[NIFL-FOBASICS:136] accountability

From: ralph silva (silva_ralph@hotmail.com)
Date: Sun Sep 19 1999 - 22:16:05 EDT


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From: "ralph silva" <silva_ralph@hotmail.com>
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Subject: [NIFL-FOBASICS:136] accountability
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John Comings(#134) poses an interesting challenge;  "Rather than collecting 
a little bit of data on all
students, we would collect a lot of data on a few students.  I think
this could be done well with the existing resources being put into
accountability systems." Could we also rely more on self-reporting of 
learners? Check out the rather elegant Tennesee study described in the 
"Focus on Research " article on page 22. Notice the size of the research 
sample.   Notice also the self-descriptions of participants.  Researcher 
Bingman writes: "People describe lives that are in most ways quite ordinary. 
They have jobs, raise children, go shopping..." In my own teaching 
experience, one of the most striking aspects of my students is that they 
have mostly typical lives, and need specific help to achieve particular 
goals. They seem to know what they want, how they expect to get there, and 
afterward, how the program worked. The question is; Will funders respond to 
small samples, trust program evaluation by participants, and support 
straightforward, learner-centered programs? Would these kinds of measures 
help bring skeptical practitioners, like Anne Serino(#119), onboard? RS

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