An assessment of The Nebraska Model , a model for comprehensive school evaluation

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the perceptions of professional educators who served during the 1985-86 school year, either on a self-study committee or an external visitation team, about the effectiveness, inclusiveness, and clarity of The Nebraska Model in conducting a self-study during school evaluation. A further purpose of the study was to ascertain whether changes should be made in The Nebraska Model. Twenty-one schools that used The Nebraska Model for school evaluation during the 1985-86 school year participated in this study. The superintendent and steering committee chairperson from every school, as well as one staff member from every school for each of the four mandatory study areas in The Nebraska Model, were asked to participate. Four external team members from every school, one from each of the four study areas, were also asked to participate. A descriptive research was conducted by submitting one of six versions of a survey instrument to each of the participants. The return rate was 81.8 percent. The responses on items about the overall effectiveness of The Nebraska Model had means much closer to agree than to disagree. Nearly all responses for items related to the sufficiency of the instructions for use of the model and the responses that related to the model\u27s inclusiveness were also near the agree category. Each of the first three research questions had only one item that resulted in near neutral means. Less than half the respondents believed separate committees should be used to develop the philosophy and objectives of the school and to study the relationship between the school and the community. However, a majority of the respondents believed that predetermined indicators of quality and special data gathering forms should be added to the model. Overall, the guide was found to be usable. All responding superintendents and steering committee members stated they would use the model again