This paper documents the authors' efforts at constructing, deploying, and analyzing Snapshot Surveys in a range of educational settings. The Snapshot Survey Service is an Internet-based technology that enables educators at the local, state, and even national level to survey, quickly and at low-cost, other educators on issues that are particularly…

The Consortium for Student Retention Data Exchange was established in 1994. Its membership increased from 163 colleges and universities in 1994 to more than 400 in 2001. Over the past 8 years, the routine of working with a large and diverse group of institutions has culminated in a valuable collection of experiences and lessons. The 8-year…

This project serves as a followup to an earlier report (J. Nichols, W. Ludwin, and P. Iadicola, in press) in which the student discipline and suspension data for a large urban school corporation in the Midwest were explored. In the earlier project, flawed data collection procedures by the school corporation made analysis of the data tentative and…

The utility of the three-form design coupled with maximum likelihood methods for estimation of missing values was evaluated. Simulation studies demonstrate that maximum likelihood estimation and multiple imputation methods produce the most efficient and least biased estimates of variances and covariances for normally distributed and slightly…

These papers presented at a World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe (WHO/EURO) Consultation explore current approaches to environmental health data in Europe. Topics discussed include unified environmental health databases, the use of national hospital registers, health statistics in small areas, expert systems, chemical databases,…

Discussion of federal information policy focuses on a study that was conducted to identify federal information/locator systems, i.e., databases that identify information resources. The development of a database containing information on the systems is described, and the concept of a governmentwide information inventory/locator system (GIILS) is…

Using a needs assessment conducted for the Girl Scouts of Greater Philadelphia as a test case, this article analyzes the conditions facilitating the collection of information needed for strategic planning in a voluntary organization and the related conditions influencing whether or not the information would in fact be used. (TJH)

Describes a preliminary research project that applies Personal Construct Theory to user perceptions of photographs. While some problems associated with Repertory Grids for subject content analysis are identified, findings indicate they provide a useful method for collecting unbiased data about what users see in visual images and for comparing user…

This paper outlines purposes of program evaluation and provides practical information to help individuals from a wide spectrum of backgrounds use evaluation to move their program ahead in a purposeful manner. Wisely moving ahead requires an assessment of an organization's past and present as well as an examination of its assumptions about the…

Little is known about teachers' reflections on current reform efforts in real classrooms (Cuban, 1993). This study describes methodology and data on teachers' efforts to implement a 4-year secondary mathematics reform curriculum at a statewide level. The methodology uses vignettes in an attempt to retain the best part of careful observational…

A comprehensive evaluation process begins with school board policy. Policy should provide direction by addressing the issues of who and what are to be evaluated, why evaluation is needed, when and by whom the evaluation is to be completed, and how the information is to be reported. An evaluation system, regardless of who is evaluated, should focus…

Covert checks of observational methodology reveal declines in reliability of observations. This appears to be particularly true when complex codes are used to track social interaction. The present study was undertaken to see whether reliability could be maintained through a combination of technological advancements and the development of improved…

This paper describes seven studies (all that could be found on the subject) comparing nine respondent selection procedures with regard to their potential to reduce refusal rates and to increase representativeness of samples; particular concerns are underrepresentation of men and multiple-adult households. The paper states that (1) the seven…

Using qualitative and quantitative methods in a single research project has been the subject of controversy. Purists argue that qualitative and quantitative approaches derive from different, mutually exclusive epistemologic and ontologic assumptions, and cannot be combined. Situationalists focus on methodology and assume that data collection and…

The accuracy and reliability aspects of data integrity are discussed, with an emphasis on the need for consistency in responsibility and authority. A variety of ways in which data integrity can be compromised are discussed. The following sources of data corruption are described, and the ease or difficulty of identification and suggested actions…