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This paper reports the results of a case study of the process of formative evaluation in the development of one unit of Individualized Science (IS). It is an analytic description of the curriculum project's experiences in formative evaluation rather than an evaluative critique. Following an introductory explanation, the IS program and the IS program directors' conception of formative evaluation are discussed. The concluding sections analyze the activities observed (both in the specific case and in general terms), the manifest and latent functions of formative evaluation, and some structural implications of these functions. (Author)

The relationship between the social structure of knowledge systems and knowledge syntheses is explored in order to define the social and cultural requirements for effective linkage. Following an introduction (section 1), analysis is divided into 5 additional sections. Section 2 discusses tools for conceptualizing knowledge systems, including social knowledge systems in simple and complex societies, major functions performed by knowledge-related activities (knowledge production, organization and structuring of knowledge, distribution of knowledge, and storage of knowledge), and the social construction of reality. Section 3 considers linkages between national knowledge systems through international channels. The quantitative increases in students from less developed nations, increasing numbers of scientific and professional organizations, and the growth of international development assistance have all aided the globalization of interaction and transfer of knowledge. Section 4 outlines four types of linkages: those between research and use within an institutional domain, those from research to use across institutions, those between a central use-oriented region and a peripheral research-oriented region, and those between central research-oriented regions and peripheral use-oriented regions. The diversity of linkage challenges and the roles of different kinds of knowledge syntheses are examined. Sections 5 and 6 assert that certain types of linkages--linkages that cross institutional domains--call predominantly for certain types of knowledge syntheses. (LP)