This report from the Career and Technical Education (CTE) Research Network Lead team provides final results from an evaluability assessment of CTE programs that feasibly could be evaluated using a rigorous experimental design. Evaluability assessments (also called feasibility studies) are used in education and other fields, such as international…

Researchers may be interested in examining the impact of programs that prepare youth and adults for successful careers but unable to implement experimental designs with true randomization of participants. As a result, these studies can be compromised by underlying factors that impact group selection and thus lead to potentially biased results.…

The terms "rigor" and "relevance" most often surface in discussions of methodological adequacy. Assessing epistemological relevance is equivalent to answering the question, "Is this particular research question worth asking at all?" Epistemological rigor refers to the properties of a "researchable" problem.…

In view of a demand for information and an expansion in evaluation research practices, possibilities for combining quantitative and qualitative methods in program evaluation should be explored. Quantitative research methods attempt to reduce observed social phenomena to numerical notations. Their weaknesses include the reduction of social…

The goal of the evaluation of the Western Region AMIDS was to probe deeper into the content, organization, management and methodology of the program to determine its impact on the adult, vocational, technical, and manpower programs that are served by it. The theories and methods developed by Edward Suchman and Robert E. Stake were selected as…

Discusses the importance of occupational program reassessment in resource allocation and program planning. Provides suggestions concerning reassessment planning, goals, and systematic implementation. Recommends a reassessment structure that promotes objectivity. Identifies the areas that should be evaluated, and provides examples of measures of…

This paper focuses on transition programs for youth to postsecondary education, broadly considered. It addresses the following questions: (1) What models or programs of transition exist? (2) On what basis can we say one transition program is more effective than another? In other words, how is successful transition defined? (3) How are…

Program Evaluation and Review Techniques (PERT) is a network composed of events and activities, and a viable tool in developing a program for institutional research. The model contains three segments: internal and external research activities, and a system of data collection and retrieval. (Author/AJ)

This replication handbook describes procedures and provides instruments which educators can use to assess sex equity in their own settings. It has two major parts: (1) appendixes that provide copies of data collection materials developed during the Vocational Education Equity Study (interview forms for state directors, state agency personnel,…

Design and implementation of a curriculum evaluation plan for the vocational education program (occupational education under the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Act) of a large correctional system are described. An outside evaluator assisted in designing and conducting the first year's evaluation. The 1991-92 curriculum used was…

An approach and methodology for the systematic measurement of the impact of employment-related social programs is presented in this primer. Chapter 1 focuses on evaluation as the third step (the first two being planning and operation) in the process of program implementation. Chapter 2 examines the impacts of social programs. Topics include…

The aims of an evaluation of the Trades Education (TRADEC) schemes were to report on the approach's distinctive features and to assess the TRADEC system's effectiveness and potential for educating and training a wide range of workers. The research design comprised three major elements. First, a developmental phase was devoted to identification and…

The purpose of phase 3 of Project IMPACT (a project to assess the impact of vocational education research and development on vocational education programs in Illinois) was to review, further conceptualize, and refine the impact assessment system for vocational education research and development efforts proposed during fiscal 1989. The following…

Obtaining accurate, comprehensive data for vocational education has been one of the more elusive objectives of federal policy. Given the long history of unsuccessful attempts to improve the quality and scope of data on vocational education, it is important to understand the lessons of the past before embarking on a new data collection effort…

This manual details a research design for the longitudinal and comparative evaluation of nursing education currently being conducted by the National Second Step Project at Sonoma State University. Chapter 1 describes the purpose, background, and context and substance of the Second Step model. Chapter 2 considers the design of a multicampus…