evaluation as positive youth development ben silliman, barbara swanson, bill stone north carolina...

Evaluation as Positive Youth

Development

Ben Silliman, Barbara Swanson, Bill StoneNorth Carolina 4-H

Webinar website: http://nc4-heval.wikispaces.comeXtension E-CoP website:

http://collaborate.extension.org/wiki/PDCoP_Evaluation

Evaluation as PYDWho we are

eXtension Evaluation Community of Practice monthly webinar

…targeting 4-H community professionals and programs

A place to network and encourage each other A place to learn together across the continuum A place to make the best better



Evaluation as PYDWhat about today?

Do volunteers and youth love to tell you what difference a program made or do they struggle to describe anything beyond ‘what they did’?

Evaluation is as good as the trust, clarity, and insight of program participants


Do your programs “search for impacts” or “plan for impacts”?

Evaluations cannot track what programs have not tried


Do evaluation activities tend to disrupt or enhance relationships with youth?

How you evaluate affects how well you evaluate


Do volunteers and youth love to tell you what difference a program made or struggle to describe anything beyond ‘what they did’?

Begin with relationships


See the big picture


Blend evaluation & programs

Evaluation is in our youth development DNA!

Evaluation as PYDLearning together with youth

How do we know 4-H makes a difference?

We listen to their stories and dreams

We see it in their faces

We watch them grow


We live the difference


But how do we capture the learning, the leadership and teamwork, the confidence, the commitment to citizenship and service that comes from 4-H experiences?


…and why is it important?

Evaluation as PYDWhat we know CAN help us

Capturing the impact of a youth program helps program leaders…

Show accountability for investments of time & money

Grow capacities of individuals and organizations to conduct quality programs and measure results

Know how to improve programs and innovateBestow youth with stronger relationships

Go forward with clear, accurate DATA and insightful, inspiring ideas to support program success and renew the organization

Evaluation as PYDWhat we know CAN help us

Capture and use impactsAccountability: PYD study (national, state, local)

Capacity-building: Youth Summit/Civic Education Conference presentations, community awareness

Program improvement: Opportunities with youth, community college School-age Care providers

Relationships: Talking about bullying w/families

Evaluation as PYDPlan the work and work the plan

Planning for quality and impact (program development) helps youth leaders…

Develop programs with the right “dosage” to make a difference (intensity-frequency-duration)

Train and support staff for maximum effectiveness

Develop and test those programs gradually for maximum quality and impact (initiating-refining-maturing program and evaluation)

Evaluation as PYDPlan the work and work the plan

Planning programs, not just activities“Dosage”: School enrichment units

Outcomes

Training/Support: Coaching volunteer leaders (appropriate goals, continuity across activities)

Maturing programs/evaluations: Needs/Experiences …Quality/Outcomes…Individual & Community Impact

Evaluation as PYDHow we find out is what we are about

Blending programming and evaluation strategies can help youth leaders…

Create authentic and empowering assessment processes that…

reflect youth development best practicesyield rich and diverse data that can be used

by many stakeholders for many different purposes

Evaluation as PYDHow we find out is what we are about

Integrate relationships, programming, and evaluation: It’s all youth development

Authentic and empowering assessment YDBP: positive climate, guided discovery,

teachable moment at camp Data mining: camp observations,

mentoring, experiential learning, decision-making…debriefing …training…accountability reports…funding proposals

Evaluation as PYDWhat we’re doing about it

Evaluation Learning Circles are

learning skills “hands-on” with peers nationwide

Self-assessment (and growth!) on evaluation skills, focus group ‘markers’ on goals, achievements

Collaborative planning, programming, evaluation on shared program-of-interest (that fits 4-H LRFAs)

Leading and participating in national webinarsReporting, publishing results and making a

difference

Evaluation as PYDWhat we’re doing about it

Evaluation Learning Circles are all over:

Camp Millstone* (2006-11): Quality and ImpactNorthwest* (2007): Presentation ContestNorth Central (2009-11): Record Books/STEMNortheast (2009-10): PYD/Youth LeadershipSouthwest (2009-11): Science FairSouth Central (2010-11): Club OutcomesSoutheast + (2010-11): Presentation ContestShooting Sports (2011): Training Quality, Outcomes* Results published in Journal of Youth Development

Evaluation as PYDQuestion and Answer

Are these the right questions for keeping evaluations positive youth development experiences?




Evaluation as PYDQuestion and Answer

What work do we need to do to answer these questions in our own programs? (comments and questions)




Evaluation as PYDFeedback to Presenters

What should presenters keep or change?

ContentDelivery

Evaluation as PYDTake-away

What insights, skills, or tools will you take

away from this webinar?

4-H EvaluationCommunity of Practice

Next Month

Join us as Dr. Robert Horton applies today’s theme with the Experiential Learning Model

Evaluation as PYDAdios!

Thanks for joining in—it’s your Community

of Practice!



Evaluation as PYDDebriefing

Delivery

LRS Level/Relevance/SpecificityEEE Enthusiasm/Engagement/

EmpathyContent

KASA Knowledge/Attitude/Skills/Aspiration gains

BA Behavior Change/ApplicationCommunity

OIA Open/Inclusive/Affirming

evaluation as positive youth development ben silliman, barbara swanson, bill stone north carolina...

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