Evaluating Mainstreaming Programs: Models, Caveats, Considerations, and Guidelines

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Abstract
A variety of practical and theoretical issues pertinent to the evaluation of mainstreaming programs are presented, including (a) a critique of large and small mainstreaming evaluation studies, with emphasis upon the adequacy of models and the insights they yield for improved evaluation designs; (b) problems and issues in the evaluation of educational treatments, including attention to the variables of instructional time, instructional integration, stating goals and objectives, assessing teacher willingness to accommodate the handicapped child, and monitoring child progress; (c) considerations related to appraising dependent measures (attitudes, achievement, acceptance, cost/effectiveness); and (d) a discussion of issues unique to the evaluation requirements of Public Law 94–142. The paper concludes with a presentation of guidelines for developing and appraising mainstream evaluation reports, and the observation that problems related to the evaluation of mainstreaming programs are not insurmountable.