The value of a program can be understood as referring not only to outcomes, but also to how those outcomes compare to the types and amounts of resources expended to produce the outcomes. Major potential mistakes and biases in assessing the worth of resources consumed, as well as the value of outcomes produced, are explored. Most of these occur…

Discusses three different settings which illustrate the need for a cost-benefit type of evaluation and then gives examples of objective-based evaluation, goal-free evaluation, and cost-benefit evaluation. (RK)

An evaluation of a 3-year child abuse program, involving 11 demonstration centers, had two major objectives: (1) to test different strategies for tackling the child abuse problem and (2) to study carefully the successes and failures of the various projects. (CS)

Guidelines for increasing academic efficiency at the Kansas state colleges and universities cover the regents' institutions, programs and costs, and evaluation and coordination. Following introductory material, Chapter II describes the current Regent's structure for coordination and briefly characterizes the instructional mission of each…

Following a review of over 350 evaluation-related reports as well as written evaluation activities by the National Advisory Council, state advisory councils, and over 30 state departments of education, three criteria were proposed as methods to be used by state education leaders in assessing the worth of an existing or proposed evaluation system.…

The author states that the real purpose for a training department's existence should be to help determine if training might be the best solution to a problem or a key contribution to an opportunity. How to cut training costs is explored. (CT)

These materials from Beaverton Schools, District Number 48 (Oregon) provide an annual program review process within the context of the regular planning and budgeting processes. Information obtained from the review process (an analytic and decision-making process) is intended to serve as a basis for determining what program levels should be…

This manual is basically designed as a self-instructional guide by which postsecondary vocational administrators and educators can conduct cost-effectiveness/benefit studies. (Cost-effectiveness/benefit analysis is an evaluation technique which can be used for assessing outcomes of existing and/or new programs in relation to their specified…

This document provides materials developed by Iowa's community colleges in establishing the Iowa Community College Consortium for Study Abroad, as well as materials from a Consortium study abroad program in England. First, a timeline is presented of actions taken between April 1994 and November 1996 in the development of the Consortium, including…

This handbook provides background information on the health curriculum, as well as current, comprehensive information on publications, standards, and special materials for K-12 health education. The manual begins with an introduction, by P. Bruce Uhrmacher, which provides an overview of the ideologies and philosophies that have affected curriculum…

Provisions of Title III of the Elementary and Secondary Act entitled "Adult Education Act of 1966" charge the Texas Education Agency with responsibility for state administration of adult basic education programs in accordance with a plan approved by the State Board of Education and the United States Commissioner of Education. As one…

Part of a system by which local education agency (LEA) personnel may evaluate secondary and postsecondary vocational education programs, this last of eight components focuses on assessing local budget policy for support of vocational instructional programs. The component provides a simplified procedure whereby the LEA can determine the amount of…

The study describes the experiences of 13 police departments where civilians were used in jobs normally performed by police officers. The findings are based on interviews with 158 people including police managers, officers in charge of civilian employees, and the civilians themselves. Two types of activities were surveyed: (1) the employment of…

Designed to provide Oregon vocational directors and teachers with a process for collecting information to be used in evaluating and planning vocational education programs, this handbook presents guidelines for both local annual planning and long-range planning. Various items to consider when reviewing an existing program are covered, including…

This catalog offers options, ideas, and experience from existing community career education resource centers (CCERC) which can contribute to the development of more such centers. The catalog's content, based on a national survey of well known CCERCs, is divided into several areas: (1) overview, which explains the function of a CCERC and includes a…