A review of the literature was conducted to describe the field of program evaluation, to identify useful sources of information on the topic, and to outline concepts and methodologies that have been proposed for planning and conducting evaluations of education and training programs. The results of the review showed that the failures of early…

The fourth volume in a series on communication and language intervention focuses on specific language impairments in children, and contains papers presented at a 1992 conference. Papers include the following: "Specific Language Impairments in Children: An Introduction" (Ruth V. Watkins); "Studies of Genetics of Specific Language Impairment" (J.…

A 1-year demonstration project was conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to help remove or reduce barriers to the participation of low-income family day care homes in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). FNS funded six grantees to conduct a demonstration of three different strategies.…

The lack of information on the extent and nature of drug use and abuse among minority youth has limited the development of culturally relevant and effective interventions for this group. These papers present research findings and information about research methodology directed at this target group. Papers include: (1) "Integrating Mainstream…

Characteristics of objective measurement and how to develop an objective instrument are discussed. Objective measurement can be thought of as that type of measurement in the social sciences that parallels the measurement that takes place in science. The following are aspects of scientific measurement that should be transferred to the measurement…

The Task Group on Gender-Focused Research was established to raise awareness and interest in gender as a variable in addictions research at the Addiction Research Foundation (ARF) in Ontario (Canada). Recognizing that much of the research on substance abuse has focused on males, the Task Group was charged with providing a basis for the development…

A study of item response theory in language testing research investigated the influence of sample size on (1) the statistical test of data-model fit and (2) the invariance of parameter estimates. Data were drawn from a 1993 administration of the examination of Dutch as a second language to about a thousand candidates, using results from only the…

This preliminary study investigated the perceptions of the research process of teachers who had newly become researchers and, in particular, it sought to explore the relationship between teacher-conducted research and professional growth. Six experienced English as a Second Language (ESL) and English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers were…

This study investigated the possible causes of the contradiction between the results of two projects. Indiana's Prime Time project compared the achievement of students in large (averaging 26 students) and small (averaging 19 students) classrooms in grades 1 through 3. Results indicated that 3 years in smaller classes had little effect on student…

The strengths of item-response theory (IRT) are used to examine the degree of information individual test items provide, as well as to investigate how the individual item types contribute to the overall measurement accuracy of the Illinois Goal Assessment Program (IGAP) reading test. Using the graded-response model of Samejima (1969), the amount…

This profile presents and summarizes available information about the quality of data from the five surveys that comprise the SASS, along with background material on the survey design and procedures for the following: (1) School Survey; (2) School Administrator Survey; (3) Teacher Demand and Shortage Survey; (4) Teacher Survey; and (5) Teacher…

Existing qualitative studies of school principals suffer from procedural or conceptual shortcomings that result in failure to clarify the principal's instructional role. This paper describes the methodology and procedures of a year-long, multimethod, multilevel field study of 12 school principals. First, the background for the study (the…

Within the Mathematics of Finance classes at the Smeal College of Business Administration at Penn State University, lectures are developed using Asymetric's Toolbook program and are presented through a computer system. This approach was implemented because it has the potential to convey effectively concepts that are ordinarily difficult to…

The first-year report of the El Paso (Texas) Family Literacy for Parents of Preschoolers program describes the program and evaluates its progress toward stated objectives. The introductory section addresses the following topics: demographic and literacy characteristics of the community; the needs assessment; project design; and objectives for…

This volume focuses on therapeutic recreation, as a subject of inquiry and as a treatment tool. The 11 articles include original field based research, program development initiatives, issue and theory of practice papers, and original tutorials in assessment and research. The article titles are: "The Role of Leisure Education with Family…