This article adds to the growing body of literature on the use of evidence-based practice (EBP) in social work. Specifically, it examines a 9-hour EBP educational model designed to prepare MSW students for appropriate decision-making strategies in working with multicultural client populations. The model places emphasis on identification and…

This case study examined a multi-college community college district in northern California in a primarily rural area, to understand how their practices compared to management best practices designed to improve student success, barriers that may exist in implementing best practices, and how the institution may improve its own practices. The problem…

The California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS) is a comprehensive youth health risk and resilience data collection service sponsored by the California Department of Education (CDE). This part of the guidebook will assist practitioners in understanding, interpreting, and deriving the maximum benefit from the CHKS results. It provides a basic road map…

In 2002, the RAND Corporation launched a project to understand how educators are responding to the new accountability requirements in California, Georgia, and Pennsylvania--three states that represent a range of approaches, regions, and student populations. The researchers aimed to identify the factors that enhance the implementation of SBA…

Characteristics of evaluative studies used by California state legislators are discussed: specificity in addressing particular policy decisions; factors which contribute to or hinder the accomplishment of educational objectives; balanced studies with a range of indicators; and attention to local concerns, and to fiscal and legal issues. (MH)

Increased demands for colleges and universities to engage in outcomes assessment for accountability purposes have accelerated the need to bridge the gap between higher education practice and the fields of measurement, assessment, and evaluation. The "Handbook on Measurement, Assessment, and Evaluation in Higher Education" provides higher…

After several lengthy evaluations of California's Early Childhood Education (ECE) program proved inadequate, unhappy legislators and educators finally found satisfaction in a brief, mimeographed report. Several factors were responsible for the success of this new evaluation, the "Interim Report on the Special Study of Selected ECE Schools…

This study analyzes the ways in which school boards assess and utilize evaluation data and their attitudes toward testing. Interviews with 27 school board members from 10 districts indicate that board members tend to rely on informal working knowledge over formal information, and on district administrators' judgments. Findings suggest that simple…

In light of growing concern for the measurement of educational effectiveness, this paper advocates institutional research at the community college level in California's community colleges to answer crucial questions concerning students, programs, and communities and urges trustees and administrators to use research results to inform decision…