In this Exemplars case, the fifth and final under the direction of the current coeditors, the authors present a reflective account of an ongoing, complex, multiyear, multinational monitoring and evaluation (M&E) system conducted for African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD), an international development program. The…

In 1997, American Evaluation Association member George Grob, now retired from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and currently President of the Center for Public Program Evaluation, made a testimony on Medicare home health care fraud and abuse before the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging. The occasion was to announce the…

This is the first examination of exemplary evaluation under a new editorial approach, in which the authors are attempting not only to report how the evaluation was conducted and to explain the rationale for design and implementation but also to examine the conditions, events, or actions that might have contributed to its exemplary status. This…

Productive dialogue is informed best by multiple and diverse voices. Five seasoned evaluators, representing a range of evaluation perspectives, offer their views in two- to three-page discussant contributions. These individuals were asked to reflect and comment on the previous chapters in the spirit of critical review as a key source of evidence…

Two alternative programs for students seeking secondary school teacher certification were compared for cost effectiveness. The most pronounced difference between individuals majoring in education and non-majors seeking teacher certification while completing degree requirements in their chosen field is the number of required semester hours of…

As with many forms of evaluation, empowerment evaluation can be viewed as an ideology that promotes a particular set of social and professional values. Judging the quality and utility of empowerment evaluation thus requires a critical appraisal of the implications of adopting those values.

The principles of method development and assessment that have resulted from a long-range project at the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory to create new methods for program evaluation are summarized. (Author/AL)

Heads of evaluation units in 21 state education agencies responded to a structured telephone interview about their unit's workload, evaluation methods, and associated problems and needs. Time committed to evaluation ranged from 10% to 100% and did not relate to staff size which ranged from 1-72. Eleven states contracted some of their evaluations.…

Reviews a collection of 10 case descriptions of ethical problems in evaluation and 10 commentaries on them that appeared in the "American Journal of Evaluation" from 1998 to 2001. Explores the meaning of "ethical problems" and the relationship of ethics to best practices. (SLD)

After a brief review of previous studies of justifying claims in evaluation practice, an analysis is provided using the jurisprudence metaphor of S. Toulmin (1958) in the assessment of evaluative arguments. Applications and implications for evaluation practice are discussed. (SLD)

Empirical literature on two types of hearings, and their applicability in evaluating educational programs, is reviewed. An introduction describes the use and nature of hearings and distinguishes adversary hearings, in which two parties argue opposing sides of an issue, from committee hearings, in which a variety of positions are presented to a…

This article discusses four basic types of cost analysis methods in educational evaluation. The results of a national survey of all evaluation units in state departments of education are reported. Evidence on the amount and types of cost analysis activities done for evaluation purposes in state education agencies is provided. (DWH)

A study of journal citations was used to identify which of the writings published before passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 have continued to influence evaluation thought in education throughout the 1970s. Five classic articles were identified, and reasons for their continued influence are suggested. (Author/BW)

This report provides evidence on the amount and types of cost analysis activities currently done in educational evaluation. The results of three studies undertaken to document the actual use of cost methods are discussed. The first study is a review of cost studies conducted in health evaluation. The second study examines all cost studies…

Proposes a framework for characterizing evaluation approaches that consists of the following aspects: context, purpose and social role, phenomena of interest, procedural rules, methods of justification, and sanctions. Illustrates the framework through its application to the debate over the theory and practice of empowerment evaluation. (SLD)