Evaluation Assistant (EA) August Session

STARS Alliance 2011Tuesday Cohort C1 - Aug. 23

Wednesday Cohort C2 - Aug. 24Noon - 1:30 pm

Agenda Introductions Practical Matters: Semester cycle &

‘syllabus,’ tools First Assignments About the Research Project IRB SOWs & Narratives

How to get started

Practical Matters EA Syllabus:

review calendar discuss projects first steps

EA Google Site: Where ALL our EA content and support documents will be

for Fall 2011

Btw: this symbol means VERY IMPORTANT information

Practical Matters Continued

STARS Social Media Resources link:

http://www.starsalliance.org/resources.html#1 Eventually this will be where our EA site content

is housed, but not yet For now, use it and let me know 2 things:

How you use it What you think of it

First Assignments

Google Calendar share Select your Cohort Report who your SLC members are (now or by

email this week) Progress on:

YouTube video- team formed? Your SLC website- send the link as soon as done What Affinity Group you want to join

About that research project….

Who’s already doing outcomes research (studies) with their Outreach Participants? Share your materials on our EA Google Site

IRB application, consent forms, surveys, etc.

About that research project….

Who’s just starting and where are you? What is your outreach area? What is your idea- in general?

We’ll get more specific as you begin We’ll be forming research groups so we can work

together- called ‘pods’There are 2 types of research projects that EAs can

do……

EA Project Types

Formative Assessment Looking at what works, what

doesn’t, what improvements can be made to the SLC

Utilize meeting notes, experiences, discussions, information

There is no hypothesis and no inquiry- just summaries of what has been learned, accomplished, changed, etc.

Evaluation Research An intervention takes place Or a question is being asked

of participants that is systematically tracked/explored

IRB is required

IRB: Step 1 for Research

What is IRB? Institutional Review Board compliance with research

ethics; government regulated for any research done Typically we think of medical studies

People have the right to be informed when in an experiment The same is true in social behavioral studies People must be informed of what they are participating in and

why

IRB is not needed for formative evaluation

IRB: Step 1 for Research

1. Determine what you plan to study E.g. 5th graders’ attitudes about computing before

your robot program and after your robot program FYI: this is quasi-experimental, repeated measures design

2. Contact your IRB office: take the Human Subjects ethics test, fill out the IRB application

3. Begin your study AFTER obtaining IRB approval

TIP- view a sample IRB application on the EA Google site :)

IRB: Step 1 for ResearchWhat makes IRB complex:Obtaining consent from your participants

minors require parental consentTracking collected data accurately, consistently, over time document what you do- you will forget!

Jump in and get started We’ll refine your research project throughout the semester as

we discuss research design, and can amend IRB as needed Use your EA Project timeline to support your IRB write up