Presented at the 2008 ISE PI Summit, this presentation from Alan Friedman introduces the Framework for Evaluating the Impacts of Informal science Education Projects.
This Handbook is geared to the experienced researcher who is a novice evaluator. It orients the researcher to evaluation practice, with an emphasis on the use of qualitative techniques to augment quantitative measures.
The March 12-13, 2007 workshop at NSF on informal science education evaluation brought together a distinguished group of experts to discuss how impact categories might be best applied to various types of informal learning projects. This publication is an outcome of that meeting. The authors have strived to make the sections as helpful as possible given the primary focus of this workshop on project impacts. It should be viewed as part of an ongoing process to improve the ways in which evaluation can most benefit ISE projects, NSF, and the field. The publication is intended to help those
Presentation slides on submitting competitive Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) proposals, originally presented at the 2012 Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC) Annual Conference
In 2012, Concord Evaluation Group (CEG) conducted an evaluation of the impact of Peep and the Big Wide World (Peep) resources on Spanish-speaking families with preschool-aged children. The three-pronged evaluation included a National Family Study in which 112 Spanish-speaking families who used the Peep resources were compared to Spanish-speaking families who did not use the Peep resources. It also included an In-Depth Family Study -- an experiment conducted in the metro Boston area in which 36 Spanish-speaking families who used the Peep resources were compared to Spanish-speaking families who
The first phase of the evaluation, a front-end visitor study, assessing visitors' knowledge of and interest in space science and the cosmos, was conducted in May and June of 2000 at Boston's Museum of Science (MOS). The evaluation's second phase, a formative evaluation of the exhibition prototype, was completed in February of 2001 at the MOS. This summative report represents the third round of the evaluation process conducted by PERG, and is an evaluation of the current Cosmic Questions exhibition and related activities, based on data obtained by evaluators at two sites Boston's Museum of
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Joan KarpJudah LeblangSusan Baker CohenHarvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Produced by Twin Cities Public Television, St. Paul, MN, and sponsored by the National Science Foundation, SciGirls (SG) is a multimedia project for upper grade-school and middle-school tweens. Weekly half-hour episodes are tied in with web and outreach activities in the fields of science, technology and engineering. Multimedia Research, an independent evaluation group implemented a summative evaluation of the SG Season Two multimedia project. Fifth grade girls (N = 87) viewed three shows over three weeks. They could visit the SG website at any time but were required to visit and play a Pick'm
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Barbara FlaggTwin Cities Public Television
PlanetMania is an iOS and Android mobile app game produced by Maryland Science Center and Eduweb, Inc. in 2012 to accompany the Center's latest permanent exhibit, entitled Life Beyond Earth. Multimedia Research carried out a summative evaluation of the PlanetMania app, focusing on the app's usage in the exhibit, appeal, value and learning outcomes. The evaluation is a pre-post quasi-experimental study in which a sample of 24 9-11 year olds were interviewed prior to and after experiencing the app and exhibit as well as observed during their exposure to the app and exhibit. The app game combines
PERG conducted the formative and summative evaluations of Windows on Earth, a project led by the Center for Earth and Space Science Education (CESSE) at TERC. The project included numerous partners and contributors who focused on the development of the Windows on Earth software, exhibit and website, as well as four museums who participated in the development and evaluation process: Boston's Museum of Science, (MOS), the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, (A&S), the St. Louis Science Center (SLSC), and the Montshire Museum of Science (MM) in Vermont. The project also coordinated some programming
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Judah LeblangJoan KarpTERC IncJodi Sandler
Our Year 3 formative evaluation of Go Botany, a four-year NSF-funded project focused on botanical learning, centered on tracking the continued development and the launch of the Go Botany Simple Key, which contains botanical data on more than 1200 native plants in the New England region. The project is a collaboration between the New England Wild Flower Society and three partnering institutions: The Montshire Museum of Science in Norwich, VT; The Chewonki Foundation in Wiscasset, Maine; and the Yale Peabody Museum on Natural History in New Haven, CT. During Year 3, the Go Botany Simple Key was
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Judah LeblangNew England Wild Flower Society