Evaluations in education often throw away important information because of a penchant for averages. Multiple regression techniques are used to estimate the average effect of policies across schools, and usually school performance is represented by the average score of its students on an achievement test. The author suggests some ways of broadening…

A scale was developed for judging the relative value of various media in teaching children. Posttest scores were partitioned into several components: error, prior knowledge, guessing, and gain from the learning exercise. By estimating the amounts of prior knowledge, guessing, and error, and then subtracting these from the total score, an index of…

This article presents an accountability system which can be used by counseling departments in educational settings. The system is based on the Planning-Programming-Budgeting System (PPBS) that was introduced in the early 60s. (Author)

This paper summarizes a project designed to develop and field test a guide to aid parents in selecting quality day care for their children. Field testing revealed that the guide is both reliable and useful. (Author)

This third and final article on effectiveness and efficiency in industrial training contains a number of suggestions on how to improve training effectively and describes how they are going about it in the Netherlands. (Author)

Discusses development of the six components of any sound performance appraisal program: (1) explicit job descriptions, (2) definitions of key areas of responsibility, (3) criteria for performance appraisal, (4) methods for data collection and analysis, (5) written procedures, and (6) legal review of all procedures. (PGD)

Information that describes a program's implementation and client audience can help the evaluator tailor the study to the constraints of particular settings and increase the likelihood that the evaluation can be implemented as planned. (Author/BS)

Presents some recent developments in the evaluation of crime prevention and control programs, including the increased use of process evaluation models. Describes the nature, methods, and advantages of the idiographic (or single subject) model as used in social work. (JAC)

Administered the Survey of Student Personnel Objectives (SSPO) to students (N=637), faculty members (N=106), and student personnel administrators (N=38) to identify the underlying dimensions of the survey. Factor analysis indicated that the SSPO contains five factors: Personal Development Function, Liaison Function, Educator Function, Orientation…

A review of research on evaluation of inservice and preservice teacher education notes that the lack of outcome data reflects a lack of consensus about the choice of evaluation measures. The use of both trainee and child performance measures is proposed, and an example of such an approach is given. (Author/CL)

Interaction is one of the key variables involved in successful online learning. Previous studies analyzing online interaction are limited in their ability to reveal dynamic aspects of interaction in online learning environments. The aim of this study is to develop and test the multi-level assessment framework for analyzing multi-facets of online…

This study evaluated a program that was designed to empower staff members form nonprofit organizations to design evaluations that help further their organizational mission, addressing the needs of their clients more effectively and efficiently. In 2001-200, the program was offered in five bimonthly, 2-day sessions. Twenty participants from 10…

As part of its transformation to prepare the armed forces to meet current and future challenges, the Department of Defense (DOD) is expanding its use of advanced distributed learning (ADL) techniques in senior- and intermediate-level officer professional military education (PME).To determine whether DOD uses a systematic process for evaluating the…

The issue of treatment fidelity has been a concern in the field of evaluation research. Nearly three decades ago, Cook and Campbell (1975) outlined four types of validity that may influence treatment outcomes. Defining these validity measures has since prompted researchers to closely examine potential threats within the context of program…

An overview of how program evaluation is organized within the federal government is presented. Using examples from three federal agencies, the author shows how evaluation units are formed, defines their functions, and discusses the barriers that must be overcome to manage a federal program evaluation office effectively. (Author)