Thirteen alternatives to using competency based tests should be considered when diagnosing student competency in writing: teacher-made or departmental tests, teacher-student conferences, contractual grade agreements between student and teacher, student self-evaluation, individualized goal setting, keeping files or portfolios of student work,…

Guidelines are presented to assist school divisions in implementing the accreditation requirement of the Virginia Board of Education for minimum competency assessment in citizenship for all high school graduates. It is assumed that local schools or divisions have established goals and objectives for social studies programs which may serve as a…

Before enrollment of youth began in the Youth Incentive Entitlement Pilot Projects (YIEPP) program, a survey was conducted of program eligible youth in four of the largest Entitlement areas and in four matched control sites in order to provide baseline data for an impact analysis of the YIEPP program. After probability sampling, over 120,000…

The Sheffield (Great Britain) Occupational Functional Reading Project was organized to study the functional reading required of 16-year-old school leavers who entered employment or training for a job, and to design instruments for assessing and diagnosing occupational functional reading abilities. The primary task of the project was to develop a…

This study evaluates materials developed for low achievers by secondary mathematics teachers who participated in a summer conference. Fifteen pairs of experimental/control classes were involved. Materials were evaluated by data from achievement tests and attitude instruments. In addition, the teachers using the materials were asked for suggestions…

Some of the historical developments which have influenced educational evaluation are the importance of operationalism and behavioral objectives; curriculum reform; the Elementary and Secondary Education Act; and school and teacher accountability. Major problems related to current evaluation practices include negative attitudes toward evaluation,…

The Center for the Study of Evaluation's project, Evaluation and School Districts, used questionnaires to survey the heads of evaluation offices in metropolitan public school systems. This paper presents the preliminary findings of the survey. Most school systems have established a centralized program evaluation unit organized around three…

The 1975 Community/Junior College Conference sought to define and describe evaluation, discuss measuring devices, and underscore the ethical reasons for fair evaluation. William P. Gorth began by discussing the purpose of evaluation--to provide data to a specified decision-maker for decision-making--and the implications which could be drawn from…

This report summarizes a research project on the Child Development Associate (CDA) assessment and credentialing system. The issues covered in the report fall under two general categories: validity (the ability of the CDA assessment/credential system to identify competent child care staff) and career development potential (the benefits of the CDA…

In a 1979 survey, the majority of the 73% responding superintendents and 38% responding school board chairmen in 269 randomly chosen small school districts across the nation indicated that program evaluation activity occurred in their districts and that evaluation information was generally desired by and available to the school board.…

The study examined the process by which diagnostic data on children thought to have learning disabilities (LD) are generated and used. Emphasis was placed on the validity of test instruments in common use in the field. Since part of the practical validity of any instrument used to identify an LD child rests on the validity of the LD construct…

As more emphasis is placed upon institutional research that provides information relating to long-term strategic planning, as well as to short-term operational considerations, program evaluation techniques that merely analyze past or current budget and enrollment statistics will become increasingly inadequate. Such techniques are based on data…

Documenting the impact of 1978-79 Community Resource Development (CRD) projects, this national study presents data in response to a congressional mandate calling for assessment of the consequences and effectiveness of Community Resource Development projects. The report presents findings derived from questionnaires sent to 47 state CRD leaders, 120…

The paper describes a methodology to aid educators as they evaluate educational programs aimed at changing students' attitudes, values, and/or behavior. The major objective of the evaluation method is to analyze the content and/or process that underlies behavior in a given situation. In addition, the paper relates how this method was used to…

The Testing, Assessment, and Evaluation Division (TAE) of the National Institute of Education was created during a reorganization in 1978. Some of TAE's activities have included: identifying research needs; long-range planning for federally-sponsored evaluation research; reviewing evaluation methodologies; comparing local vs. large national…