The development and application of a methodology for program evaluation

The purpose of this study was to develop a practical methodology of program evaluation from considerations of what the evaluative act required on logical grounds. The methodology developed was based on P.W. Taylor's (1961) analytical treatment of evaluation and M. Scriven's extensive writings on the subject. The study involved two broad phases. The first phase was a discussion of Taylor's and Scriven's thoughts on evaluation showing where they are compatible and overlap. The second phase showed how the ideas developed in the first phase were operationalized and adapted to the evaluation of a teacher training program at the University of British Columbia. A general conclusion of this study was that Taylor's analysis of the method and product of evaluation provided a suitable framework for the evaluation of an educational program. More specifically when Taylor's analysis was combined with Scriven's extensive work, a feasible model of evaluation resulted which readily produced a defensible, overall estimation of worth for an educational product. Although the methodology of evaluation developed in this study was only applied to a teacher training program, it could easily be extended to the evaluation of other educational programs or products.Education, Faculty ofCurriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department ofGraduat