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The Harvard Family Research Project separated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education to become the Global Family Research Project as of January 1, 2017. It is no longer affiliated with Harvard University.

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Putting an Equity Lens on Family Engagement in Oregon

Creating high-quality early childhood systems necessitates a strong focus on family engagement. Check out how Oregon is adopting an equity lens and building a strong foundation to engage families by leveraging federal funds, community leadership, and philanthropic investments.

Anairis Hinojosa and M. Elena Lopez (October 29, 2015) Research Report

Understanding Parental Views of School Climate: Frequently Asked Questions About a New Survey Tool

K–12 schools are the foundation for children’s learning, and students in schools with positive climates tend to do well academically. Read about and download a new survey tool that families and school reformers can use to measure parents’ perceptions of school climate.

Beth Schueler (December 11, 2014) Research Report

Promoting Quality Through Professional Development: A Framework for Evaluation

Recognizing the critical role that staff play in promoting quality OST programs, in this brief we examine OST professional development efforts and offer a framework for their evaluation.

Suzanne Bouffard , Priscilla M.D. Little (August 2004) Research Report

A Review of Activity Implementation in Out-of-School Time Programs

This Snapshot examines the range and scope of activities being implemented in current out-of-school time programs to set a context for understanding the links between program activities and positive outcomes for youth.

Suzanne Bouffard , Priscilla M. D. Little (August 2003) Research Report

Detangling Data Collection: Methods for Gathering Data

This Snapshot describes the common data collection methods used by current out-of-school time programs to evaluate their implementation and outcomes.

Suzanne Bouffard , Priscilla M. D. Little (August 2004) Research Report

The Guide to Results-Based Accountability: Annotated Bibliography of Publications, Websites, and Other Resources

In addition to summarizing noteworthy articles, research papers, unpublished reports, and books on results-based accountability (RBA), this guide includes a section on RBA sites on the Internet. It includes perspectives from both private and public sectors on how to develop and implement results-based accountability systems, academic literature on RBA theories, and information on how states and localities are developing and implementing RBA systems.

Anne Brady , Julia Grossman, Karen Horsch, Diane Schilder, Kari Sorenson (1997) Research Report

Continuous Improvement: Being Responsive When There is Need for Change

Deborah J. Brown, external evaluator for Save the Children, discusses how continuous improvement processes have helped strengthen one of Save the Children’s language development and pre-literacy programs, Early Steps to School Success.

Deborah J. Brown (September 17, 2013) Research Report

Insights From Teaching a Graduate Evaluation and Improvement Science Course

In teaching Learning From Practice: Evaluation and Improvement Science at Harvard Graduate School of Education, Candice Bocala creates ample opportunities for students and partner organizations to work together as they explore the complexities of program evaluation. Discover the three insights Bocala has learned about program evaluation along the way.

Candice Bocala (November 12, 2015) Research Report

Why We Need to Slow Down When It Comes to Evaluation

Read about lessons HFRP has learned from supporting evaluation efforts in the field. This commentary highlights the value of investing time to carefully consider the theory behind a program for evaluation to yield usable and actionable information.

Carolina Buitrago (November 12, 2015) Research Report

Framing Program Evaluation: Why We Should Tinker With Theories of Change and Logic Models

While evaluation needs may vary, all organizations can benefit from utilizing theory-based evaluation tools to frame evaluation efforts. This article explores how three organizations developed their program’s theory of change and logic model.

Carolina Buitrago (November 19, 2015) Research Report

Learning for All: The Value of Field Experience in Training a New Generation of Program Evaluators

Field experience in evaluation inquiry is a promising approach to preparing the next generation of evaluators. Learn what one group of student consultants and organizations did to make a field experience in evaluative inquiry a positive one.

Carolina Buitrago with Sunindiya Bhalla, Nomi Davidson, Sarah Davila, Anairis Hinojosa, Babe Liberman, and Katie Tosh (December 3, 2015) Research Report

Beyond the Head Count: Evaluating Family Involvement in Out-of-School Time

This brief offers an overview of how out-of-school time programs can evaluate their family involvement strategies and practices. It draws on findings from our OST Evaluation Database, interviews, and email correspondence.

Margaret Caspe , Flora Traub, Priscilla M.D. Little (August 2002) Research Report

Lessons From Family-Strengthening Interventions: Learning From Evidence-Based Practice

Examine how effective family-strengthening interventions can positively impact families and children in this practitioner-friendly brief from Harvard Family Research Project. Lessons From Family-Strengthening Interventions: Learning From Evidence-Based Practice is based on our review of interventions that have been rigorously evaluated through experimental and quasi-experimental studies. We offer educators, service providers, and evaluators recommendations for creating successful programs and evaluations.

Margaret Caspe , M. Elena Lopez (October 2006) Research Report

Engaging Families in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Project-Based Learning

To be successful, children need a strong science, technology, engineering, and math foundation. Learn how Iridescent, a project funded in part by the National Science Foundation, connects families, engineers, and children to develop these skills early on in school.

Tara Chklovski (March 19, 2015) Research Report

Lessons in Evaluating Communications Campaigns: Five Case Studies

This paper examines how communication campaigns with different purposes (individual behavior change and policy change) have been evaluated. It offers a discussion of theories of change that can guide evaluation planning, along with five case studies of completed campaign evaluations. Each case study includes lessons from the evaluation and the paper finishes with a set of cross-case-study lessons gleaned from these evaluations and others.

Julia Coffman (June 2003) Research Report

Public Communication Campaign Evaluation: An Environmental Scan of Challenges, Criticisms, Practice, and Opportunities

This report presents what has been happening in the field of public communication campaign evaluation in recent years. It examines evaluation challenges, criticisms, and practice and includes sections on relevant theory, outcomes, and useful methods for designing evaluations. It ends with opportunities for the road ahead.

Julia Coffman (May 2002) Research Report

Learning From Logic Models: An Example of a Family/School Partnership Program

This brief offers a step-by-step approach for developing and using a logic model as a framework for a program or organization’s evaluation. Its purpose is to provide a tool to guide evaluation processes and to facilitate practitioner and evaluator partnerships. The brief is written primarily for program practitioners, but is also relevant and easily applied for evaluators.

Julia Coffman (January 1999) Tool for Evaluation

Preschool for California’s Children: Summary of 2003-2008 Evaluation Findings

This brief summarizes Harvard Family Research Project's evaluation findings about the Preschool for California's Children grantmaking program at its 5-year midpoint.

Julia Coffman , Heather Weiss, Priscilla M.D. Little, Erin Harris, Katie Chun (March 2009) Research Report

A User's Guide to Advocacy Evaluation Planning

A User's Guide to Advocacy Evaluation Planning was developed for advocates, evaluators, and funders who want guidance on how to evaluate advocacy and policy change efforts. This tool takes users through four basic steps that generate the core elements of an advocacy evaluation plan, including what will be measured and how.

Julia Coffman (Fall 2009) Tool for Evaluation

Grantmaking to School Districts: Lessons for Foundations

This brief offers lessons and best practices from foundations across the country on grantmaking to school districts. It offers advice to foundations that are considering school district investments for the first time. It also offers a useful "check" to more experienced foundations that want to examine their thinking and approaches against the lessons and practices of other foundations.

Julia Coffman , Heather Weiss, Erin Harris, Priscilla M.D. Little (September 2010) Research Report

Webinar Archive—OST Data and Evaluation: Collecting and Sharing Data to Support Communities

This presentation examines the “essential data” that OST providers and intermediaries should consider collecting for an evaluation, and the important role families can play throughout the process.

Sarah Deschenes , Erin Harris, Evelyn Brosi (October 24, 2011) Conferences and Presentations

Home/School/Community: Systems Interventions

The purpose of this course is to provide the student with information on a broad array of issues relating to school and community collaboration with families. Systems interventions within the home, school, and community contexts will be considered. Emphasis is placed on system-level consultation theories, research, and practice. The course prepares school professionals to function as consultants in school and community settings.

Stewart Ehly , Tarrell Portman (Spring 2002) Syllabus

Combining Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Social Inquiry

Book chapter on using mixed methodology in the social sciences. In B. Somekh & C. Lewin (Eds.), Research methods in the social sciences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Jennifer C. Greene , Holly Kreider, Ellen Mayer (2004) Research Report

Afterschool Evaluation 101: How to Evaluate an Expanded Learning Program

Afterschool Evaluation 101 is a how-to guide for conducting an evaluation. It is designed to help out-of-school time (OST) program directors who have little or no evaluation experience develop an evaluation strategy. The guide will walk you through the early planning stages, help you select the evaluation design and data collection methods that are best suited to your program, and help you analyze the data and present the results.

Erin Harris (December 12, 2011) Research Report

Health and Sports/Recreation Program Evaluations

The Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP) Out-of-School Time Program Evaluation Bibliography and Out-of-School Time Program Research and Evaluation Database both provide information on evaluations that have been conducted on sports/recreation and health-related out-of-school time (OST) programs, among other categories.

Erin Harris (March 2005) Research Report

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Published by Harvard Family Research Project