State Product Evaluation Programs

TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Synthesis 328: State Product Evaluation Programs examines the general use of evaluation programs within state departments of transportation (including the use of state specifications, and laboratory and field testing results), the national programs that exist to support the integration of new products and technologies into practice, and the general issues associated with conducting objective evaluations of new products and implementation of approved products.

Contains an inventory of evaluation reports produced by and for selected Federal agencies, including GAO evaluation reports that relate to the programs of those agencies.

Abstract: Prepared as a guide and handbook for planners, developers, and evaluators of educational programs and products, practical insights are given on planning and executing effective evaluations. The evaluator's work is viewed as establishing perspective, planning the evaluation, and analyzing the data. Procedures that are appropriate for each of these activities are identified for the reader. The subject matter in this multiauthored book is divided into roles and contexts, models and strategies, and methods and techniques. Contributors also depict today's standards for evaluation and project what those standards will be in the future.