One of the key findings from decades of educational effectiveness research is the importance of the classroom level as a predictor of pupil outcomes. In this review, we therefore look at synthesising our best evidence from research on effective teaching, and its corollary, teacher development. In the 1st section, we will look at key findings from 35 years of research on effective teaching using a process-product research that has led to the identification of a range of behaviours which are positively related to student achievement. A key limitation of this research, however, is its focus on basic skills in English and maths. Therefore, in the 2nd section we review research on "new learning" and teaching for metacognitive and thinking skills. While in these 2 sections we have discussed key findings from research on teaching, including emerging knowledge on metacognition, it is important to continue to take into account ongoing developments in theories of learning. In the 3rd section of this paper, we develop the argument that a major contributing factor to this situation is that "state-of-the-art" understandings about processes and conditions that promote student learning are typically not used to construct appropriate learning environments for their teachers.

Participatory evaluation is presented as an extension of the stakeholder-based model with a focus on enhancing evaluation utilization through primary users' increased depth and range of participation in the applied research process. The approach is briefly described and then justified from theoretical and empirical bases. The literature on organizational learning provides theoretical support for participatory evaluation stemming primarily from the view that knowledge is socially constructed and cognitive systems and memories are developed and shared by organization members. Twenty-six recent empirical studies were found to support an organizational learning justification of the model. Studies were classified into one of six emergent categories: conceptions of use; effects of participation on the use of research; effects of participation on the use of disseminated knowledge; effects of research training; school-university partnerships; and internal evaluation. Requirements of organizations and evaluators and an agenda for research are discussed.Evaluation practice has improved considerably over the past decades, but as Alkin (1991) acknowledged, evaluation theory is not well developed. It has, however, evolved and will continue to do so. Perhaps the most powerful catalyst in this evolution has been research and theory about evaluation utilization. Several points made by Alkin reflecting this view include a distinction between "evaluation" and "research" on the basis of the presence of an intended user; the orientation toward responsive evaluation; the view toward the engagement of preconceived critical decision makers; and the "notion of an adapting, reacting evaluator, interacting with and sensitive to the changing nature of evaluation concerns" (p. 102). Over the past 2 decades considerable knowledge has accumulated concerning how and why evaluation data are used.The purpose of this article is to build upon existing knowledge about utilization and propose a "participatory" model of evaluation that we believe has particular value for evaluators in educational settings. Our orientation to this proposition is light on prescription and comparatively heavy on justification, partly because the form of participatory evaluation will depend significantly upon local context and partly because it is our belief that prescription without solid grounding in theory and data is little more than preference. First, we review briefly what is known about evaluation utilization and set the stage for the participatory model. Our description of the model is followed by theoretical justification from the perspective of organizational learning and a review of empirical research to support this theory. We conclude with thoughts about requirements of organizations and evaluators and an agenda for research. 397

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