Beyond Standardized Test Scores: Using Case Studies to Evaluate a Reform Strategy

Source: Annenberg Foundation

Date: 2004

Abstract:
The school districts of Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties make up the South Florida Annenberg Challenge, which received a $33.4-million, two-for-one matching grant from the Annenberg Foundation in late 1996. The goal of the South Florida Annenberg Challenge (SFAC) was to increase students’ academic achievement through principal leadership, teacher empowerment, and parent involvement in the tricounty region. This chapter describes how case study research was used as the basis for the SFAC program evaluation. After providing a rationale for using case studies in the evaluation of school reform efforts, it continues with an overview of the evaluation design and framework guiding the evaluation. It then describes the case study methodology used from 1999 to 2001 and provides highlights of case study findings from the fourteen partnerships reviewed during that time. Finally, the chapter concludes with key lessons learned from the case studies and lays out future directions for SFAC program evaluation.

Link: Beyond Standardized Test Scores: Using Case Studies to Evaluate a Reform Strategy

Keyword: Evaluation Partnership

Region: Northern America