An approach to integrating formative evaluation into externally-mandated program reviews in higher education is suggested. Externally-mandated reviews are generally concerned with the summative evaluation of academic programs. The first step is to classify the mandated program review criteria using a two-dimensional model. This model is based on a…

This submission to the Australian Senate Standing Committee on Education and the Arts focuses on issues related to language and public policy. It discusses the diversified and international nature of Australian society, and considers language enrollments, the role of English as the dominant language and the one used for international…

Although the technology of needs assessment has made progress in recent years, much still remains to be learned about how to determine the kinds of training methods and programs that should exist. Of the technology currently available, most is more suited to application with learner groups that are "closed" and "captive" rather…

Effective evaluation requires evaluators and users to be clear about tasks they are performing in terms of purpose for evaluation, type of data-gathering procedures to be used, and the audience to which results are to be directed. Four things are required if the art-science of educational evaluation is to reach its full potential: (1) an explicit…

This descriptive study investigated the relationships between frequency of use of selected modifications in the assessment process of the Hispanic student, and subsequent enrollment patterns into special education. A 35 item questionnaire was mailed to 157 administrators of special education in six states. The most frequently used assessment…

Unobtrusive measures are recommended as a means of assessing educational outcomes of colleges. Such measures can counteract the response bias which is common in questionnaires and interviews. Outcomes researchers are, in fact, asked to supplement standard measures with unobtrusive measures. Interesting data may result from observation of students'…

Objectives and progress of the Student Impacts and Outcomes Committee created in the summer of 1985 at Eastern New Mexico University are reported. The committee was formed to measure and assess the impact that 4 years of college have on a student, and intends to track an entire entering freshman class from the time the students apply until they…

A report of a 1986 planning conference on postsecondary assessment is presented along with four commissioned papers from the conference and their summaries. Titles and authors of the papers are as follows: "Postsecondary Assessment: The State of the Art" (Leonard L. Baird); "Assessing Student Progress in College: A Process-Oriented…

The variety of current University of Arizona (UA) faculty and administrative activities that can be thought of as assessment in the broadest sense of the term are reviewed, and the involvement of the Center for Research on Undergraduate Education is noted. UA is involved in assessing both programs and students in many areas in order to improve…

The costs and benefits of Year Round Education (YRE), a system in which students have short, staggered vacation periods, so that only a subgroup of students are attending school at any one time, were explored by the Provo (Utah) City School District. In an effort to accommodate a growing number of students without building additional classrooms,…

This study describes four middle schools which educate poor and minority students more effectively than most middle schools in the New York City public school system. These schools were studied in order to define the characteristics associated with academic effectiveness. Chapter 1 provides the demographics and the test score results for each…

In 1988, a survey was conducted of member institutions of the American Association of Community and Junior Colleges (AACJC). The survey was designed to study and advance the use of student outcomes measures for assessing institutional ffectiveness in two-year institutions. Three sets of student outcomes were identified for in-depth study: academic…

In November 1986, the United States Congress passed the Immigration Reform and Control Act, which, in part, mandated a program granting legal status to certain undocumented residents who had been in the country since before January 1, 1982. The program involves a two-step process by which currently undocumented aliens are granted temporary and,…

This report is a blueprint for the creation of an effective, national program of science education for elementary school children in the United States. It draws together information about curriculum, instruction, assessment, and teacher development for elementary science. It was written in response to a widely expressed need to improve education…

This guide provides classroom assessment models and strategies that can be used by teachers in planning for efficient day-to-day assessment of the English Language Arts Common Curriculum Goals and in tracking individual student progress over time. The guide lists individual grade level expectations from the Common Curriculum Goals with possible…