Activities and roles of department heads that can improve departmental and faculty effectiveness were investigated, along with dimensions associated with departmental leadership of chairpersons. In the first of two studies, department heads at four-year institutions were interviewed to identify views of existing conditions in higher education,…

A writing folder is a resource tool which has been designed to reflect the phases of the writing process and which complements other classroom strategies and teaching methods used to enhance the understanding of this process. A field test was conducted during the 1985-86 school year to gather information on the use of writing folders in 78 North…

As part of an ongoing evaluation of the career programs at William Rainey Harper College (WRHC), a follow-up study was conducted of 1984 program graduates, and results were compared with those from earlier surveys. Questionnaires were sent to 763 students who graduated from career programs in 1983-84, requesting demographic information, current…

During the spring of 1986, the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) surveyed 32 of its members, selected on the basis of their interlibrary loan (ILL) activities and programs, in an effort to gather documents regarding online ILL services and cooperative borrowing/consortium activities. Of the 22 respondents, all conduct at least part of their…

New schools will have to be built and existing facilities rehabilitated to house California's growing enrollment. The state conducted a study to determine the need for funding to meet this new demand. Questionnaires were sent to each of the state's 1,029 school districts and 58 county offices of education. Offices responsible for over 85 percent…

A study was conducted at William Rainey Harper College (WRHC) to gather follow-up data on transfer-oriented students 1 year after they had accumulated at least 48 hours of credit at WRHC. All 824 alumni meeting these criteria were mailed a survey form asking about their current status, their evaluation of WRHC, and their activity pattern while at…

Factors affecting the return rate of a mailed questionnaire were investigated. A survey was mailed to 196 students who had dropped out of home study courses offered by a distance education university. The effects of personalizing the cover letter and of including anonymous pre-coded personal information on the questionnaire were studied in a 2 X 2…

Academic and social performance of 204 high school students who had attended one-teacher rural elementary schools in Nebraska, South Dakota, and Montana was investigated to determine if small school students were disadvantaged in a larger high school setting. Data gathered by questionnaires from students, school administrators, and counselors…

Ratios that enable colleges and universities to select other institutions for comparison are presented. The ratios and underlying data also enable colleges to rank order institutions and to calculate means, quartiles, and ranges for these groups. The data are based on FY 1983 U.S. Department of Education Statistics. The ratios summarize the…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between graduate education in educational psychology and instructional design programs in view of the common interest of the two disciplines in certain content areas. Program administrators (chairpersons) of instructional design and technology programs at 22 institutions with doctoral…

This manual includes strategies for conducting wave 4 of a longitudinal follow-up study. Part 1, Procedures for Researchers, outlines steps to be used in guiding the research process to achieve indepth, qualitative interviews with a group of the original sample members who were studied over a 15-year period. It includes guidelines and procedures…

Designed to assist Illinois public community colleges in satisfying state and federal reporting requirements, this handbook provides guidelines for conducting vocational education follow-up studies and reporting data. Following introductory information, an overview is presented of the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) Management Information…

A study was conducted at William Rainey Harper College (WRHC) to determine the feasibility of establishing a flexible hour physical fitness center and super circuit lab at the college. Designed for use by community residents of all ages and physical fitness levels, the Super Circuit Lab would provide circuit weight machines and cardiovascular…

This paper reports on the development of three self-efficacy questionnaires for use in studying the interaction effect among students, teachers, and principals within an educational situation. The Student Self-Efficacy Instrument was designed from a widely used questionnaire administered to children, the Intellectual Achievement Responsibility…

Public opinion about public education in Minnesota was investigated through a survey of a representative sample of adults. The questions asked dealt broadly with the following areas: educational quality; teacher employment conditions; State financial support; State educational guidelines; and educational vouchers. Major findings, for the sample as…