A preliminary collaborative model is presented for the restructuring of the San Diego (California) city schools to implement diverse forms of assessment. It is assumed that collaboration among program evaluation, curriculum, and classroom teachers can foster reforms. Central office staff can enable and facilitate the implementation of different…

Current theories of intellectual development claim that such development proceeds through invariant sequences of increasingly more adequate cognitive structures. According to the two dominant theories on changes in intellectual functioning during adulthood, intellectual development is essentially accomplished by adolescence, although sharpening…

The Program Review Extension Procedures (PREP) set forth in this manual are a flexible set of procedures and questionnaires designed for use by Michigan community colleges in evaluating non-occupational instructional areas. First, introductory material explains that PREP is not a component of, but rather a companion model to the Michigan Community…

Before students and teachers can really understand another culture, they need to learn about their own culture. Considering the products, practices and perspectives of their own families, for example, can open new pathways in their knowledge about family artifacts, foods, patterns of behavior and appreciation of their family's cultural traditions…

An overview is provided of the issues involved in the state-mandated exchange of data about transfer students between two-year and four-year colleges in Virginia. Background is presented on state legislators' concerns with the measurement of student achievement; guidelines developed by the state assembly regarding data exchanges and student…

The role of survey data in assessing teacher supply, demand, and shortage is illustrated through a description of the Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) of the National Center for Education Statistics. This survey exemplifies a method that involves: (1) a sample survey; (2) representative surveys; (3) cross-sectional surveys; and (4) comprehensive…

A standard-setting procedure was developed for the Georgia Teacher Certification Testing Program as tests in 30 teaching fields were revised. A list of important characteristics of a standard-setting procedure was derived, drawing on the work of R. A. Berk (1986). The best method was found to be a highly formalized judgmental, empirical Angoff…

This paper describes two studies that utilize different research methods, one statistical and one non-statistical, conducted by The National Urban League to assess the needs of black communities. The first study, Black Pulse, whose purpose was to assess the conditions and attitudes of black Americans, consisted of a detailed, statistical survey of…

This report on the training of child care staff in Delaware discusses issues relating to child care staff training and the quality of care in the state. Guided discussions and interviews were used to elicit descriptions of training, appropriate content and formats for training, a career development system, resource centers, and problems related to…

This guide is intended to help planners and trainers assess the training needs of industrial organizations. Addressed in the individual chapters are the following topics: types of training needs (three levels of needs--organizational, occupational, individual, organizational training needs and objectives, and present and future needs); present…

Recommendations of the Study Group on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) are summarized in this report. The report is then reviewed by the National Academy of Education. The recommendations are to: (1) maintain NAEP's continuity; (2) assess the core curriculum; (3) focus on transitional grades (4, 8, and 12) and sample…

Phase III of the Louisiana School Effectiveness Study (LSES-III) was designed in part to obtain rich, qualitative data on the characteristics of more and less effective schools in the Gulf South. Data were gathered on eight matched outlier pairs of schools during the 1984-1985 school year. Of the eight historically ineffective schools in LSES-III,…

A project was undertaken to develop and field-test new methodologies for collecting follow-up and placement data on completers of Miami-Dade Community College (MDCC). Strategies used in the study included exploration of such nontraditional data sources as in- and out-of-state private university transfers, state university system tapes for all…

This paper explores ways in which technology (especially microcomputers) can improve the access to and utility of educational data for school improvement efforts. The paper focuses on the product and project options available to the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory's Database and School Profiling program, which offers technical and…

The Institute for Research on Educational Finance and Governance (IFG) has designed and implemented a major survey of public and private schools in the six-county San Francisco Bay Area which focuses on organizational dimensions in elementary and secondary schools. Private schools include Catholic parochial and private schools, independent…