A symposium was organized at the BELMAS/SCRELM Research Conference in July 2004 to explore the issues arising from the experiences of those contracted by the National College for School Leadership to evaluate its programmes. This article presents four contributions that drew on a wide range of evaluation experience and a response from a…

This study examined a model of assessment that could be applied nationally for Year Twelve Vocational Education and Training (VET) subjects and which could yield both a differentiating score and recognition of competence. More than fifty colleges across all states and territories of Australia field-tested the approach over one school year. Results…

Discusses five ways to make goal setting effective: set difficult and specific goals, monitor results, reward performance, participate in goal setting, and challenge individual self-confidence and goal dissatisfaction. A model showing internal and environmental factors related to performance and a list of management strategies for enhancing…

This report to the Legislature and Governor provides recommendations on the design of a workable structure for the annual evaluation of district-level performance for California Community College districts. Under contract with the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office, a six-member panel of the Research and Planning Group for…

These two issues contain reviews of legal/legislative issues, research and treatment issues, book and video materials, and on-line resources and websites relating to family violence and sexual assault. The first issue, contains "Empowering African American Children To Become Resilient: Early Success in Overcoming Violent Families and…

Reports findings from case studies of eight gifted minority children in second and third grade who participated in a Project START (Support To Affirm Rising Talent). Discusses factors that promoted and discouraged success in the regular classroom and in transition to special services for gifted learners. (Author/CR)

Describes a national study to determine the relationship between seven service components and student success and retention in developmental education programs. Reports that centralized program organization, mandatory assessment and placement, tutoring with tutor training, and systematic program evaluation were most closely related to student…

The study of 35 posttreatment stutterers found that magnitude estimation and interval scaling were both valid procedures for measuring speech naturalness. Speech of nonstutterers was judged more natural than speech of treated stutterers. The acoustic parameters most highly correlated with speech naturalness were voice onset time measure and…

This report presents case studies of 4 adults with autism who enrolled in a work-training program utilizing a behavioral social interaction approach, and were subsequently competitively employed for 6 to 30 months. Success was associated with such factors as appropriate communication and interpersonal skills, gradual fading of supervision, and…

This article describes how to maximize clinician participation in outcome management systems: articulate the value of the outcomes management system, involve clinical staff in its design, make it relevant to treatment goals, assure clinicians it will not be used punitively, show how it will improve treatment, and obtain staff feedback. (Contains…

This paper addresses the question: How does implementation influence the effectiveness of mandatory welfare-to-work programs? Data from three large-scale, multi-site random assignment experiments were pooled; quantitative measures of program implementation were constructed; and multilevel statistical modeling was used to examine the relationship…

A group of top suburban Chicago districts banded together to learn what it takes to truly be "world-class."

The Pittsburgh Public School District asked the RAND Corporation to monitor the first year's implementation (2006-2007) of Excellence for All (EFA) and provide feedback to district staff, the board, and other stakeholders. The Pittsburgh Public School District leadership developed EFA with the aim of increasing student achievement by improving…

This report discusses the use of performance indicators (PIs) in higher education, focusing on definitions, frameworks, examples, and implications for universities. It notes that demands for accountability have led to intense interest in university performance measures, and that early indicators simply described the university or the system and…

Designed to help educators examine their current student assessment practices and ensure that assessment activities lead to real improvements, this paper lists and discusses nine principles for assessing student learning. The nine principles are: (1) the assessment of student learning begins with educational values; (2) assessment is most…