Dominant approaches to research quality rest on the assumption that academic peers are the only relevant stakeholders in its assessment. In contrast, impact assessment frameworks recognize a large and heterogeneous set of actors as stakeholders. In transdisciplinary research non-academic stakeholders are actively involved in all phases of the…

As global discussions of evaluation standards become more contextually nuanced, culturally responsive conceptions of ethics have not been sufficiently discussed. In academic social research, ethical clearance processes have been designed to protect vulnerable people from harm related to participation in a research project. This article expands the…

In this paper, we focus on participatory evaluation in the context of international development and specifically on the emerging empirical knowledge base. In a prior review and critique of research on participatory evaluation (Cousins and Chouinard 2012), we examined 121 studies, with only 21 (17%) situated in development contexts. However, the…

This article examines what "stakeholder groups" have to say about the nature, and indeed the meaning, of "technology." The author uncovers a variety of interpretations of the term "technology" and finds much disagreement and indeed confusion regarding whether concepts such as "science," "technology," and "engineering" are independent of each…

In this paper we share our reflections, as evaluators, on an evaluation where we encountered Excessive Evaluation Anxiety (XEA). The signs of XEA which we discerned were particularly evident amongst the program head and staff who were part of a new training program. We present our insights on the evaluation process and its difficulties, as well as…

Knowledge management has often been linked to product development, innovation, and customisation. In particular, effective exploitation of customer knowledge, through engaging customers in a process of co-creation of products, exemplifies such a link. Accordingly, this research aims to identify those dimensions of knowledge management activities…

Educators, researchers, politicians, and the media have committed considerable time, attention, and effort to chronically low-performing schools. Although many have chided the schools for their unacceptable performance or designed strategies to improve them, few have sought to understand how these schools became chronically low-performing in the…

The extant literature documents the importance of school counselors' roles in school-family-community partnerships, yet no model exists to guide school counselors through the process of building partnerships. The authors propose a model to help school counselors navigate the process and principles of partnerships. They define partnerships; discuss…

The current article discusses the changes in the role of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA) in the Bologna Process, mainly from the ENQA point of view. This paper argues that ENQA's development to its current status as a European-level policy maker is to a great extent a result of the European Union's policy…

The purpose of an evaluation, its methodology and design, and the data that evaluators generate represent programs and stakeholders in particular ways. In the evaluation described in this article, the author faced making extensive methodological changes to an evaluation. In the process, she considered and reflected on the implications of these…

The existence of information asymmetry has ascended to a significant role in higher education systems. The article makes an attempt to conceptualise the interaction of universities with their environment, stakeholders, and the state by paying special attention to the role and substance of information asymmetry. The existence of information…

This study discusses three evaluations completed in a large suburban school district, each of which involved stakeholders purposefully throughout the inquiry process. The reflective case narrative addresses three questions: (1) To what extent or in which parts of the evaluations were stakeholders involved? (2) What actions did the evaluator(s)…

In keeping with the theme of the International Language Testing Association/Language Testing Research Colloquium Conference in 2008, "Focusing on the Core: Justifying the Use of Language Assessments to Stakeholders," I define "stakeholder-friendly tests," "defensible testing," and "testing-context analysis."…

Describes a consensus-building meeting, in which stakeholders representing students attending alternative schools, teachers and directors from alternative schools, high school teachers, directors of special education, and university teacher trainers participated. Participants reviewed and reached agreement on important indicators of educational…

Examines reactions of three types of stakeholder groups (administrators/policymakers, early interventionists/teachers, and parents) to the National Center on Educational Outcomes' early childhood outcomes models. Group members represented either a general early childhood perspective or an early childhood special education perspective. Presents…