Surveyed faculty and students at a Scottish university about their perceptions of the purpose, nature, and procedures of student assessment. Found significant differences between them in their perceptions, which may suggest that while faculty declared a commitment to the formative purposes of assessment, actual practice did not support this. (EV)

Five models of program evaluation--needs assessment, feasibility study, process evaluation, outcome evaluation, and cost analysis--are described, and how they differ from research is explained. Six groups of stakeholders are identified, reasons for doing evaluations are discussed, qualitative and quantitative methods are described, five stages of…

Describes research that used formative evaluation methods to examine synchronous computer-mediated communication (CMC) systems for online learning at the University of Hawaii. Discusses learner-centeredness, constructivism, and sociocultural theories that were used as the bases for the design of synchronous activities and recommends 10 desirable…

Assessment and learning are two sides of the same coin (Ramsden, 1992, Biggs, 1999) and their relationship has also been likened to the participants in a three-legged race (Harding & Craven, 2001). The aim of this article is to explore the potential of e-assessment to provide solutions to some of the challenges for e-learning. Drawing on…

This paper reports a study designed to enhance students' ability to implement assessment marking criteria and to develop the role of dialogue in student learning. Pairs or trios of undergraduate biology students were asked to complete a poster on the theme of histology using student/tutor-constructed marking criteria. The study showed: (1)…

This article reports the development of an evaluation technique that uses adjective checklists as instruments for use by low-literate and marginally literate adults to provide assessments of their learning experiences in adult education and development programs. Vignettes of activities from three stages of the development process depict the range…

We are all accustomed to periodic summative testing for achievement, but in this chapter the importance of requiring mastery of fundamentals as the baseline for evaluation, regardless of the level of the class involved, is discussed.

This paper details the challenges encountered by authors summarizing evidence from a primary study to describe a treatment's effectiveness using an effect size (ES) estimate. Dilemmas that are encountered, including how to calculate and interpret the pertinent standardized mean difference ES for results from studies of various research designs,…

Process evaluation helps us to understand the planning process. This predominantly qualitative approach explains how and why decisions are made and activities undertaken. The focus includes feelings and perceptions of program staff. The evaluator's ability to interpret and longitudinally summarize the experience of program staff and community…

We present a discussion of some of the lessons the investigators learned during the development and implementation phases of the Parents Matter! Program (PMP). Lessons were learned that are relevant to various groups involved in large scale, multi-site, community-based intervention studies: investigators, community leaders, community members,…

The launch of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (UNDESD) gives the education community opportunity to reflect on and discuss major issues that will affect the future well-being of the world. The goals and dreams of environmental education (EE) are similar to those of educators involved in education for sustainable…

This article introduces technology training designed for university professors who work with preservice and emergency teachers at a College of Education of a state university. The technology training was delivered in multiple ways: (a) large group workshops, (b) small group meetings, (c) individual mentoring, and (d) just-in-time training. Service…

When the most recent generation of community building initiatives (CCIs) was launched in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the field wanted to invest in and learn about the effectiveness of a kind of initiative that was meant to bring together the best of what had been learned during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s about how to go about promoting change…

This paper presents the development of the fusion model skills diagnosis system (fusion model system), which can help integrate standardized testing into the learning process with both skills-level examinee parameters for modeling examinee skill mastery and skills-level item parameters, giving information about the diagnostic power of the test.…

This report covers the third year of Chapin Hall's process evaluation of the Prime Time Initiative of Palm Beach County, Florida, a system-building effort to strengthen the quality of after-school programs in the county. During the past two decades, the after-school field has expanded enormously, partly in response to increasing concern about…