A project was undertaken at Miami-Dade Community College (MDCC) in Florida to develop new student follow-up methodologies and to field test these methodologies in order to increase the accuracy of placement and follow-up data supplied to the state; to reduce the number and percent of former MDCC students falling into the "unknown" placement status…

This report summarizes and documents the major technical aspects of the High School and Beyond (HS&B) third follow-up survey conducted during the spring and summer of 1986. Young persons who, either as sophomores or as seniors, had participated in the base year survey in 1980 were contracted for the fourth time in 1984 and asked to complete…

Techniques for conducting student-attrition studies using the Student-Outcomes Information Service (SOIS) are outlined. General concepts to effectively guide an institutional research effort are discussed, with attention to better defining student attrition and a summary of results of recent research on the reasons why students withdraw from…

Prepared to help small towns assess community population and economic trends, this publication provides a step-by-step guide for establishing an on-going local data collection system, which is based on four local indicators and will provide accurate, up-to-date estimates of population, family income, and gross sales within a town's trade area. The…

A study examined the perceptions of employers in Michigan concerning the vocational training received by employees who either completed or left vocational training programs in 1980. A second objective of the study was to compare the relative cost and effectiveness of using telephone and mail surveys to gather data for this type of study. Of a…

The field survey procedures employed and the response rates obtained in the First Follow-Up Survey of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) are described. The first step in data collection for First Follow-Up involved an extensive tracing operation to update name and address files. A newsletter was mailed out to…

To evaluate the accuracy of the 1970 census' occupational classification system, a comparison was made between that year's responses to census questions and the replies by the same population group to the 1972 Postcensal Manpower Survey (PMS). Each of these questionnaires relied on a different methodology; in the PMS the respondent classified…

To estimate computer needs at a higher education institution, the major types of users and their future needs should be determined. In a large or complex university, three major groups of users are typically instructional, research, and administrative. After collecting information on the needs of these users, the needs can be translated into…

The Student Outcomes Questionnaire and the Student Outcomes Information Analysis Service (SOIS) developed by NCHEMS and the College Board are discussed. The term, "student outcomes," is defined as the consequence of a student's enrollment in an educational institution and involvement in its programs. The importance of this type of…

Approaches to sampling are suggested for use by states in reporting more effectively on the completers and leavers in vocational education programs. Following an introductory chapter, six others outline the proposed plan for followup studies. Chapter 2, a task outline for a proposed ongoing sampling survey, divides the first three of the followup…

The purpose of this paper is to describe and illustrate the procedure for setting up a school-community relations program. The first chapter describes the following recommended components of such a program: using a programmatic approach, using the five school-community relations processes, and designating the primary responsibilities for the…

This final report describes the development and field evaluation of teacher training materials (for inservice workshops) and elementary school language arts materials. The basic goal of the training materials, called Teacher Development Packages (TDPs), was to provide teachers with the information and skills needed to utilize games and informal…

The User's Guide to the Regional Study of Higher Education in Agriculture and Home Economics in the South explains the purpose and organization of the study, one of three phases of a larger investigation being conducted by collaborating researchers in several Agricultural Experiment Stations. The guide provides a detailed description of the…

A model of curriculum evaluation for determining topics of inservice programs is described. Two basic assumptions are made: education is what pupils perceive is happening to them because they attend school, and education is what teachers do that influences pupils. Data for evaluation is to be collected by means of questionnaires and interviews…

The report summarizes questionnaire responses from 454 university department heads concerning information collected in the most recent self-study or review of their department. The responses included judgments about the importance of collecting each information element for (1) internal department use for porgram planning and improvements, (2)…