Current political polarization and competing priorities complicate development of sound education policy. Particularly troubling is the disconnect between research and policy, as decision makers rely more on the work of think tanks and advocacy groups than the knowledge base of the profession. The mismatch between higher education and policy…

The Midwest Expansion of the Child-Parent Center Education Program (MCPC) is a pre-K to 3rd grade intervention program aimed at improving economically disadvantaged children's school success by enhancing continuity in instruction and increasing parental involvement. Opened in Chicago in the 1960s, this school reform model has undergone significant…

This document is intended to serve as a practical guide for implementing a teacher-student data link (TSDL) that supports a range of uses at the local, regional, and state levels. The guide addresses the considerations for linking teacher and student data from multiple perspectives, including governance, policies, data components, business rules,…

Results-based management (RBM) is an approach to programme planning and management that integrates strategy, people, resources, processes and measurements to improve decision-making, transparency and accountability. The Commonwealth of Learning (COL) began the adoption of a RBM model with its 2003-2006 Three-Year Plan. This led to a significantly…

Technology expenditures and usage in schools have risen by nearly 300 percent during the last three decades. Few principals claim to be technology experts, but most aspire to design a map that leads their schools to success with educational technology. The key to success on the journey is not to know everything, but to ask the right questions.…

As part of the evaluation study of the Research and Development Utilization (RDU) program of the National Institute of Education (NIE), researchers interviewed 14 educational policy makers in the federal Department of Education, in the NIE, and on congressional committee staffs to discover their reactions to preliminary RDU findings. The four…

The newly appointed director of the National Institute of Education responds to questions about the institute's objectives. (JN)

This document reports the activities of the Southeastern Teacher Corps Network's May 1979 conference on the validation of programs and the dissemination of information. Concerns of the meeting were: the establishment of procedures for program validation processes, the increased awareness of naturalistic data-gathering techniques for educational…

Examines the state of cost-benefit and cost-effectiveness analysis in education, first examining the progress that has been made in these fields in the health and medical sectors. Explores one outstanding example of cost-benefit analysis and critiques four other educational evaluations. Synthesizes strengths of cost-effectiveness analysis in…

One of the missions of the Research on Evaluation Program for 1983, is to increase the capacity of the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (NWREL) to provide regional services in the areas of evaluation, policy analysis, and especially cost analysis. To provide this service, the program needed specific information on regional service needs…

The problem of the white researcher in black communities is approached from a systems perspective with emphasis on relationships, as opposed to variables: the relationships of concern are those between black communities and educational systems in the communities. (Author/JM)

The role of the chief scientist in the formulation of a policy of evaluation research by a government unit is considered, together with issues facing his office. Such issues include: accountability; meeting the expectations of decision makers; increasing evaluation utilization; and evaluation feasibility. (AEF)

Argues that, "If we are going to assess and evaluate creatively and in ways which reflect the organic complexity of the schools, we must begin to describe the methods of actual evaluation processes. We must move away from evaluations that exclusively concern professions and toward those that are the responsibility of persons at all levels."…

The 10 Regional Educational Laboratories work to ensure that those involved in educational improvement at the local, state, and regional levels have access to the best available information from research and practice. This report presents 1997 performance data on three common objectives of the Regional Educational Laboratory Program sponsored by…

This paper offers examples of the ways in which research influences national policies related to assessment and program evaluation. It describes an ongoing evaluation being conducted by the National Academy of Education (NAE) of the "Trial State Assessment," a piece of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). At this interim stage,…