How some of the past literature creates the impression of an inevitable method-paradigm linkage and of a forced choice between qualitative and quantitative paradigms is shown. Difficulties of making method choices are considered. It is suggested that purposefully developed strengths of different methods should not be ignored. (Author/GK)

This article presents the results of a study that assessed the effect of privatized management on social service availability, utilization, and resident satisfaction in public housing communities. The respondents were heads of household who lived in public housing "projects" in Miami, Florida -- more than 90 percent of whom were African…

Thousands of schools around the country have implemented whole-school reform programs to boost student performance. This paper uses quasi-experimental methods to estimate the impact of whole-school reform on students' reading performance in New York City, where various reform programs were adopted in dozens of troubled elementary schools in the…

Individual differences in response to a given treatment have been a longstanding interest in education. While many evaluation studies focus on average treatment effects (i.e., the effects of treatments on the levels of outcomes of interest), this paper additionally considers estimating the effects of treatments on the dispersion in outcomes.…

Using a quasi-experimental design, this study examined the effectiveness of a standardized intervention model designed to build resiliency in children of women with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders and histories of interpersonal abuse. The children and mothers who participated in this study were a subset of the sample used…

The article describes the main outcomes of the intervention programme "Positive behaviour, interactions and learning environment in school" (PALS). PALS is an adapted Norwegian version of the School-Wide Positive Behaviour Support model, developed in the United States with school-wide interventions aiming at the prevention of behaviour…

"Read Naturally" is designed to improve reading fluency using a combination of books, audio-tapes, and computer software. This program includes three main strategies: repeated reading of English text for oral reading fluency development, teacher modeling of story reading, and systematic monitoring of student progress by teachers.…

"Saxon Math" curricula and materials are available for grades K through 12, with the content and skills designed to meet National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards and various state standards. This WWC report focuses on middle school math curricula, defined as all Saxon Math curricula for grades 6 through 9. The…

Researchers identified two divergent theories concerning ethics education. The first states that ethics education increases an individual's ability to reason critically when confronted with decisions through the identification and analysis of problems and various outcomes. The second suggests that ethics training is about manipulating core values…

This study evaluates the effectiveness of a court-ordered Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) presentation to prevent alcohol or drug-related recidivism among 247 juvenile alcohol and drug offenders. The presentation, which incorporates educational components with a victim awareness program, seeks to increase offenders' empathy and knowledge…

This article reports a quasi-experimental study of how error labeling in remediation exercises affects students' writing performance. Students in five sections of a course in written business communication composed the control group, whereas students in two sections composed the treatment group. On the first letter each group wrote early in the…

Comprehensive Family Services (CFS) is a strengths-based and partnership-oriented approach to casework implemented through multiple initiatives. This study examines the relationship between the practice of CFS and satisfaction of clients, foster parents, and community partners. CFS indicators are paired with statewide customer satisfaction survey…

The evaluation of the Voyager Universal Literacy System[R] was designed to provide a rigorous assessment of the effectiveness of the program with beginning readers. Using a quasi-experimental design, researchers conducted a systematic evaluation of changes in 398 kindergarten students' command of early reading skills in 4 Voyager and 4 comparison…

This paper focuses on transition programs for youth to postsecondary education, broadly considered. It addresses the following questions: (1) What models or programs of transition exist? (2) On what basis can we say one transition program is more effective than another? In other words, how is successful transition defined? (3) How are…

Two specific methods of analysis in large-scale evaluations are considered: structural equation modeling and selection modeling/analysis of non-equivalent control group designs. Their utility in large-scale educational program evaluation is discussed. The examination of these methodological developments indicates how people (evaluators,…