Reports results of a study that examines (1) the extent to which colleges have institutional policies requiring collection of outcome assessment data; (2) which outcomes measures are being collected; (3) which measures are considered most useful in political science departments; and (4) future institutional plans. Concludes that all measures are…

Experiential approaches to education are compatible with mainstream school reforms designed to unify a highly fragmented curriculum, engage students as active participants in learning, and better serve at-risk populations. However, public school acceptance of experiential strategies is hampered by recent enthusiasm for standardized nationwide…

Although school boards are venerable U.S. institutions symbolizing local control and grass-roots determination, they do not work well and never have, despite establishment of superintendencies and privatization efforts. Needed reforms include establishing training and background requirements, banning educational conflicts of interest, strictly…

Reviews selected literature on administrative evaluation and focuses on four topics: (1) linking principals to school effectiveness as an outcome; (2) increasing awareness of school contextual indicators affecting leadership and effectiveness; (3) the effects of structural reform on the principal's role; and (4) assessing principal's performance…

Describes a model that ties school principal evaluation to accountability for outcomes and is based on the interaction of principals with the social system of schools. Also discusses the leader/school interaction as an evaluation framework and the importance of effective work relationships. (GLR)

The efforts of a committee to involve stakeholders, faculty in a department of nursing, in a program evaluation for accreditation, are described. Experiences over a five-year period are described, with an emphasis on strategies that fostered success. Implications for other educational evaluations are reviewed. (SLD)

Examined the impact of contextual factors on adults' and children's tendencies to hold individuals accountable for moral and legal transgressions. Subjects were 180 adults and children in the United States and Mysore, India. Indians more frequently absolved individuals of moral accountability for breaches performed under emotional duress or by…

Although Superintendent Frank Petruzielo arrived with briefcase full of plans to change Houston (Texas) school district, he spent his first year reworking his ideas in consultation with district teachers and administrators. He ignored school budget brokering that had occurred between previous school boards and business establishment, won 32%…

Reviews legal arguments used to challenge traditional testing programs in prior litigation and indicates how these arguments might be applied in a performance-assessment application. Examines discrimination challenges to performance assessments in employment contexts. Suggests ways to deal with the psychometric issues most likely to be encountered…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) was originally used to report academic improvement or decline in the performance of 9-, 13-, and 17-year olds across major geographic regions. State-by-state comparison was carefully avoided. In 1988, however, Congress authorized the NAEP to conduct voluntary Trial State Assessments. (CJS)

Suggests that the National Assessment of Educational Progress's (NAEP) Trial State Assessment (TSA) will provide reliable and valid state-by-state comparisons of what students have learned and will assess their progress over time. The TSA will also provide information on home learning environments, instructional practices, educational resources,…

Suggests that the proposed state-by-state National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) will be unable to provide information about which state programs are responsible for differences in test scores. Raises concerns about its cost effectiveness and potential loss of validity if used in state comparisons. (CJS)

Recent changes in the organization and structure of higher education in Australia offer challenges to institutions of higher education, including clear articulation of the institutional mission. The three institutional features of institutional governance, academic governance, and human resource development and management offer major management…

Some feel that outcome-based education and school-based management have been adopted as the new conventional wisdom to guide accountability without compelling research evidence. OBE proponents argue that currently expressed outcomes for student learning are neither sufficiently rigorous nor appropriate for students' future lives. Likely trends and…

School board and community have only two ways to achieve accountability: by prescribing teaching methodology and establishing expensive supervisory superstructure to enforce it; or by establishing desired learning outcome standards and products and requiring professional staff to develop plans to achieve them and criteria to evaluate results.…