This paper discusses the use of focus groups to investigate criteria used by college students to determine their satisfaction with higher education, and presents the results of a pilot study. It reviews research on the use of focus groups, discusses the development of a focus group guide for the current study, and examines problems associated with…

This guide provides advice on effective use of assessments in adult basic and literacy education programs. Chapter 1 considers different types of standardized tests, their purposes, their advantages and limitations, misuses of standardized tests, and other types of assessments. Chapter 2 on informal assessments defines alternative and informal…

This report concerns the use of benchmarking as a strategy for assessing and improving efficiency and productivity of administrative processes and instructional models in colleges and universities. The introductory chapter addresses the need for new tools and strategies to meet the increased competition and the higher demand for accountability…

This document contains three papers presented at a symposium on university instruction in human resource development (HRD) moderated by Janice Black at the 1996 conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development (AHRD). "Facilitating Transfer of Learning from the Classroom to the Workplace" (Brenda S. Gardner, Sharon J. Korth)…

This report reviews the benchmarking practices that are presently being used at community colleges. It introduces the concept of a "culture of inquiry" as a means for judging their potential value. It classifies benchmarking efforts among three types--performance, diagnostic, and process--and characterizes each by its typical use. The…

This paper investigates the psychometric properties of the African Self-Consciousness (ASC) Scale in a noncollege heterogeneous population of 147 African Americans to determine the reliability and validity of the ASC Scale. Based on analysis of the scale's reliability, factor structure, and construct validity, the study shows the ASC Scale to be a…

The purpose of this descriptive study is to provide insights into teacher education students' perceptions of electronic portfolios. Twenty-three non-technology undergraduates and 14 graduate students in educational technology created complex electronic portfolios during the two years or more of their respective programs. Upon completion,…

This article demonstrates a novel application of propensity score matching techniques: to estimate nonexperimental impacts on program participants within the context of an experimental research design. The author examines the relationship between program participation, defined as qualifying for an earnings supplement by working full-time, and…

Purpose: Currently under the No Child Left Behind Act, cut scores of successive cohorts of students are used to identify schools that are successful and others that are failing. For many schools, however, this score does not provide an accurate, fair, or comprehensive performance assessment. The focus of this study is to compare three alternative…

This study explored the role of student characteristics in studying micro teaching-learning environments. The overarching hypothesis is that teachers teach differently to micro environments in their classrooms. This study is the first of a series exploring the following four questions: (1) What student profiles are identified at the beginning of a…

Objective: The purpose of this article was to examine how an initiative of 10 collaborative projects focused on children and youth have applied principles of participatory research, collaboratories, and technological solutions. Method: The study analyzed multiple forms of qualitative data, including semiannual formative evaluations and…

Washington State University (WSU), has developed two large-scale assessment programs to evaluate student learning outcomes. The largest, the Writing Assessment Program, diagnoses student writing abilities at entry and mid-career to determine the type of support needed to navigate the expectations of our writing-rich curriculum. The second, the…

This study seeks to determine a definition and appropriate assessment methods of inter-cultural competence as agreed on by a panel of internationally known intercultural scholars. This information is validated by a sample of higher education administrators and can be used by administrators in identifying and assessing intercultural competence as a…

Introduction: For postgraduate training of doctors there is a need for valid and reliable instruments to assess their daily performance. Various instruments have been suggested, some of which use incognito simulated patients (SPs). These methods are resource intensive. Computerised Case-based testing (CCT) is logistically simpler and may still…

Evaluation activities provide vital information on which to base planning and implementation decisions related to today's rapidly changing educational environment. This article discusses the context of and rationale for the rigorous, well-planned evaluation of online courses and programs; differentiates among evaluation, assessment, and research;…