Hello! We are Katie Allen and Tameka Porter, Managing Consultants at McREL International and the Deputy Director and State Lead for the State of Kansas at the Region 12 Comprehensive Center. Our work supports Colorado, Kansas, and Missouri as they implement, scale, and sustain evidence-based programs, practices, and interventions for improving educator and student outcomes. …
Hi everyone! I’m Leigh M. Tolley, Past Chair of the PreK-12 Educational Evaluation Topical Interest Group (TIG) and Assistant Professor, Secondary Education at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (UL Lafayette). Since 2019, I have been the Program Co-Coordinator of UL Lafayette’s Mentor Teacher Training Program. Through this program, we recruit, train, and support teachers …
PreK-12 Ed Eval TIG Week: Evaluative Thinking in Teacher Mentoring by Leigh M. Tolley Read More »
Hello, I’m Sondra LoRe, Ph.D. Since 2014, I have been learning from conducting focus groups, interviews, and observations with educators and students in virtual spaces. The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly amplified the use of virtual spaces for evaluation. Before joining the National Institute for STEM Evaluation & Research (NISER), I worked as an educator evaluator, …
Hello! My name is Marisa Crowder, I am a researcher at McREL International. My colleague is Samantha Holquist, a research scientist at the Search Institute. We are excited to share some of the findings from our recent study, which was conducted in collaboration with youth researchers. The focus on this blog is on findings that …
I’m Amanda Klein-Cox, owner of Engage with Data (formerly Structured Solutions). I help K-12 schools, districts, and education non-profits use data to measure their impact, particularly around family engagement. I’ve been reflecting lately about how life has changed since the pandemic started. Somehow, we’ve made it through this year of change, fear, and loss. It …
Greetings! I am Lisa Jones, a Managing Researcher at McREL International. I joined the field of evaluation with my “tools” that many evaluators hold—our education makes us good technicians. However, technical know-how is not enough. The “accountability age” opened the market for program evaluators. Title 1-funded schools could only implement evidence-based educational strategies. Likewise, federal …
PreK-12 Ed Eval TIG Week: It’s All About Relationships by Lisa M. Jones Read More »
Hi! We’re Tameka Porter, Kim Good, and Susan Shebby of the Region 11 Comprehensive Center at McREL International. The Region 11 Comprehensive Center serves Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming as they implement evidence-based interventions that support improved educator and student outcomes. In our partnership with the Nebraska Department of Education, we created a …
I’m Sheila A. Arens, Chair of the PreK-12 Educational Evaluation Topical Interest Group (TIG) and Executive Director of Research, Evaluation, and Technical Assistance at McREL. I am delighted to kick off this week of AEA365 blogs! I spent considerable time in 2020/21 thinking about the nature of evaluation practice and the ways that context and …
PreK-12 Ed Eval TIG Week: Validity, Context, and Circumstance by Sheila A. Arens Read More »
We are Christine Crumbacher, PhD, Evaluation Specialist at Greenville County Schools in South Carolina, and Michael Sikes, PhD, independent Program Evaluator. Each of us evaluates educational programs that serve young people. Interviewing minors presents unique challenges. These include obtaining parental consent, interviewee participation, protecting participants, and collecting detailed data. Hot Tip: Know district policies concerning …
Interviewing Minors in Schools Read More »
Hi again! I’m Leigh M. Tolley, Chair of the PreK-12 Educational Evaluation Topical Interest Group (TIG) and Assistant Professor, Secondary Education at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (UL Lafayette). As a former high school English teacher, I consider myself very fortunate to work with preservice and inservice teachers in their learning and professional development. …
