Abstract
When all three partners of the newly formed evaluation firm of DATAFAX, INC., were interviewed for a potential contract by the project directors, the company philosophy soon became clear: data and facts were the same thing — and the only thing. The junior partner, Joe Friday, when asked how they would proceed if awarded the contract replied, “All we want are the facts, ma’am.”1 When the project director inquired about a theoretical base for the evaluation, the second partner, Sherlock Holmes, immediately cautioned, “It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories instead of theories to suit facts” (Doyle, 1981, p. 163). Lest Holmes, the most erudite of the partners, be misunderstood, the senior partner and founder of the firm, Thomas Gradgrind, of Dickens fame, reminded the clients, “In this life, we want nothing but Facts, sir; nothing but Facts!” (1981, p. 25).
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Madaus, G.F. (1985). Data-Collection Problems in Evaluation. In: Abrahamson, S. (eds) Evaluation of Continuing Education in the Health Professions. Evaluation in Education and Human Services, vol 18. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-4986-7_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-4986-7_6
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