The National Science Foundation’s Division of Research and Learning in Formal and Informal Settings (DRL) has invested in several resource centers and networks in the past several years. In 2010, The National Science Foundation awarded a small Early Concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) grant to bring together the Principal Investigators (PIs) and evaluators of these resource centers to collaborate and share ideas and lessons learned. As part of that EAGER grant, and our participation in the evaluation group, Inverness Research agreed to undertake a very small and limited exploration of the theory of action that underlies the DRL Centers.
To evaluate any program or project it is very useful to understand the intention of the investment that is made in that program or project. A more detailed and mechanistic description of intention is typically found in the theory of action or logic model of the project or program. Very often it is the role of the evaluator to help elicit and articulate the theory of action that underlies the investment; not only does this clarification process often help the project, but it also provides the foundation for evaluating the efficacy of the investment. We thought it would be useful to explore and explicate the theory of action underlying the NSF investment in these resource centers. Our thinking is based upon our own work with the Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE) and our interviews with Center PIs, program officers and evaluators.
This memo describes the very initial stages of becoming clearer about the theory of action that underlies the DRL Centers, and it highlights some questions and issues that arise as one looks across all five funded DRL centers. The DRL Centers are a unique investment in the NSF portfolio, and, we believe, are worthy of further study and development.
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