Although the general conceptual basis appeared far earlier, theory-driven evaluation came to prominence only a few decades ago with the appearance of Chen's 1990 book "Theory-Driven Evaluations." Since that time, the approach has attracted many supporters as well as detractors. In this paper, 45 cases of theory-driven evaluations, published over a…

Federal, State and school-based professional development has become a multi-million dollar educational enterprise in Australia. Yet there are no published models for the making of systems-level professional development policy. Reviewing the literature on the characteristics of effective professional development programs, this paper proposes a…

Describes outdoor education students' developmental needs for belongingness, acceptance, care and friendship, praise and recognition, responsibility, self-respect, creativity, achievement, and new experiences. Explains how upward, outward, forward, and downward models of personal growth can be linked to developmental needs to enhance and evaluate…

Describes the policy changes in early childhood development in South Africa since 1994. Examines changes in Norther Province based on discussions by a group of teacher-practitioners and highlights the actions necessary to develop and implement the policies. Discusses the methodology of the change process, with particular reference to the role of…

Presents seven brief essays addressing recent research efforts and policy initiatives aimed at reforming the history curriculum. Notes that policy recommendations are rarely informed by research on either historical or pedagogical thinking. Authors include Keith C. Barton, Matthew T. Downey, Terrie L. Epstein, Linda S. Levstik, Peter Seixas,…

This book, which is intended primarily for instructional development specialists, academic leaders, and faculty members in all types of postsecondary institutions, explains what skills and competencies students need to succeed in today's workplace and details how colleges and universities can strengthen the curriculum to cultivate those skills in…

This document contains 13 papers on advances in service-learning research. The following papers are included: "Introduction" (Andrew Furco, Shelley H. Billig); "Community Service and Service-Learning in America: The State of the Art" (Ivor Pritchard); "Is Service-Learning Really Better Than Community Service? A Study of…

This book, which is an introductory-level textbook for preservice or inservice teachers, examines the foundations and practice of distance education (DE) and explains how to determine when DE is appropriate. The following are among the topics discussed in the book's 12 chapters: (1) foundations of DE (DE today and tomorrow, media in education,…

This document reports on how key stakeholders in work force preparedness nationwide are responding to pressures of the skills race. Part 1 presents an overview of the skills challenge and the economic and social consequences of failing to meet the challenge. Part 2 examines the impact of the skills shortage on major stakeholders and explains how…