Ten working guidelines for use in developing educational software programs present standards evolved by one courseware producer for program content, learner motivation, the learning environment, educational objectives, field testing, learner control of the learning experience, monitoring and reviewing learner's activities, documentation, accuracy…

This demonstration booklet illustrates the kinds of exercises or test questions and tasks used in the assessment of student achievement in reading and in writing by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Each student will be asked to complete the background section and the cognitive sections in one subject, and the assessment will…

This demonstration booklet illustrates the kinds of exercises or test questions and tasks used in the assessment of student achievement in reading and writing by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Each student will be asked to complete the background section and the cognitive sections for one subject, and the assessment will…

Describes a project at Bell Laboratories which sought a compromise between ideal formative evaluation procedures and more feasible procedures necessitated by restrictions on time and resources. Local-trial and field-trial stages of a phased approach are discussed, as well as the benefits of field-tests. (EAO)

Describes a field test of Future School, an educational game which attempts to effect behavior change by first changing attitudes during a simulated experience. Discussion of simulations and games to achieve attitude change is included. (JJD)

Discussion of the evaluation of educational software highlights two evaluation methods: (1) the York Educational Software Evaluation Scales (YESES), a criterion-based evaluation, and (2) a field-testing approach developed at York University. Guidelines for the field-testing approach include an emphasis on the observation of students. (22…

This article describes a series of qualitative and quantitative methods used to test a community-based needs assessment model that is bias free and socioculturally relevant for indigenous populations. Results of a field test involving 100 Hawaiian children are presented, and implications for policy formation are discussed. (SLD)

Describes the development of an evaluation instrument, the Environment Rating Scale for Public Library Children's Services, that addresses the need to know how effectively the public library is serving children's needs. Field tests of the first draft and reliability testing of the second draft are described, and future plans are discussed. (nine…

A method is presented to use school-level attributes in sample description and random assignment of schools to conditions in drug prevention programs. Utility of archival data was examined using multivariate canonical techniques, and it was found that a small set of data could predict observed variations in drug use. (SLD)

Describes SIDE-VIEW, a computer-supported collaborative learning environment, and evaluates its effects in relation to the productivity of CSCL (computer-supported collaborative learning) groups. Discusses social identity and group behavior and reports on a field trial on international groups of higher education students, contrasting the role of…

Although the theory of evolution is the foundation of modern biology, students too rarely have an opportunity to watch selection operate in natural populations of animals. This lack may be partially responsible for the unfortunate ignorance of many people regarding the significance of evolution in biology. Laboratory exercises that directly study…

This article addresses the sustainability of comprehensive school reform (CSR) models in the face of turbulent district and state contexts. It draws on qualitative data gathered in a longitudinal case study of six CSR models implemented in 13 schools in one urban district. Why do reforms sustain in some schools and not in others? How do changing…

The National Household Education Survey (NHES) was conducted for the first time in 1991 as a way to collect data on the early childhood education experiences of young children and participation in adult education. Because the NHES methodology is relatively new, field tests were necessary. A large field test of approximately 15,000 households was…

The Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy developed and field-tested a curriculum and instructional materials for teaching occupationally specific vocabulary in the health care field. The materials, which are in the form of a narrative about a woman who learns medical terminology from a friend, were designed to serve as a vehicle for training…

A 36-item observation instrument was developed for measuring appropriate social development in infants and toddlers. Checklist items indicated such behaviors as asking, protecting, comforting, lending, sharing, hugging, playing with, joining, laughing, smiling, looking at, performing request, leading, following, and conversing. Use of the…