This article focuses on school self-evaluations (SSE). It addresses whether SSE meets quality indicators and whether differences can be found between the quality judgments of school principals and inspectors. Data stem from two complementary data collections: population data of school inspections and a survey of a representative sample of school…

Research reveals that a positive attitude towards self-evaluation is a pre-condition which favours successful school self-evaluation. This article describes how self-evaluation is regarded in schools and investigates whether school characteristics can explain differences in the attitude of individuals. We report on a survey study conducted among…

In many European languages, the words "assessment" and "evaluation" are synonymous, but in English the two terms are used differently. Educational "assessment" is learner-focused and part of professional pedagogy, relating directly to the accountability of practitioners and schools to learners and their families.…

This article presents the results of an exploratory study into the effects of School Self-Evaluation (SSE) used by eight Education Inspectorates in seven European countries. This study reveals that in the countries where SSE is strongly incorporated into the school inspection system, there is a rather substantial degree of steering by the…

School quality care has become important in many Western countries and a number of high quality school self-evaluation instruments has been developed and implemented to support this activity. However, little is known on the critical success factors for the use of school self-evaluation instruments. From this longitudinal study into the use of a…

Recent decades have witnessed a remarkable rise in the regulation of public services and servants, education being a case in point. External evaluation and inspection has been an important element of this trend. Increasingly, however as the limitations of external surveillance systems have become clear the concept of internal or self-evaluation…

In recent years there has been an intense debate in many countries concerning the best approach to improving schools. The various methods being tried might be reasonably seen as constituting a continuum ranging from strict external control and inspection at one end, to self-evaluation and internal regulation at the other. In practice, most…

The four studies reported here are examples of empirical studies of evaluation which inform evaluation theory and practice by investigating beliefs held about the evaluation process. These studies all concern the theme of citizen involvement in education, especially the use of citizen judgments in program evaluation. (BW)

Using "A Study of Student Choice in Context of Institutional Change (SCIC)" is an example of an evaluation using social anthropological methods. The problems of confidentiality, rapport, evaluator autonomy, and unclear preconditions are discussed and illustrated. (BW)

The Australian experience with school self-evaluation is reviewed, and projections are made concerning the future. Trends for both government and non-government schools are reviewed, and tools for periodic as well as ongoing self-evaluation are discussed. An increasing focus on the design of school management information systems is projected. (TJH)

Presents results of a study of the organizational and political context of internal and external school evaluation in four European countries, focusing on evaluation methods and the role of the inspectorate. Also presents a comparative analysis of four cases of school self-evaluation at the elementary level in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands,…

Three basic questions about early childhood evaluation are raised: (1) what is to be evaluated, including a discussion of product versus process evaluations; (2) who is to do the evaluating, including comments on external versus staff evaluations; and (3) for what purpose is the evaluation to be conducted, including a discussion of summative…

Some aspects of the tension between the concept of the teacher as evaluator and the associated idea of school self-appraisal are discussed as they apply in the United Kingdom. Evaluation of students and educational policies and programs is discussed; and an institutional framework for action is outlined. (TJH)

A Peace Corps evaluator describes ways of improving utilization of evaluation results. Focus is on structural/organizational changes to facilitate knowledge and researcher use. Methods for use within and outside agencies; agency decision makers as end users; and the importance of context, as opposed to philosophy or methodology, are discussed.…

Self evaluation of organizations is recommended to avoid problems and bias associated with external evaluations. Four approaches to evaluation include testing, site visits, congruence between expected and achieved objectives, and naturalistic or qualitative evaluation. The five judgement stages of evaluation are described; needs, goals,…