Identified methods that six federal agencies reported using to verify and validate performance data used in complying with the requirements of the Government Performance and Results Act. Developed a framework containing four major approaches to assessing and improving data quality. (SLD)

This article addresses the special problems of transcribing vowels in the evaluation of speech samples. It reviews the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) symbols and diacritics for transcribing vowels and discusses their importance in the transcription of disordered speech and dialect variation. (Contains references.) (Author/DB)

This article reviews conventions for transcribing suprasegmental features in spoken English. It proposes that symbols based on the International Phonetic Alphabet and its recent extensions be supplemented, in the area of intonation, by selected tonetic stress marks and examples of the autosegmental notation used in the Tone and Break Indices…

This article reviews major approaches to the transcription of disordered speech using the International Alphabet (IPA). Application of selected symbols for transcribing non-English sounds is highlighted in clinical examples, as are commonly used diacritic symbols. Included is an overview of the IPA extensions for transcription of atypical speech,…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) "Measuring What Matters": Report Evaluates States' Progress on Developing High-Quality Data Systems; (2)…

Audit trail analysis can provide valuable insights to researchers and evaluators interested in comparing and contrasting designers' expectations of use and students' actual patterns of use of educational technology environments (ETEs). Sequence analysis techniques are particularly effective but have been neglected to some extent because of real…

Although academic libraries have a long tradition of program assessment, in the past the results have been more meaningful internally than externally. Recent changes in the conceptualization of libraries' role in higher education and advances in measurement tools will likely provide answers to different questions, particularly the relationship of…

This handbook is intended to help educational evaluators use still photography in designing, conducting, and reporting evaluations of educational programs. It describes techniques for using a visual documentary approach to program evaluation that features data collected with a camera. The emphasis is on the aspects of educational evaluation…

Intended for practitioners in early childhood special education, the document offers guidelines for conducting a program evaluation. Information is organized around seven questions: what is the purpose of the evaluation? what information is needed, and from what sources can it be obtained? when and under what conditions will information be…

The first half of this paper concentrates on the need for the institution of evaluation methods which stress the systematic use of both quantitative techniques and qualitative, direct observation methods. In this way, a more comprehensive picture of the events under consideration may be presented, and changes in student learning and behavior may…

A study investigating the degree of agreement between teacher evaluators using a standard set of evaluation criteria and evaluation methods examines the test reliability of the Classroom Procedures Assessment Instrument, the Interpersonal Skills Assessment Instrument, and the Teaching Plans and Materials Assessment Instrument. Two statistical…

The objective of this research is to provide an outline of evaluation by objectives for a conference entitled Project Evaluation. As far as processes are concerned, this evaluation will result in a session-by-session evaluation form and transparencies to accompany the session-by-session evaluation form and to reinforce the main points under…

Part 1 of this monograph discusses the status of educational evaluation and describes several problems in carrying out such evaluation: (1) defining the educational setting, (2) defining decision types, (3) designing educational evaluation, (4) designing evaluation systems, and (5) defining criteria for judging evaluation. Part 2 proposes an…

The definition, structures, utilities, stimulus-response differences, and portrayals of responsive evaluation are presented. An educational evaluation is said to be a "responsive evaluation" if it orients more directly to program activities than to program intents, if it responds to audience requirements for information, and if the different…

This article discusses the evaluation of public health in communities, examining common indices, evaluation methods, and uses of findings. (JMB)