This chapter proposes approaches for assessing learners and evaluating courses and curriculum that could be used by directors of health professions education (HPE) programs to determine the effectiveness and impact of their programs.

The evaluation of students' expected performance and course effectiveness play a vital role in determining the course contribution toward meeting the program's learning objectives or outcomes. The success of any course not only requires a well-designed syllabus with clearly defined course learning outcomes and the use of appropriate outcome-based…

The Expository Reading and Writing Course (ERWC) was developed by California State University (CSU) faculty and high school educators to improve the academic literacy of high school seniors, thereby reducing the need for students to enroll in remedial English courses upon entering college. This report, produced by Innovation Studies at WestEd,…

This study sought to determine if differences exist in the quantitative and qualitative data collected with paper and online versions of a medical school clerkship evaluation form. Data from six-and-a-half years of clerkship evaluations were used, some collected before and some after the conversion from a paper to an online evaluation system. The…

"The First-Year Seminar: Designing, Implementing, and Assessing Courses to Support Student Learning and Success," a five-volume series, is designed to assist educators who are interested in launching a first-year seminar or revamping an existing program. Each volume examines a different aspect of first-year seminar design or…

This paper focuses on a Web-log based tool for evaluating pedagogical processes occurring in Web-supported academic instruction and students' attitudes. The tool consists of computational measures which demonstrate what instructors and policy makers can learn about Web-supported instruction through Web-usage mining. The tool can provide different…

A highly important part of software engineering education is requirements collection and analysis, one of the initial stages of the Software Development Lifecycle. No other conceptual work is as difficult to rectify at a later stage or as damaging to the overall system if performed incorrectly. As software engineering is a field with a reputation…

Our study compared the quantitative and qualitative outcomes associated with course evaluations collected over the Internet with those collected using a paper-and-pencil method. We randomly assigned students to 1 of the 2 different formats. There was no significant difference in quantitative student responses based on administration method, but…

The use of a short, face valid, objectively scorable questionnaire to obtain students' evaluations of courses as a whole is discussed. The instrument is described from the standpoints of content domain, reliability, face validity, and university-wide applicability. This instrument would provide reliable normed data for use by campus-level…

Describes the evaluation of an attendance administration course and illustrates various evaluation processes, design features, and problems. Data were collected for reaction and learning as well as job behavior and results suggested the importance of supervisory support as an intervening variable. (Author/JEG)

An evaluation of alternative methods--including three types of questionnaires and face-to-face interviews--of obtaining post training feedback from naval personnel is described. Using a sample of recent radio technician trainees, various approaches to data collection were employed. It was found that questionnaires provide the most cost-effective…

After a general review of approaches to the evaluation of curriculum innovations the author presents a strategy for summative evaluation based on three related activities: (1) the intrinsic evaluation of the curriculum materials that incorporate the aims, objectives, and teaching and learning strategies of the program being evaluated; (2) a…

A program evaluation protocol is outlined for a faculty member or committee to adapt to a course, curriculum, or program. The plan includes development of evaluation rationale, identification of audiences, delineation of questions, development of methodology, establishment of data collection mechanism, and writing of a report. (JT)

Thirty psychology majors in a Tests and Measurement class, and 49 of 65 faculty members of a liberal arts arts college developed a college-wide course ratings questionnaire. The psychology students, in class exercises and homework assignments, collected data over a 6-month period from peers (n=153) and faculty at every stage of the design process.…

Possible reasons for conducting evaluations of college and university courses are outlined, and the evaluation system developed at the Australian National University is described. Sources of information for teachers to use in making course improvements are suggested. (MSE)