Evaluation of Experimental Colleges: Some Questions That Need Asking.
Each new academic year finds a new speckle of dots on the imaginary wall-map plotting the location of experimental colleges, cluster colleges, and other innovative collegiate programs. Articles about living-learning concepts, open colleges, coed residence halls, and other departures from the traditional collegiate programs are appearing regularly in popular magazines. We now have annual national meetings of personnel associated with these new programs. Indeed, a friend of mine noted recently that a new profession may be in the process of being born; one with its own structure, agendas, officers, convention papers, and even its own placement service. Before this encrustation process is complete it is appropriate that we begin to ask some hard questions about experimental colleges. The purpose of this paper is to pose some key evaluative questions, not the least of which is the very question of the need for and value of evaluation. It is intended that these questions will serve as an intellectual springboard for those directly involved in either the planning, implementation, or evaluation of experimental colleges. The questions examined include: Should experimental colleges be evaluated? What form should the evaluation take?