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AALE
AMERICAN
ACADEMY
FOR
LIBERAL EDUCATION
1050 17th Street,
NW
, Suite 400
Washington
,
DC
20036
www.aale.org (Tel.) 202-452-8611
(Fax) 202-452-8620 info@aale.org
EXTERNAL
EVALUATION SERVICES
TEACHING AMERICAN HISTORY PROGRAM
U.S.
Department of Education
2005-2008 Grant Period
Purpose: The U.S.
Department of Education requires evaluation of all projects funded
under the “Teaching American History” (TAH) grant program in
the 2005-2008 grant period. The
American
Academy
for Liberal Education (AALE) will fulfill this function by
agreement with the local education agency (LEA) and its
institutional partner. Please
note, however, that AALE External Evaluation Services are not
intended to meet the requirements for the Invitational Priority
described in the TAH Application.
Qualifications: The
central function of AALE is the evaluation of the effectiveness of
educational programs and institutions.
Founded in 1992 with the historian Jacques Barzun as board
chair, AALE has been recognized since 1995 by the U.S. Secretary
of Education as an accreditor of degree-granting liberal arts
colleges and liberal arts university programs.
With grants from the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Knight
Foundation, AALE has also developed new methods of evaluation of
liberal arts learning beyond strict accreditation.
Since 2001, AALE has expanded its accreditation services to
K-12 schools nationwide. AALE’s
external reviews of academic programs emphasize student learning
outcomes, teacher quality, and core curricula.
Further, its accreditation standards, at both K-12 and
college levels, require the study of
U.S.
history in general and the founding era in particular.
AALE therefore brings unusual expertise to the very area of
the TAH program, including numerous affiliated professional
historians.
Core services: AALE
will conduct both quantitative and qualitative evaluations and
report both objective and subjective results in three areas:
I.
Evaluation of
knowledge gains: This
evaluation will draw on: student demographic data; student
performance data (state assessments, SAT II, AP, National Writing
Board, student writing samples, etc.); and teacher knowledge,
professional qualifications, and performance data.
II.
Evaluation of
products and events: This evaluation will focus on pedagogical
products and project events, such as: curricular units,
textbooks/lessons, and other teaching materials; internet and
software applications, video, and distance learning; summer
institutes, in-service workshops, and other university-,
district-, or school-based events
III.
Evaluation of
management: This evaluation will examine the administrative
performance by the LEA and partner(s); the responsibilities and
performance of project personnel; the project timetable and
benchmarks; delivery of services; and budget.
Optional services: AALE
will consider requests for “tailored” external evaluations,
beyond the Core services listed above, at additional fees.
Supplemental services may include: detailed examinations of
teacher qualifications; development of tests of knowledge of
American history; analysis of state history standards; outside
examiners for prizes and awards; and other services that are
practicable, closely aligned to the design of the proposed
project, and in keeping with the Department’s intentions.
Form of evaluation: AALE
will conduct evaluations on-site, assigning site visitors to
conduct interviews, attend events, etc., and off-site, gathering
assessment, personnel, and survey data, project documentation, and
other relevant information. American
historians affiliated with AALE will have active roles in all
phases.
AALE will provide a prose narrative/report
divided into three areas, as above, with additional areas if
optional services are elected.
Each area will be scored by reviewers on a scale of 1 (low)
to 5 (high). The three
areas will be weighted as follows in computing a final overall
score: I = 50%; II =
30%; and III = 20%. In
future years, data allowing comparative evaluations of projects
will be available.
Personnel: AALE will
draw on its extensive contact base among American historians,
schoolteachers and administrators, and college/university faculty
and administrators to conduct evaluations.
AALE has constituted an Advisory Board for TAH Evaluations,
co-chaired by Dr. James Deneen, Retired Director of the Advanced
Placement Program, Educational Testing Service, and Dr. David
Beito, Professor of American History,
University
of
Alabama
.
Timetable: External
evaluation will occur annually.
Project personnel will provide AALE with all necessary
information to execute its duties as external evaluator, in a
timely manner, beginning with baseline data.
If any indications are raised in annual reviews, applicants
will file a response within two months addressing problems raised
and describing methods of rectifying them.
Fees: Fees will be
determined in consultation with the Academy depending on
evaluation design. AALE
will provide applicants with a Memorandum of Understanding to
include in their application. Please contact the Academy for
more information.
Contact:
American
Academy
for Liberal Education
1050 17th Street, NW
Suite 400
Washington
,
DC
20036
202-451-8611, 202-451-8620 (fax)
website:
www.aale.org
email:
info@aale.org |
