Questions are raised about the future of research and development evaluation. Without a set of overarching policy questions or theoretical questions, evaluation data are simply not cumulative and cannot be organized into any data base. Education has never been a data-based enterprise. The meaning of evaluation should be broadened to include the…

This report contains a review and analysis of technical assistance given to the National Diffusion Network (NDN) by the Technical Assistance Advisory Group (TAAG). Following an outline of TAAG's aims and methods, the history of technical assistance to the NDN is reviewed. Current activities of the technical assistance contractors are outlined and…

A framework is presented that relates concepts of audit reliability to the uses of information gathered from a discrepancy program audit of Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title IV-C programs in Florida. Three issues are addressed: (1) the meaning of reliability in relation to the audit process; (2) the importance of reliability of auditor…

A total of 21, masters or doctoral candidate, experienced teachers participated in this full-year teacher education program conducted at Ohio University. The specific objectives were to provide teachers with: 1) a systematic program of study; 2) a substantive background in economics with emphasis on the analytical methods; 3) assistance in using…

Research on the utilizations of evaluations was based on a followup of 20 Federal health program evaluations to assess the degree to which the evaluations had been used and to identify the factors that affected varying degrees of utilization. Interviews were conducted with project officers or people they identified as decisionmakers who would…

An example is provided of an evaluation in which the formulation of explicit decision rules was a central activity. The case for and against the use of decision rules in program evaluation is considered, and the appropriate context identified. Implications for the rights of decision makers are addressed. (Author/CTM)

The seven articles of this special issue focus on theory and research related to survey methods and whether evaluators need information that is absent from the larger survey literature. These articles reflect the view that the considerations relating to good survey research apply also to using surveys in evaluation. (SLD)

Discusses factors that influence the selection of treatment approaches in speech-language therapy, the importance of efficacy studies on treatment decisions, the role of parents and families in influencing treatment decisions, challenging the scientific orthodoxy, and trusting clinicians to evaluate the effectiveness of new treatment approaches.…

Program evaluation can be understood as the process of looking at how all aspects of a program or department have been functioning as the basis for informed planning and decision making. Although the objective dimensions used in evaluations can vary, methodologies can be categorized according to the four category framework (i.e., describing…

This document is one of three texts which comprise the written components of The Responsive College Programme dissemination materials. The program is designed to help colleges in the United Kingdom market themselves and their courses effectively, and this volume, which is freestanding and directed at both the general reader and the specialist,…

This document presents the findings of a two-year investigation of Interactive Research and Development on Schooling (IR&DS). IR&DS is an alternate means of conducting school-based research and development and an extension of Interactive Research and Development on Teaching (IR&DT). IR&DS is seen as a means to: (1) involve school personnel in…

The Program of Research and Evaluation for Public Schools (PREPS) model is unique because all research and evaluation activities are conceived, conducted, and controlled by the local public schools, members of the consortium. It is a delivery system designed to improve school effectiveness. PREPS was developed as a result of the demand for school…

Vocational education research and development (R&D) product evaluations are difficult to conduct for several reasons, such as the many types of R&D products, the multiple users of the products with different goals for evaluation, the limited time available, and the high cost. In order to meet these challenges, an internal evaluation team…

This collection of essays by current or former directors of institutional research represents the broad spectrum of size, function, and geography within institutional research in the two-year college. The volume contains: (1) "The Role of Institutional Research in Evaluation of Nontraditional Programs: College Preparatory Analysis at Miami-Dade…

A review of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), which originated 20 years ago, is presented; and the original political, ideological and social science assumptions for the design of NAEP are examined. The report criticizes the founding principle as hampering NAEP's maximum utility and exploratory power. In examining the form of…