists' instruction are also examined. Recommendations are made for duplicating the positive outcomes of a multidisciplinary faculty mix. (MF)

A comprehensive three-level program evaluation plan assesses overall impact of early intervention programs through assessment of children's progress toward developmental milestones; quarterly child progress through administration of a program-relevant, criterion-referenced tool; and weekly child progress toward specific instructional objectives by…

This article advocates a systems approach to curriculum development. Steps in the system include the following: assess student needs, identify job specific applications, develop student objectives, develop criterion tests, prepare/select instructional materials, execute programs, and evaluate programs. (CT)

This discussion of the measurement of performance criteria and desired or acceptable level of achievement focuses on the performance criteria used for the evaluation of interlibrary services (success rate, turnaround time, cost, and impact of service). Document delivery, communication, and interlibrary loan research are covered. Fifty references…

The purpose of this article is to comment on practice in the use of existing data bases in program evaluation and school improvement and to explore directions for increased and improved use. (BW)

Presents responses to three "College English" articles, C.H. Knoblauch and Lil Brannon's "Writing as Learning through the Curriculum" (September 1983), Helen Schwartz's "Monsters and Mentors" (February 1982), and James C. Raymond's "Rhetoric: The Methodology of the Humanities" (December 1982). Includes the…

With the development of information technology, computer-assisted language learning is becoming a trend in foreign language teaching environment. It is argued that characterized by the universal availability of authentic materials, the multimedia capability and the nonlinear (hypermedia) structure of the information, the World Wide Web have the…

In today's results-oriented, fast-moving business environment, it is critical for trainers to demonstrate the value of training to the organization: There is nothing inherently valuable about training. It is performance gains that training catalyzes that give it worth (Graber, 2000). This is why evaluations tied to business results are becoming…

In the late 1990s the Texas Education Agency advocated the transformation of all counseling services into developmental guidance programs. This document describes the process undertaken and the lessons learned when evaluating a small, rural school district in north Texas in order to begin this model transformation. The purpose of the study was to…

This Spanish- and Portuguese-language bulletin presents articles focusing on early childhood and elementary-age initiatives in which the children play a more active role than the usual model of teachers/adult project leaders taking the lead and the children following their directions. Each article covers a distinct project, thus examining the…

In this issue of Forum Focus, we focus on what researchers and policy makers are doing to help governments take stock of their efforts to make sure that every young person is "Ready by 21"--ready for work, ready for college, ready for life. "Research Update" reviews efforts to establish a coherent set of youth development…

In June of 1998, Proposition 227 was passed by 61 percent of the California electorate. Intended to change how the state's English learners (ELs) are instructed, Proposition 227 required that ELs be taught "overwhelmingly in English" through sheltered/structured English immersion (SEI) programs during a transition period and then…

Talents Unlimited (TU) is a program that enhances students' creative and critical thinking skills within the framework of the regular classroom curriculum. Based on Calvin Taylor's theory of multiple talents and intellectual abilities, this program develops improved thinking in specific talent processes, including Productive Thinking,…