The philosophical and psychological foundations of the resistance evaluators encounter when attempting to implement evaluation efforts are explored. Problems in the evaluative paradigm are presented, and suggested coping strategies are discussed. (Author/GK)

Twelve conditions which must be satisfied for an evaluation agreement to be fair are posited and discussed, and conditions which would render void a fair agreement are examined. (MJB)

Administering research and overseeing evaluation researchers make evident the role of attitudes and outlook in comparison to technical skill. The latter is important for evaluators. Evaluation research can be considered to have been originated in operations research. (Author/GK)

Successful evaluation research reouires a high level of quantitative skill. The procedures, diverse and complex, of good quantitative training are outlined. (Author/GK)

Examines the opinions of administrators/evaluators on the usefulness of relatively recent books on educational evaluation. (IRT)

Describes an extension to the Rasch model for fundamental measurement in which there is parameterization not only for examinee ability and item difficulty but also for judge severity. Discusses variants of this model and judging plans, and explains its use in an empirical testing situation. (SLD)

Describes the challenges faced by researchers in evaluating a neighborhood revitalization project. Places the challenges in the context of three of the Program Evaluation Standards of the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation: Values Identification, Fiscal Responsibility, and Analysis of Quantitative Information. (SLD)

Provides a historical accounting of the work of early African American educational evaluators to show the critical place of race and culture in both historical and contemporary visions of responsive evaluation. Discusses reasons their work has so largely been ignored. (SLD)

The role of the evaluator in the decision-making process is discussed. Topics covered include identification of decision makers and decision-making processes, delineation of informational needs, identification of the various media and forums for evaluation ideas, and definition of functions that evaluators serve. (TJH)

Different dimensions of evaluation utilization and evaluator strategies for stimulating use are discussed, in terms of designing a formal evaluation utilization system. While the need exists to improve the design process, there is no simple formula. Evaluators should see part of their function as creating a repository of knowledge. (SLD)

Investigates how six novice and six expert evaluators observed a teaching performance and subsequently interpreted their observations. Expert evaluators approached evaluation as a shared process of construction, analysis, and interpretation of classroom events. Experts looked for structures but were neither as prescriptive nor as judgmental as…

The 12 articles (including an index) of this theme issue are devoted to documenting and critiquing the American Evaluation Association's "Guiding Principles for Evaluators," a code of ethics and standards. The development of these principles is traced, and their strengths and weaknesses are analyzed at general and specific levels. (SLD)

Evaluators vary in their propensity to make direct valuative judgments of program worth. The decision to include recommendations with a report or provide merely descriptive evaluation depends on individuals' perspectives concerning the nature of reality, truth and values, human agency, and informational utility. (SLD)

Evaluated external assessor ratings of the quality of the research team and the proposed research for proposals submitted to the Australian Research Council large grants program. Data from 313 evaluations show that the reliability of the assessments varied systematically with the number of assessors and the score considered. Discusses implication…

The article and commentary in this special section consider the ethical implications of a remark by an employee in a business being evaluated that employees have been advised to make the program look good. Explores the implications for the evaluation and its usefulness. (SLD)