Reading Improvement Through Art (RITA) program is an interdisciplinary approach to literacy that blends visual art with reading comprehension, evaluated in nine New York City urban high schools. 240 problem readers participating in the pilot program were pre- and post-tested in the Fall 1975 and Spring 1976 semesters. The testing showed the 9th…

This report summarizes the complex research literature on quantitative methods for assessing how impacts of educational interventions on instructional practices and student learning differ across students, educators, and schools. It also provides technical guidance about the use and interpretation of these methods. The research topics addressed…

Despite increasing attention on gender-specific programming for girls involved in the juvenile justice system, not much is known about the effectiveness of gender-specific programs. The authors review the evidence base for the effectiveness of programs for girls in custody or under supervision by examining the evaluation evidence for nine…

This methodological brief is designed to provide both program operators and researchers with practical advice about how to assess a program's implementation and impact. Adapted from an article that first appeared in "The Handbook of Youth Mentoring" (DuBois and Karcher, ed. 2005), the brief focuses on the evaluation of mentoring programs, but the…

Practical and technical advice is provided for staff responsible for planning evaluations of Educational Consolidation and Improvement Act (ECIA) Chapter 1 migrant programs at the state level. The report is limited to evaluating achievement gains in basic skills; this is, however, acknowledged as only one facet of a comprehensive migrant program…

Although informal assessments of caregiver training and support groups have been positive, empirical evidence of their beneficial impact is needed. To evaluate a group program for families of elderly parents, a pre/postmeasure, experimental/control group design was implemented. Adults participating in two workshops on "Your Aging…

For 17 years, the Fort Worth Independent School District has offered full-day prekindergarten for educationally disadvantaged children residing in Chapter I attendance areas. During the 1984-85 academic year, the program was offered to 1,936 children who were four years old prior to September 1, 1984 and scored seven or fewer items correct on the…

A study examines the influence of a Sunship Earth education program on fifth and sixth grade students (n=578). Results indicate that students who attended the program increased their ecological knowledge significantly. Participation did not result in more positive environmental attitudes. (17 references) (MCO)

This study describes dropout prevention strategies used by social service and school personnel in the Stay-In-School Partnership Project (SSPP), analyzes longitudinal statistical data generated by the 3-year program, and proposes a model for conceptualizing and implementing a dropout prevention program for at-risk minority students. SSPP is a…

This paper focuses generally on student non-cognitive improvement before and after a Newark Chapter 1 program implementation; and specifically, on demonstrated growth in the non-cognitive areas over the year from pre-assessment to post-assessment as part of the Chapter 1 intervention. The evaluation was conducted, based on classification in terms…

A difficulty associated with the use of Golub and Frederick's syntactic density score was the time required in hand tabulation. This drawback was resolved with the development by Kidder of a computer program which calculates a syntactic density score for writing samples. The purpose of this study was to examine the sensitivity of the Syntactic…

In response to growing frustration over the lack of information about the national effectiveness of the Chapter 1 program, Congress enacted the Education Amendments of 1974. Section 151 of the Amendments directed the U.S. Office of Education to develop evaluation models that would allow school district data to be aggregated to provide national…

The effectiveness of an Education Consolidation Improvement Act Chapter 1 program was studied in a large urban school district. A common problem in evaluating remedial programs is that pretest/posttest achievement gains often indicate the effects of the entire curriculum, rather than those specific to the remedial class. In this district, over…

Reports on a study of the effects of participation in public library summer reading programs on children's reading skills. Results on a standardized test administered to 279 students in grades 1-5 in May and September are analyzed and compared for participants and nonparticipants in the summer reading program. (MES)

Research was conducted to determine the relative effects of an internship program on the psychosocial development of high school students. Volunteers for an internship program were recruited from a group of high school juniors and seniors. The selected students were matched with mentors who were perceived as supportive of the internship program;…