A good formative evaluator, who helps programs become as effective as possible, behaves remarkably like a good personal coach. Nine ways in which a formative evaluator can help a program manager are listed, and implications for practicing evaluators and the evaluation profession are detailed. (SLD)

Problems of definition in estimation in evaluation research were studied through a survey of homeless persons in Cook County (Illinois) based on 481 interviews. Differences arising from the following four population definitions are presented: (1) traditional homeless; (2) marginally housed; (3) social isolates; and (4) total of these categories.…

Interviews a group of New York teachers to investigate the issues that teachers confront as they make the transition to whole language and attempt to sustain it. Discusses the amount of work involved in whole language instruction; relations with other faculty members, administrators, and parents; organization of instruction; defining whole…

A more inclusive definition of wealth for higher education institutions that adds capitalized value of annual gifts, grants, and public appropriations to the traditional endowment-based measure is proposed. It is found that, when the definition of wealth includes these nonendowment sources, public higher education institutions dominate in…

The Interagency Committee on Learning Disabilities' definition of learning disabilities implies that the presence of social skills deficits alone suffices for diagnosis, even in the absence of academic difficulties. Overlaps between this criterion and eligibility criteria for emotional disturbance are discussed along with implications for…

Calculating the productivity of a college or university is more complex than determining a machine's productivity. Sixteen rational, cultural, political, and cognitive constraints that influence institutional productivity are outlined and their mediation by institutional culture and history is noted. (MSE)

Describes a 10-stage process approach to teaching technical students "definition." Includes an assignment that encourages the use of the defining process. Discusses advantages of the approach. (PRA)

Two classification procedures for identifying children with reading disabilities were compared, differing in their use of intelligence quotient (IQ). Results indicated that abandoning IQ in classification had a very limited impact on the number of children identified as reading disordered, but that use of IQ resulted in more high-IQ children being…

Examines leadership practices of four schools participating in the Saskatchewan (Canada) School Improvement Program. Findings suggest that provincial guidelines discuss leadership without defining it. Leadership as practiced consists largely of disconnected decisions, behaviors, and actions. In a learning organization, a leadership view embracing…

This article argues for integrating outdoor or environmental education into the special education curriculum. It discusses the definition and philosophy of outdoor education and notes similarities between outdoor education and special education. A list of suggested resources is attached. (DB)

Review seeks to clarify issues of definition and assessment for school psychologists facing task of operationalizing and measuring social maladjustment exclusion in federal definition of serious emotional disturbance. For school psychologists in states with exclusion for social maladjustment, proactive recommendations are offered, emphasizing…

Examines the meaning, from the perspective of a publisher of young adult fiction, of the term "multicultural." Defines three distinct kinds of multiculturalism. Describes a multiculturalism bent on freeing the many voices of the reader. (HB)

Responds to Fong and Amatea's (1992) study of work stress exhibited by 141 academically employed women. Notes that, although it was found that single women had significantly higher levels of stress than did married-parent women, there are problems with definitions, sampling, assessment, and statistics that pose threats to both internal and…

Explores definitions of indigenous peoples and the meaning of indigenous education. Education has often been a political tool to deny the identities of indigenous people, but it can become a way for indigenous people to reclaim their rights and cultural identities. (SLD)

Asserts that the assessment of students' ability to use computers should be central to educational computing research, but most studies have relied on vague definitions of what constitutes computer-use ability. Argues that definitions need to be clarified before further research is conducted. Raises methodological issues for further research. (DSK)