Provides an annotated bibliography of eight recent Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) documents on program accreditation and evaluation in the community college. (JDI)

The formative/summative evaluation dichotomy suggested by M. Scriven is challenged, and a conceptual typology is presented that crosses improvement and assessment evaluation functions with process and outcome program stages for four basic types of evaluation. This framework accommodates mixed types of evaluations. (SLD)

Describes the impact of the Colorado's Child Support Improvement Project on voluntary paternity acknowledgment rate, which increased almost 24% from 1991 to 1994. Program activities include simplifying voluntary acknowledgment procedures and training hospital personnel on paternity. Voluntary paternity acknowledgment is associated with the…

Welfare-to-work programs are bringing more adults back to school. These programs are aimed at those who are 16 years or older without a high school diploma or its equivalent. However, many adult students leave school for a variety of reasons, including pregnancy, lack of interest, and transportation problems. Lists benchmarks for good adult…

Recent release of "Prospects," a national evaluation of Chapter 1/Title I ($7.2 billion federal program for disadvantaged elementary-school students), has questioned effectiveness of entire program. However, 1994 Title I reauthorization allows high-poverty schools to turn their dollars into markedly better achievement by adopting…

A review of qualitative methods used in a predominantly quantitative evaluation indicates a variety of roles for such a mixing of methods, including framing and revising research questions, assessing the validity of measures and adaptations to program implementation, and gauging the degree of uncertainty and generalizability of conclusions.…

Fostering self-determination is the defining focus of empowerment evaluation, but this type of evaluation overlaps participatory, collaborative, stakeholder-involving, and utilization-focused approaches to evaluation. It becomes critical to distinguish empowerment evaluation from other approaches as the field debates its boundaries and…

Describes the Slovenian system of higher education and the country's new effort to establish an improved system. A draft plan for introducing a system of quality assurance into the relatively small existing system has been developed based on foreign experience, with attention to Slovenian national needs. Evaluation will be an integral part of the…

Compared to 10 controls, pregnant or parenting teens (n=60) who attended nutrition workshops significantly increased their knowledge; 87% reported improvements in nutrition behavior. There were no significant improvements in dietary intake, possibly due to lack of control of food purchasing and preparation or lack of readiness to change. (SK)

Discrepancies between staff perceptions of program efficacy and empirical evaluations of program effectiveness were studied for two drug education and prevention programs. Possible explanations involve: (1) the relatively low drug involvement of the study population; (2) differing expectations about program impacts; and (3) the sensitivity of…

Two articles present differing points of view on the evaluation of the development of a teacher education program. "Through the Looking Glass..." describes what happens when an evaluator becomes the evaluation client, and "Degrees of Strangeness" reports on the evaluator's findings and opinions. (SLD)

A nationwide examination of school report cards produced 10 categories of often-reported information: standardized testing, student engagement, school success, school environment, staffing and teacher characteristics, program offerings, school facilities, student services, student background characteristics, and school finances. Reports should be…

Reviews the progress of 62 state-funded service-learning programs in Pennsylvania schools during 1992-95. Each site completed an extensive annual program profile, tracked student service and hours, and was visited by an evaluation team member who observed actual implementation. Success depends on organizational commitment, service-learning…

Examines the disposition of the Socrates program in relation to the teaching and learning of languages and, in a general way, to teaching projects. The article focuses on the development of tools for teaching languages, exchange programs, evaluation of linguistic competitions, projects to promote the learning of languages, and supporting…

Details the chemical engineering program at Northwestern University and factors that contribute most to its success. Also considers whether the quality of public and private education in this field differ significantly. Discusses BS degree production, measures of program quality, trends, and challenges to maintenance of faculty effectiveness.…