Designing and Constructing Instruments for Social Research and Evaluation

Designing and Constructing Instruments for Social Research and Evaluation
Author: David Colton
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 465
Release: 2015-06-22
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1119177979

Written in easy-to-understand language, this important text provides a systematic and commonsense approach to developing instruments for data collection and analysis. This book can be used by both those who are developing instruments for the first time and those who want to hone their skills, including students, agency personnel, program managers, and researchers. This book provides a thorough presentation of instrument construction, from conception to development and pre-testing of items, formatting the instrument, administration, and, finally, data management and presentation of the findings. Throughout the book, the authors emphasize how to create an instrument that will produce trustworthy and accurate data. To that end they have included guidelines for reviewing and revising the questionnaire to enhance validity and reliability. They also show how to work effectively with stakeholders such as instruments designers, decision-makers, agency personnel, clients, and raters or respondents.

Improving Survey Questions

Improving Survey Questions
Author: Floyd J. Fowler
Publisher: SAGE
Total Pages: 204
Release: 1995-07-21
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 9780803945838

Questions as Measures An Overview Designing Questions to Gather Factual Data Questions to Measure Subjective States Some General Rules for Designing Good Survey Instruments Presurvey Evaluation of Questions Assessing the Validity of Survey Questions Question Design and Evaluation Issues in Perspective.

Assessment Methods for Student Affairs

Assessment Methods for Student Affairs
Author: John H. Schuh and Associates
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2011-01-06
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1118047389

Editor John Schuh and his fellow contributors, all experts in the field, detail the methodological aspects of conducting assessment projects specifically for the student affairs practitioner who is ready to conduct assessment projects, but is not quite sure how to manage their technical aspects. Using a variety of case studies and concrete examples to illustrate various assessment approaches, the authors lead the reader step-by-step through each phase of the assessment process with jargon-free, hands-on guidance.

Handbook on Measurement, Assessment, and Evaluation in Higher Education

Handbook on Measurement, Assessment, and Evaluation in Higher Education
Author: Charles Secolsky
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 738
Release: 2017-07-31
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1317485548

In this valuable resource, well-known scholars present a detailed understanding of contemporary theories and practices in the fields of measurement, assessment, and evaluation, with guidance on how to apply these ideas for the benefit of students and institutions. Bringing together terminology, analytical perspectives, and methodological advances, this second edition facilitates informed decision-making while connecting the latest thinking in these methodological areas with actual practice in higher education. This research handbook provides higher education administrators, student affairs personnel, institutional researchers, and faculty with an integrated volume of theory, method, and application.

Developing and Assessing Personal and Social Responsibility in College

Developing and Assessing Personal and Social Responsibility in College
Author: Robert D. Reason
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 118
Release: 2013-12-05
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1118828178

In 2007, wanting to expand higher education’s civic engagement conversation, the Association of American Colleges and Universities launched the Core Commitments Initiative. That initiative focused attention on personal and social responsibility as outcomes of a college education, with the understanding that such a focus would return American higher education to its historical purpose of preparing active and engaged citizens. Expanding the conversation this way leaves room for behavioral measures, like voting or hours spent in community service, but also opens our understanding of citizenship to include issues of civic identity, civic attitudes, personal integrity, and ethics. This volume explores the research and practice related to the development of personal and social responsibility in college, drawing data directly from institutions that were part of the Core Commitments Initiative and providing instructive examples of good practice at both the programmatic and institutional levels. This volume is the 164th volume of the Jossey-Bass quarterly report series New Directions for Higher Education. Addressed to presidents, vice presidents, deans, and other higher education decision makers on all kinds of campuses, it provides timely information and authoritative advice about major issues and administrative problems confronting every institution.

Design, Evaluation, and Analysis of Questionnaires for Survey Research

Design, Evaluation, and Analysis of Questionnaires for Survey Research
Author: Willem E. Saris
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 384
Release: 2014-04-14
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 1118634616

Praise for the First Edition "...this book is quite inspiring, giving many practical ideas for survey research, especially for designing better questionnaires." —International Statistical Review Reflecting modern developments in the field of survey research, the Second Edition of Design, Evaluation, and Analysis of Questionnaires for Survey Research continues to provide cutting-edge analysis of the important decisions researchers make throughout the survey design process.The new edition covers the essential methodologies and statistical tools utilized to create reliable and accurate survey questionnaires, which unveils the relationship between individual question characteristics and overall question quality. Since the First Edition, the computer program Survey Quality Prediction (SQP) has been updated to include new predictions of the quality of survey questions on the basis of analyses of Multi-Trait Multi-Method experiments. The improved program contains over 60,000 questions, with translations in most European languages. Featuring an expanded explanation of the usage and limitations of SQP 2.0, the Second Edition also includes: New practice problems to provide readers with real-world experience in survey research and questionnaire design A comprehensive outline of the steps for creating and testing survey questionnaires Contemporary examples that demonstrate the many pitfalls of questionnaire design and ways to avoid similar decisions Design, Evaluation, and Analysis of Questionnaires for Survey Research, Second Edition is an excellent textbook for upper-undergraduate and graduate-level courses in methodology and research questionnaire planning, as well as an ideal resource for social scientists or survey researchers needing to design, evaluate, and analyze questionnaires.

Consequences of No Child Left Behind on Educational Evaluation

Consequences of No Child Left Behind on Educational Evaluation
Author: Tiffany Berry
Publisher: Jossey-Bass
Total Pages: 124
Release: 2008-04-04
Genre: Education
ISBN:

This volume explores how key aspects of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) have transformed the landscape of educational evaluation, and ultimately how this process is redefining what evaluation is within the educational evaluation community. In their chapters, the authors examine case studies, critical commentaries, and technical information related to the nexus between evaluation and NCLB. The volume is intended to stimulate conversation around fundamental issues in the discipline of evaluation, including blurring the lines among research, evaluation, and assessment; prioritizing summative evaluations over formative; using questions to drive research design rather than the reverse; balancing accountability requirements with other stakeholder needs; exploring the role of evaluation capacity building in an institutional setting; understanding the availability and appropriate use of assessment data; and defining learning outcomes that are based on standardized test scores alone. Evaluative activities have become integrated into the fabric of NCLB primarily through two core aspects of the legislation: responding to accountability systems and implementing scientifically based research. One plausible consequence of this close integration is that the purpose, design, and practice of evaluation may actually be transformed by this legislation. This volume describes these transformative influences and then explores the potential consequences. This is the 117th volume of the Jossey-Bass quarterly report series New Directions for Evaluation, an official publication of the American Evaluation Association.

Scale Development

Scale Development
Author: Robert F. DeVellis
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Total Pages: 160
Release: 2016-03-30
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1506341586

In the Fourth Edition of Scale Development, Robert F. DeVellis demystifies measurement by emphasizing a logical rather than strictly mathematical understanding of concepts. The text supports readers in comprehending newer approaches to measurement, comparing them to classical approaches, and grasping more clearly the relative merits of each. This edition addresses new topics pertinent to modern measurement approaches and includes additional exercises and topics for class discussion. Available with Perusall—an eBook that makes it easier to prepare for class Perusall is an award-winning eBook platform featuring social annotation tools that allow students and instructors to collaboratively mark up and discuss their SAGE textbook. Backed by research and supported by technological innovations developed at Harvard University, this process of learning through collaborative annotation keeps your students engaged and makes teaching easier and more effective. Learn more.

Process Use in Theory, Research, and Practice

Process Use in Theory, Research, and Practice
Author: J. Bradley Cousins
Publisher: Jossey-Bass
Total Pages: 132
Release: 2007
Genre: Education
ISBN:

Conceptions of use are grounded within a common conception that useand influence can be traced to evaluation findings or to theknowledge outputs of evaluative activities. Yet a qualitativelydifferent type of use and impact began to emerge from evaluationpractice and research on it. This other sort of consequence --process use -- appeared to be attributable to something whollyindependent of evaluation findings, specifically, the activities orprocesses of evaluation as opposed to its products or outputs. Thisvolume is a multifacted exploration of process use; it includesmethodological, empirical, and conceptual inquiries as well as richnarrative forays into the domain of evaluation practice. Such acomprehensive approach serves to deepen understanding of processuse as being pivotal in contemporary theory on evaluationconsequences. This is the 116th volume of the Jossey-Bass quarterly reportseries New Directions for Evaluation, a publication ofJossey-Bass and the American Evaluation Association. The journalpublishes empirical, methodological, and theoretical works on allaspects of evaluation.