A handbook designed to acquaint college and university language departments with recent developments in oral proficiency testing gives an overview of the rationale, development, procedures, and implications of oral proficiency evaluation. The discussion is placed in the context of college and university language teaching. An overview section…

A study investigated the feasibility of developing school-related packages to assist secondary school students in their movement through secondary school, into and through postsecondary occupational preparatory programs, and ultimately into the world of work. Three phases occurred simultaneously. The first determined the approach to be…

This manual is intended to assist Peace Corps trainers in providing preservice technical training in small enterprise development. The manual includes a total of 40 training sessions divided among 10 learning modules. The following topics are covered: the main principles of small enterprise development; Peace Corps volunteers as small enterprise…

The desire for a national picture of educational quality remains a continuing but unresolved goal. A question has been raised among high level policymakers regarding the feasibility of using existing data collected by the states to construct education indicators for state-by-state comparisons of student performance at the national level. A…

The Green Thumb Project was designed to test the feasibility of operating a computerized system for disseminating weather, market, and other agricultural production and management information on a day-to-day basis; to develop a prototype software support system for the test; and to provide essential project information on conduct of the test to…

The feasibility of pre-equating, or establishing conversions from raw to scaled scores through the use of pretest data before operationally administering a test, was investigated for the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). Item-response theory based equating methods were used to estimate item parameters on SAT pretest data, instead of using final form…

Objectives of a three-phase New York State study were (1) to test the feasibility of an institutional sampling survey for providing descriptive data about the nature and scope of continuing education in postsecondary degree-granting institutions, (2) to test the applicability of the Focus Delphi research method for assessing the priority…

Women and minority group junior faculty are underrepresented in academia and in the field of educational research. They carry heavier teaching loads than their white male counterparts, suffer from social and cultural discrimination, and are excluded from mentor relationships and the "old boy network." In an attempt to rectify this situation, the…

Undertaking of a systems approach to curriculum development for solar training led to (1) a feasibility study to determine the role of the community college in solar energy technology, (2) a market analysis to determine the manpower need, and (3) a task analysis for development of a curriculum for training solar energy technicians at Navarro…

Plans for the development of The East African Examinations Council (EAEC) are outlined and the feasibility of long-range technical assistance from the U.S. Agency for International Development (AID) is discussed. The EAEC was established in 1967 by Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. Its purpose is to conduct within East Africa the academic, technical,…

A five-year study was undertaken to investigate the relative effectiveness of pre-retirement education (PRE) programs. Project staff identified for study three methodologies (the lecture series, the discussion group, and the "facilitated interaction" model) and four contexts for sponsor-settings (the employer, the education, the…

A program to test the feasibility of vouchering vocational training for clients of the Work Incentive Program (WIN) was conducted in Portland, Oregon. (Vouchering places the buying power for institutional training into the hands of the clients, thus allowing them greater autonomy in deciding their own occupational destiny.) One hundred and…

This volume analyzes existing and proposed correctional industries in Connecticut. First, the results of a survey made to determine the potential inmate work force for prison industry are presented as inmate profiles, descriptions of inmate and supervisor attitudes, and analyses of parolees' employment and recidivism rates. In part 2, four…

Written to assist future researchers in conducting cross-national studies of classroom behaviors, this study indicates a number of factors which may reduce the validity of comparisons made. It is based on an investigation which explored the feasibility of using the Activities Categories Instrument and the Flanders Interaction Analysis Categories…

Multimedia can significantly improve education, but only to the extent that their impact is perceived and planned for. Planning mig t be accomplished in a comprehensive, multimedia development laboratory, organized around methodology and functions rather than equipment or facilities. Such a laboratory might plan, supervise, evaluate, and influence…