In lesser developed countries, interest has been growing in the role evaluation plays in the improvement of media-based education programs. Such programs include the use of television or radio to communicate a useful message to students, the general populace, or a particular group (such as mothers or small farmers). The message to be communicated may concern general academic skills (such as reading or math) or specific information (such as the advantages of breast feeding or of a particular farming technique). In lesser developed countries, such programs are usually initiated by political leaders or other high-level decision-makers as a way of attacking social problems. In October 1980 a workshop was held on methods of evaluating and monitoring media-based education programs. This document, prepared as the basic discussion paper for the workshop, reviews the role of evaluation and research in various stages of the policy-making and implementation process and stresses the need to relate evaluation to system planning as a whole, rather than confining it to summative research or to the formative development of materials. This paper has been revised to incorporate the major themes of the workshop discussions, including the participants' criticisms and recommendations. (Author/JM)