SchoolNet is a Canadian national program designed to link electronically 300 schools in order to provide access to communications and information technology. Thirty schools in Alberta were selected as pilot sites to develop projects in science, mathematics, or technology which could use resources that enhance student learning experiences. The…

Even Start family literacy programs in Texas were evaluated by outside evaluators. Data were gathered from two groups. The first group consisted of 631 families who were enrolled in 11 Even Start programs in Texas during the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 program years. A survey, in English or Spanish, was administered to all parents in attendance on two…

This guide is intended to give workforce investment boards (WIBs) a practical framework for overseeing the performance of one-stop career centers. The introduction presents background information on a proposed quality assurance framework and the guide's format and development. The first two sections explain the importance of quality assurance to…

This self-assessment manual and its companion publication on preparing for accreditation explains how further education (FE) colleges throughout the United Kingdom can use self-assessment to achieve and document measurable improvements in their operation and services to increase their chances for accreditation. The following are among the topics…

The history and current state of evaluation of vocational education and training (VET) in Australia was examined. The study's main conclusion was that, despite its important potential, evaluation has thus far been little used for the improvement of VET in Australia. Other conclusions of the study were as follows: (1) little development of…

As Western educators help Central and Eastern European institutions develop programs in business and economics education, five areas require attention: (1) team teaching by local and Western faculty; (2) coordination between host and Western institutions; (3) institution building; (4) careful selection and preparation of faculty to provide…

Current and likely future national policy and procedures for British university program evaluation are discussed, including assessments undertaken at different levels of governance. Issues in the national debate over assessment and accountability are enumerated and illustrated in the case of the University of Brighton. Persistent difficulties in…

Inherent in the current school reform movement is an assumption that good schools are effective schools (Cuban, 1998). Effectiveness is usually defined narrowly in terms of academic achievement. Other purposes of schools related to social justice, developing student social skills, student health, or the personal development of students has not…

A main goal of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) is to close gaps in test scores between different groups of students while raising achievement for all groups. Of particular concern are the persistent achievement gaps between African American, Latino, and Native American students and their white and Asian counterparts, and between students from…

This year the Center on Education Policy (CEP) analyzed data on the achievement of different groups of students in two distinct ways. First, it looked at grade 4 test results to determine whether the performance of various groups improved at three achievement levels--basic and above, proficient and above, and advanced. Second, it looked at gaps…

This year the Center on Education Policy analyzed data on the achievement of different groups of students in two distinct ways. First, it looked at grade 4 test results to determine whether the performance of various groups improved at three achievement levels--basic and above, proficient and above, and advanced. Second, it looked at gaps between…

New Jersey After 3 (NJ After 3) is a private, nonprofit organization whose mission is to expand and improve afterschool opportunities for New Jersey's youth. Using both public and private resources, it supports a network of youth-service providers that deliver afterschool services based on NJ After 3's program model. Under an agreement with NJ…

The Strategic Planning Evaluation of Curriculum Assessment of Performance (SPECAP) project was designed by Texas Tech University to assess the implementation of programs by 25 tech prep consortia in Texas. This report describes the most effective tech prep practices discovered by SPECAP through analyses of consortia planning and implementation…

An evaluation was conducted of a comprehensive plan to restructure a primary school in Candler County, Georgia, into a non-graded, multi-age, continuous progress learning center. The project entailed restructuring the classroom, implementing a shared decision-making structure, developing a learning curriculum, and using portfolio assessment to…

Three papers contributed to the joint conference of the Arizona State Library Association (ASLA) and the Arizona Educational Media Association (AEMA) are presented. "Participatory Evaluation: Alternatives for Library Instruction Evaluation" (Dennis Isbell and Lisa Kammerlocher) describes the experimental library instruction evaluation…