Evaluating Title I Early Childhood Programs: Problems, the Applicability of Model C, and Several Evaluation Plans

Abstract

The enactment of the 1974 amendments to Title I expresses the growing concern for developing adequate evaluation strategies for assessing the effectiveness of Title I programs. The current Title I Evaluation and Reporting System (TIERS) was designed for use in grades 2-12. However, Title I programs are also present in the early childhood grades (prekindergarten, kindergarten, and first grade). Huron Institute is currently investigating alternative evaluation strategies to assess Title I programs in these grade levels (Bryk, Strenie, and Weisberg, 1979).
Although many evaluation models exist for evaluating early childhood programs, this paper will focus on the "Special Regression Model," Model C in the TIERS. We first present factors which make evaluating early childhood programs particularly difficult. The paper concludes with several feasible evaluation plans utilizing Model C.