The role of the father in the family: Toward a gender-neutral family policy

A review of the literature suggests that: (a) Women are not the exclusive potential contributors to quality child care; (b) men can provide care equally well; (c) a growing number of men want to increase their involvement in child care. A number of obstacles impede, however, increased paternal involvement in child care; these include the existing societal value system, the present structure of the labor market, and the nature of many existing social services. Therefore, various aspects of social and family policy are examined and a variety of options are proposed.     

A cross-cultural test of the situational bias hypothesis : The israeli scene

The major aim of this study was to test the commonly held assumption, within the Israeli educational context, that the relatively poor mean performance of disadvantaged students on conventional ability tests is due, in part, to extraneous situational factors, systematically disadvantageous to their test performance. To that end, two controlled field experiments were conducted on independent samples of N = 288 and N = 48 elementary school pupils, respectively. The first experiment centered on the interaction between sociocultural group characteristics and each of two situational factors, namely, test atmosphere and examiner status, in affecting ability test performance. The second experiment explored the effects of test atmosphere per se on the nonverbal ability test scores of disadvantaged pupils. On the whole, this research provides evidence inconsistent with the situational bias hypothesis and does not support the assumption that disadvantaged children's ability test scores can be substantially improved by manipulating test atmosphere conditions. In view of the evidence showing that situational variables do not significantly bias testing results in favor of one group over another, it follows that current educational evaluation policies in Israel, relying heavily on the standardized ability tests results of disadvantaged groups, need not be changed.     

The case study evaluation: A means for managing organizational and political tensions

This study of evaluation utilization identified organizational, political, and practical arrangements which facilitated wide use of The Interim Report Evaluation in policy making for California's Early Childhood Education program. In a program fraught by tensions, where evaluations had been political tools, this evaluation was special. The research used a field study approach. Analysis was guided by literature on organizations, policymaking, and evaluation utilization. It identified techniques for maintaining political support, marshalling organizational resources, and designing and disseminating an evaluation that used an ethnographic approach and that was directly applied to policy deliberations. Such techniques have significance when evaluators and researchers need to convince policymakers of their worth. This case study adds to knowledge of the research/policy intersect, on ethnographic evaluation, and on state education policymaking.     

Making a case for an interface between quasi-experimental designs and social impact analyses

This paper describes the community impact assessment conducted after Concorde operations were initiated at Dulles International Airport. Problems in the design and conduct of this study that make causal interpretations implausible are discussed. The present authors report an improved design to eliminate these problems as well as increase the external validity of the results. A discussion of how the careful implementation of quasiexperimental designs allows for treatment-related causal interpretations to be made is also included. Finally, it is emphasized that practical application of these data make it possible to improve the implementation of the treatment in communities receiving it at a later date.     

Standard setting: the crucial issues. A case study of accounting & auditing

A study of standard-setting efforts in accounting and auditing is reported. The study reveals four major areas of concern in a professional standard-setting effort: (1) issues related to the rationale for setting standards, (2) issues related to the standard-setting board and its support structure, (3) issues related to the content of standards and rules for generating them, and (4) issues that deal with how standards are put to use. Principles derived from the study of accounting and auditing are provided to illuminate and assess standard-setting efforts in evaluation.     

Putting schools as socio/economic institutions back into educational evaluation: A response to Kean and McNamara

A number of individuals have proposed the gradual refinement of existing programs, rather than their continual closing down, as a safeguard against educational fads and political pressures. The gradual refinement thesis is extended, refined, and criticized in this article. A different unit of analysis is proposed, one which takes into account the role of educational institutions in assisting in the reproduction of both cultural and economic inequality. It is argued that decisions about the gradual refinement of programs and institutions are not only technical but ideological and politico/economic in nature. Criteria for deciding on gradual refinement, based on a strategy of nonreformist reforms, are suggested.     

Applicability of standards for evaluations of educational programs, projects and materials in an international setting

This paper starts with a short discussion of the book Standards for Evaluations of Educational Programs, Projects and Materials by the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation (McGraw-Hill, 1981). It then goes on to examine the usefulness in countries other than the United States of these standards and argues that evaluation of “programs” is more complicated and more politically biased than evaluation of “projects” and “materials.” In Europe, evaluation of educational programs (school systems) has proved to be highly correlated with the overriding objectives of different political parties, e.g., conservative, liberal, socialist, whereas educational policy in the United States is less bound to political parties, varying rather from case to case. In order to show how generally agreed upon educational goals can be interpreted according to different values, the author has reanalysed some studies of mean achievement in reading comprehension and science for 10- and 14-year-old students in 15 countries (IEA Project, 1973). The rank order of these countries is changed if, instead of national mean achievement, one takes proportion of students under a minimum level or above a prescribed top level as the criterion. Also the national (program) standard is evaluated in terms of between-school variance in results and in proportion of single-school units with exceptionally low or exceptionally high mean results. The conclusion is that the book on standards for evaluations of educational programs provides a good checklist of prerequisites for a reliable and valid evaluation. However, it is also concluded that—due to differences in values of program outcomes—such standards do not guarantee that the result of the evaluation will be indisputable.     

Goal-oriented evaluation for program planning: A case study

Utilizing a contextual model of evaluation, a goal-oriented method was applied to the Health Psychology program, a doctoral program in its early stages at the University of California, San Francisco. There were five stages involved in implementing this method: (1) clarification of the goals and objectives of the program, (2) prioritizing the objectives, (3) judging the attainment of the objectives, (4) organization of faculty/student input, and (5) feedback to the program management. All faculty members and students were invited to participate as selfevaluators in this evaluation effort. The results indicated that there were significant differences between the faculty group and the student group on their ranking and rating of the importance of specific educational and resource objectives. A one year follow-up was obtained by interviewing the director of the program to assess the impact of the project on program planning. The advantages and disadvantages of the approach were discussed in light of this attempt to analyze a new educational program.     

The evaluation of treatment in therapeutic communities: Problems of design and implementation

The evaluation of therapeutic communities provides an opportunity to explore the relationship between evaluation methodologies and the constraints imposed by the nature of the treatment setting. In most therapeutic communities the environment represents the primary vehicle of treatment and, as a result, virtually every aspect of the program's operations are, directly or indirectly, related to the treatment goals. This paper examines some of the problems this situation creates for the evaluation of such programs. It suggests that the need to develop an effective working relationship with the program becomes the primary concern of the evaluation process, and it analyzes the use of specific techniques involved in establishing this type of relationship. Such an approach may be useful in other settings where the unique characteristics of the program become the primary constraint in evaluation design and implementation.     

Problems in being responsive: Reflections on an evaluation of a program for training motorcycle riders

This paper discusses some methodological issues arising from an evaluation of the Queensland Road Safety Council Motorcycle Training Program. The basic orientation of the evaluation was responsive/illuminative; responsive in the sense that the evaluation proceeded interactively, with appropriate issues and procedures identified and modified progressively through direct observation of the program and discussion with the participants; illuminative in the sense that the final report attempted to provide a detailed account of the program operation and of its strengths and weaknesses as perceived by various stakeholders. An account is given of the main considerations in designing, implementing, and reporting the evaluation. Implications for future evaluations are discussed.     

The foster care system simulation: Evaluation of a training innovation

Although foster care is often spoken of as a system with many interactive facets, foster care personnel often carry out their specific roles with little understanding or consideration of the ultimate impact of that system. A simulation of public foster care service delivery designed to sensitize participants to these interactions is described. Evaluation of the simulation's accuracy in portrayal of actual service delivery and a study of the kinds of learning demonstrated by participants at three points (pretest, posttest, and follow-up) are reported. Participants found the simulation an attractive training method, indicated a greater appreciation of system-wide foster care problems, and reported changes in foster care thinking and work, but other indicators of learning were inconsistent.     

Professionals' attitudes towards men in early childhood education: A national study

A national sample of women and men working in early childhood education was drawn from the membership of the National Association for the Education of Young Children in order to assess their attitudes toward the suitability, professional practice, and administrative capabilities of men in early childhood education. Men and women were found to hold similar views toward the capabilities and roles of male preschool teachers across all these areas. The general lack of polarity of attitudes between men and women on many popularlyheld beliefs about men in the early childhood field is discussed in relation to previous alleged stereotyped attitudes toward male preschool teachers.