The Academy for Educational Development (AED) sent a research team to New York University (NYU) on December 8-9, 2008 to conduct interviews with individuals who play important roles in the university's teacher preparation program. These interviews, along with additional documentation provided by NYU and identified by the AED research team, provide…

Integrating infant mental health services into early education programs leads to better child outcomes and stronger parent-child relationships--the big question is how to do it appropriately and effectively. Clear answers are in this accessible textbook, created to prepare early childhood professionals and programs to weave best practices in…

In this article we present results from a study investigating the impact of three state exit exam systems on teaching and learning in college-preparatory schools. The study compares one state with a traditionally more centralized exam regime, one state that is more de-centralized and one state that has recently switched to more centralized…

From the 1980s to the present, educational accountability in the United States has grown dramatically. Such accountability in U.S. school districts, although driven primarily by external demands, has internal manifestations as well. The chapter traces the historical development of internal evaluation in American school districts, then highlights…

The web is playing a central role in distance education. The word "usability" is usually synonymous with functionality of the system for the user. Also, usability of a website is defined as something that can be used by a specific group of people to carry out specific objectives in an effective way, with efficiency and satisfaction.…

Value-added methods refer to efforts to estimate the relative contributions of specific teachers, schools, or programs to student test performance. In recent years, these methods have attracted considerable attention because of their potential applicability for educational accountability, teacher pay-for-performance systems, school and teacher…

Today's teachers must be equipped to reach all children and embrace a pedagogy of equity. Toward that end, teacher preparation programs need to foster a transformationist pedagogy which allows students to develop into culturally responsive teachers. This paper describes three components of a teacher preparation program that embraces teaching for…

When measuring outcomes in corporate training, the authors recommend that it is essential to introduce a comprehensive plan, especially when resources are limited and the company needs are vast. The authors hone in on five critical components for shaping a measurement plan to determine the success and ROI of training. The plan's components should…

Systems-based practice (SBP) is rarely taught or evaluated during medical school, yet is one of the required competencies once students enter residency. We believe Texas A&M College of Medicine students learn about systems issues informally, as they care for patients at a free clinic in Temple, TX. The mandatory free clinic rotation is part of…

This paper critically reviews the empirical research on the use of rubrics at the post-secondary level, identifies gaps in the literature and proposes areas in need of research. Studies of rubrics in higher education have been undertaken in a wide range of disciplines and for multiple purposes, including increasing student achievement, improving…

In state needs assessment meetings held in late June 2008, the leadership of two Central Region state departments of education, South Dakota and Missouri, asked Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Central to determine how the states in the region evaluate their supplemental educational service (SES) providers. Specifically, these SEA staff…

Using a cross-case analysis of three distinct participatory program evaluations, this paper contributes to current discourse on how evaluators create opportunities for learning. Although each team of evaluators intended to promote planned process use, post-evaluation discussions amongst them identified evidence where use emerged throughout the…

At the time of writing, it is not possible to measure progress accurately, or even assess the baseline status of aid effectiveness in the education sector. Twelve targets en route to the five objectives of the Paris Declaration were set and agreed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD); they were to be measured…

Evaluations of gaming simulations and business games as teaching devices are typically end-state driven. This emphasis fails to detect how the simulation being evaluated does or does not bring about its desired consequences. This paper advances the use of a logic model approach, which possesses a holistic perspective that aims at including all…

Donald W. Compton, the first director of evaluation services at the National Home Office (Atlanta) of the American Cancer Society, tells the story of building the unit in conditions of high demand and a limited budget. Along the way, evaluation was brought to regional divisions and to local offices in part as a response to United Way and to his…