This document is intended to assist State Education Agency (SEA) and Lead Agency (LA) staff and technical assistance providers in designing a meaningful evaluation for the State Performance Plan (SPP)/Annual Performance Report (APR) improvement activities. It provides: (1) information about the relevance of evaluation in the context of improvement…

The purpose of this study was to develop a model for evaluating a professional development school program to enact an evidence-based model for a continuous cycle of program improvement. Guided by the logic model for program evaluation, we developed three survey instruments based on the professional development school standards of the National…

Doctoral programs in the humanities and related social sciences are characterized by high attrition and long times to degree. In 1991 the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation launched the Graduate Education Initiative (GEI) to improve the quality of graduate programs and in turn reduce attrition and shorten time-to-degree. Over a 10-year period, the…

School leaders' values and dispositions impact the quality of education in their schools. Effective schools and appropriate leadership dispositions must be assessed and standardized models must be developed to give direction for future growth. The accrediting agencies and the college of education at a mid-sized state university in a southern state…

This article seeks to contribute to the recent discussion regarding school finance, teacher quality, and English language learners (ELLs) based on a comparative study within a school district with a significant ELL population. The study described in this article utilizes an exploratory multiple case study methodology to examine the complex…

Purpose: The No Child Left Behind Act laudably brings social justice and equity issues to the forefront; however, the act's threat- and sanction-driven methods are not only increasing stress levels but potentially causing a rigid response, especially in the growing population of schools labeled "program improvement" (PI). Specifically,…

Horizontal evaluation combines self-assessment and external evaluation by peers. Papa Andina, a regional network that works to reduce rural poverty in the Andean region by fostering innovation in potato production and marketing, has used horizontal evaluations to improve the work of local project teams and to share knowledge within the network. In…

Building Educated Leaders for Life (BELL) is a national not-for-profit organization whose mission is to increase the educational achievements, self-esteem, and life opportunities of elementary school children living in low-income urban communities. BELL has been engaged in formal evaluation, internally and externally, for more than five years and…

This report discusses child-care needs and consumer education for low-income families, the types and value of information they receive when participating in the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills (JOBS) program, the different approaches to child-care consumer education, case studies on the child-care practices that are detrimental as well as those…

This document consists of four consecutive annual program evaluation reports covering the years 1991-92, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1994-95, respectively. These reports detail the results of the annual product evaluation of the federally funded Chapter 1 prekindergarten program of the Saginaw, Michigan School District. The purpose of the prekindergarten…

Head Start, the federally funded, comprehensive child development program for low-income preschool children, was reauthorized by Congress in 1990 with a sufficient increase in funding to serve all eligible children by 1994, and to strengthen the Head Start program in general. The National Head Start Association mailed 1,800 surveys to Head Start…

The operation of the U.S. Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training was examined to determine the following: (1) the use of apprenticeship to train workers; (2) federal and state resources dedicated to administering apprenticeship; and (3) the representation of minorities and women in apprenticeship. Information was obtained from the U.S. Department…

Results of the 1990-91 product evaluation of the federally funded Chapter 1 prekindergarten program of the Saginaw, Michigan School District are reported. The purpose of the program is to provide inner-city 4-year-olds with an environment that will enable them to develop the skills needed for success in school. In 1990-91, the program served 466…

The Discretionary Programs, Parts C through G of Public Law 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, provide a framework for meeting the unique educational needs of children with disabilities. At this hearing, representatives of disability organizations provided information concerning program effectiveness and program impact on the…

A study examined and evaluated both public and private efforts to assist dislocated farmers, with particular emphasis on employment and training programs. The study found that about 46,000 farmers are currently leaving farming each year, and the rate probably will continue for the next several years. Since the majority of the farmers who leave…