Steps to be taken to "operationalize" evaluation, i.e., to make evaluation work, are discussed and applied to the Unesco program of functional literacy. Evaluation is seen as an important social concern, as well as a field of study and an area of competence. Four types of evaluation applied to the Unesco program are context evaluation,…

Cost-effectiveness represents an attempt to apply one methodology to decision-making in education. Three recent trends in the behavioral and social sciences are apparent: Rationalization in the decision process, institutionalization of research in education, and the beginning of a general theory of organizational behavior. The problem posed is how…

A systems theory approach to information requirements in education and in evaluation strategies is applied to decision making. Educational decision making itself involves long range planning, system structuring to implement goals, system allocation (cost), and system monitoring which provides the feedback. Each level requires differential…

In order to determine the value of cost-benefit analysis to adult educators, this paper discusses the concepts involved and how they are being operationalized in adult education. The specific technique is discussed within the general framework of systems approach. A survey of current usage reveals that it has thus far been limited primarily to…

Pressures from both outside and inside the institution are making it imperative that community colleges improve their ability to document and articulate the outputs and impacts of their programs. This document addresses itself to this issue and to the problems associated with measurement of outcomes in postsecondary education. An approach taken by…

The least understood of complex systems is that which produces educated people. Superficially, many key elements of a manufacturing organization are part of the system: a product, product tolerance limits, methods for assessing product deviation, and a feed-back system for making compensatory adjustments. In layman's terms these elements are:…

The edited presentations of the Accountability Through Evaluation Institute are given to provide insight into some problems and solutions regarding educational accountability. Presentations include "Educational Accountability" (Lee E. Wickline); "A Scheme for Evaluation" (Robert Armstrong, Terry D. Cornell, Robert Kraner, and…

Postsecondary instructional dynamics is a complex process in which inputs (student characteristics and expectations, resources, and faculty characteristics and preparation) are converted through the educational process (instruction strategies, models, and techniques as well as supportive services) into outputs (outcomes and benefits of instruction…

The Joint Federal/State Task Force on Evaluation (the Belmont Group) is currently developing a Joint Comprehensive Evaluation System (JCES) for the federally funded programs under the federal acts listed above. It is planned that JCES will replace the multiplicity of evaluation systems (and paper work) under the separate existing programs. This…