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Volume XI, Number 3, Fall 2005 Issue Topic: Democratic EvaluationThis issue of The Evaluation Exchange periodical focuses on democratic evaluation. At the forefront of the discussion are equity and inclusion in the evaluation of programs for children, families, and communities, as well as evaluation to promote public accountability and transparency. Katherine Ryan leads off the issue by presenting major theoretical approaches to democratic evaluation. Several contributors examine these different strands, highlighting the importance of power sharing. Jennifer Greene emphasizes the importance of broad inclusion of stakeholder perspectives in evaluations, while Saville Kushner offers guidelines for people and communities to help evaluation reposition itself as a collaborative effort and thereby begin to address the crisis in public trust between the professional bureaucracy and citizens. Kathleen McCartney and Heather Weiss focus on public accountability, especially the conduct of flagship evaluations to maintain their scientific integrity while also serving the public good. Several contributors provide practical methods and tools to promote democratic evaluation, including the facilitation of dialogue, the training of youth researchers, the use of photovoice and cell phone technology, and access to interactive information through the Internet. |
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From the Director's Desk
An introduction to the issue on Democratic Evaluation by HFRP's Founder & Director, Heather B. Weiss, Ed.D.
Theory & PracticeDemocratic Evaluation Approaches for Equity and Inclusion
Katherine Ryan, Associate Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Illinois, describes three approaches to democratic evaluation and argues that they can provide field-tested methods for addressing equity and inclusion issues in evaluations of programs for children, youth, and families.
Promising PracticesEvaluating Evaluation Data
Kathleen McCartney and Heather Weiss of the Harvard Graduate School of Education describe the conditions for evaluations to maintain scientific integrity and serve the public good despite a politicized environment.
Promising PracticesProgram Evaluation in a Democratic Society: The Vera Model
Tim Ross, Research Director at the Vera Institute of Justice, explains Vera's rigorous and multitiered data collection process and the benefits of partnerships with public programs.
Promising PracticesGetting Creative in Holding Officials Accountable
Dennis Arroyo describes the performance-monitoring mechanisms that nongovernment agencies use to make public officials accountable to citizens.
Promising PracticesThe Many Forms of Democratic Evaluation
Ernest House, Emeritus Professor at the University of Colorado, argues that democratic evaluation calls for more ingenuity than other forms of evaluation and that as a result its methods can take many forms.
Promising PracticesCombining Research Rigor and Participatory Evaluation
Anju Malhotra and Sanyukta Mathur from the International Center for Research on Women describe a study in Nepal that compared participatory and more traditional approaches to evaluating adolescent reproductive health interventions.
Beyond Basic TrainingTwists and Turns in the Journey: Youth Activists' Use of Research in Their Campaigns for Small Schools
Kristine Lewis shares Research for Action's experience with training youth to use social science research methods in their campaigns to im-prove their local high schools.
Questions & AnswersA Conversation With Jennifer Greene
Jennifer Greene of the University of Ilinois talks about her efforts to advance the theory and practice of alternative forms of evaluation, including qualitative, participatory, and mixed-method evaluation.
SpotlightDemocratic Evaluation in Practice
Cheryl MacNeil, an evaluation consultant, describes the asymmetries of power in evaluation and her efforts to make her evaluation practice more democratic.
SpotlightSocial Capital in the Connected Society
Andrew Nachison, director of the Media Center, an organization that studies the intersection of media, technology, and society, writes about social capital and democratic processes in a digital society.
Evaluations to WatchUsing Democratic Evaluation Principles to Foster Citizen Engagement and Strengthen Neighborhoods
Arnold Love and Betty Muggah describe how Hamilton Community Foundation applied democratic evaluation principles to transform challenged neighborhoods into vibrant communities.
Evaluations to WatchUntangling Logic Models and Indicators: Reflections on Engaging Stakeholders
Seema Shah, a researcher at the Institute for Education and Social Policy, shares her experience of engaging community organizing groups to develop a logic model on how community organizing leads to better student outcomes.
Evaluations to WatchThe Trenton Central High School Obesity Prevention Project: Encouraging Democracy Through Inclusion
Katrina Bledsoe of the College of New Jersey writes about the inclusion of student voices in the evaluation of an obesity prevention program
Ask the ExpertHow does evaluation create options to enhancing social justice?
Saville Kushner of the Centre for Research in Education and Democracy at the University of the West of England suggests ways that an evaluation's participants can make evaluations more democratic.
Ask the ExpertHow can evaluation address racial equality?
Sally Leiderman, President of the Center for Assessment and Policy Development, explains how evaluation can be a tool to help communities and their partners do work in racial equity.
New & Noteworthy
The New & Noteworthy section features an annotated list of papers, organizations, initiatives, and other resources related to the issue's theme of Democratic Evaluation.
New & Noteworthy: Expanded Web Only Version
This web only version of the New & Noteworthy section features an expanded annotated list of papers, organizations, initiatives, and other resources related to the issue's theme of Democratic Evaluation.
This issue of The Evaluation Exchange was published by Harvard Family Research Project. The managing editor for the issue is M. Elena Lopez , Ph.D., senior consultant; the contributing editors are Elizabeth Blair, graduate student at HGSE, and Margaret Post, consultant; and the assistant editor is Margaret Caspe, consultant. It was produced by Stacey Miller, publications/communications manager, and Carrie-Anne DeDeo, publications editor. All rights reserved. This periodical may not be reproduced whole or in part without written permission from the publisher. To request reprint permission, email hfrp_pubs@gse.harvard.edu.
Harvard Family Research Project gratefully acknowledges the support of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Marguerite Casey Foundation, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and the C. S. Mott Foundation. The contents of this publication are solely the responsibility of Harvard Family Research Project and do not necessarily reflect the view of our funders.
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