This manual was developed to provide a model for evaluating programs for handicapped preschoolers that can be used by all Maryland school districts regardless of size or resources. The model has five components: (1) how children are identified as handicapped; (2) what type of testing takes place before and after a child is placed in a program; (3)…

The concept of the density of a material has an important role in elementary and secondary school science curricula, but it is a difficult concept to grasp. This project explores why this should be and whether there are some simpler, more accessible notions which can serve as the basis for building a concept of density in students' minds during…

A handbook to help faculty plan and implement the evaluation of medical school courses is presented. Seven steps necessary to planning a course evaluation are specified: identify users and needs, ask specific questions, indicate how questions will be answered, select and/or design instruments, consider ethical issues, collect and analyze data, and…

In 1981, a project was undertaken by Wisconsin's Vocational Technical and Adult Education (VTAE) District 1 to determine the training and development needs of new small businesses and to establish vocational education linkages between Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) programs and these businesses. The project involved: (1) a survey…

This paper presents the three year process used in developing a teacher evaluation model for the Fort Worth (Texas) Independent School District. Based on Dr. Richard Manatt's School Improvement Model for Teacher Performance Evaluation, the purposes of the model were to improve teaching skills and to enable valid and reliable judgements concerning…

The Florida Writing Enhancement Program, for all tenth through twelfth grade students, as implemented in the Hillsborough County Public Schools, was evaluated. The program was designed to improve students' writing in the areas of composition, sentence formation, usage, and mechanics. This evaluation was conducted to determine whether the program…

Five years of data related to teachers' perceptions of learning and knowledge were analyzed to ascertain whether differences existed between preservice elementary and secondary science students (N=435). These data were generated from a questionnaire derived from assumptions about learning and knowledge. The assumptions address five areas of…

An evaluation was conducted of the Dade County (Florida) Public Schools' occupational and placement specialist service, which focuses on the development of students' ability to make rational and realistic career decisions. At the secondary school level, the program provided assistance, information and experiences to help students make a career…

In a study to evaluate an approach for improving the critical thinking skills of middle school science students, 60 students were given the assignment of completing three guided laboratory activities and writing a report for each. In writing their reports, students were expected to identify the manipulated variable, identify the responding…

A survey of 428 instructors at four community colleges in the San Jose, California, area was conducted in May 1978 to determine the degree of importance with which faculty viewed selected pedagogical skills, and to correlate these opinions with the respondents' teaching experience and educational backgrounds. The survey instrument asked…

This study was designed to outline possible forms of guided self-assessment in adult language learning and to suggest steps that might be taken in order to further develop methods judged to be suitable for use within the European unit/credit scheme for foreign language learning by adults. The report includes a review of relevant literature and…

Intended for instructional personnel working with rural handicapped and nonhandicapped children (birth through 5 years), the documents provide English and Spanish versions of a checklist of behaviors to record an individual child's developmental progress, a card file listing possible methods of teaching these behaviors, and a manual of direction.…

Engineering instruction is examined as revealed in a study of science education at two-year colleges which involved a review of the literature, an analysis of the catalogs and class schedules of 175 institutions, and a survey of 144 engineering instructors. The report first presents a general profile of engineering technology education based on…

Technical problems involved in obtaining scores for essays written by teacher candidates are addressed. The rating procedure assures that each essay is read by three raters specially trained for the task. Ratings range from "1" for incompetent or unacceptable to "4" for outstanding. The score assigned to each essay will be the…

Strengths and weaknesses of systems for evaluating teaching in medical schools are reviewed, and a framework for dealing with issues and critical questions is presented. The model addresses the following areas: goals of the school, the purpose of evaluating teaching, standards that characterize the quality of teaching evaluation measures, measures…