Developed by the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges in response to legislative mandate, this report provides a brief epidemiological background on the Human Immune Deficiency Virus epidemic, a summary of actions taken by the Board of Governors and the Chancellor's Office, results of a survey of the colleges regarding…

This article describes work on a new tool to help educators increase parental involvement in their schools using the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC). When the authors set out on their goal in rural Hart County, Kentucky, they discovered that no instrument existed to measure changes in the level of parental involvement. Using…

In 1988 officials in 27 major cities were surveyed on the following topics: (1) ability to meet demand for emergency food assistance and shelter; (2) causes and demographics of hunger and homelessness; (3) status of low-income housing; and (4) outlook for 1989. Summary findings included the following: (1) demand for emergency food assistance…

A project conducted in the volunteer program of a county library system in a midwestern city assisted the volunteer coordinator in assessing the library's performance appraisal process for volunteers and in identifying ways to make the process more effective. Factors in performance appraisal which were most applicable and effective to the context…

In spring 1987, a self-study was conducted of the Los Angeles Community College District's Project for Adult College Education (PACE) to determine what current and former PACE students, faculty, and administrators felt were the strengths and weaknesses of the program. Using an integrated course approach, PACE permits students to complete an…

In 1988, a project was undertaken at Chabot College in California to develop a questionnaire and study methodology for assessing the views of employers regarding the business applications of typewriters and computers. Staff at the college needed this information for curriculum and program planning, as well as for equipment and supply budgeting.…

As part of the strategic planning efforts of the San Francisco Community College District (SFCCD), the student population of the City College of San Francisco (CCSF) and day and evening students attending the district's Community College Centers (CCC) were surveyed. The survey solicited information on students' major, sex, age, race, citizenship,…

First grade students (38) viewed a theater production on the theme of friendship in a study designed to determine the degree of the students' dramatic literacy. General objectives of the study were to: (1) compare children's learning from live theater with their learning from television; (2) describe what children knew about the play they saw and…

Primarily intended to generate a demographic profile of the typical student user of Minnesota University's Walter Library, this follow-up to a 1983 study was also designed to ascertain which areas, materials, and services are used most frequently by students, what activities occupy students during their visits to the library, and why students…

The introduction to this Systems and Procedures Exchange Center (SPEC) kit explains the Conspectus method, which was developed in 1980 by the Research Libraries Group (RLG) as a means of systematically and qualitatively evaluating large library collections. The discussion considers advantages and disadvantages of this tool, which evaluates past…

Surveys used for program and institutional evaluation, such as self-studies conducted for accreditation review, are discussed. Frequently, these evaluations take the form of faculty surveys and student surveys. This paper explores the following general considerations associated with mail surveys and other surveys: avoidance of response bias;…

An evaluation of Monetary Economics, a course offered to distance education students of the University of Queensland in 1979 and 1980, was conducted in 1981. Monetary Economics is an innovative course designed and prepared using principles of educational technology specifically for distance education, and for the planning of effective interaction…

Documentation supplied in this kit demonstrates how research libraries provide services to visiting scholars as distinguished from other categories of external user. A "visiting scholar" is most often defined as a faculty member affiliated with an institution of higher education but the term may also include independent scholars and persons…

In fall 1990, a study was conducted of new freshmen at the regional campuses (RC's) of Kent State University to gather information on the characteristics and goals of the new students and to determine their reasons for enrolling and their perceptions of the academic and student services provided. Surveys were mailed to all 2,390 new freshmen…

A study investigated the relative effects of using computers and writing by hand on secondary students' quality or quantity of writing, and on their attitudes toward writing. Subjects were 40 eighth-grade students in an Anglo-Chinese school in Hong Kong, with some experience in writing brief compositions. The word processing program used was…