Educational developers need to assess the work of their Centres, from program participation and impact to underlying organizational processes. Various frameworks exist, but developers may feel unsure how to get started. We developed a planning model that offers a structured, systematic approach for developing comprehensive assessment systems that…

In this article, we reflect on our experience applying a framework for evaluating systems change to an evaluation of a statewide West Virginia alliance funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to improve the early persistence of rural, first-generation, and other underrepresented minority science, technology, engineering, and mathematics…

Although US teenage birth rates substantially decreased over the past two decades, it still remains the highest in the developed world. More innovative, community-wide initiatives are needed to combat the issue. In Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, the Central Oklahoma Teen Pregnancy Prevention Collaboration is utilizing the collective impact model to…

Although teachers' learning has been increasingly recognised as nonlinear and contextually responsive, few studies have extended these understandings to the design and evaluation of professional development. In this case study, we examine nonlinear and contextual manifestations of high school science teachers' professional learning from a complex…

From the evaluation literature related to research and innovation policy, calls have long been made for improved evaluation processes especially where projects and programmes may be evaluated from a systems perspective. Drawing on the literature of innovation systems and innovation for inclusive development (I4ID) this research proposes a…

Pressing social problems and inequities call attention to the need for interventions that target root causes and change systems. A significant challenge facing system change efforts is the lack of systems-based evaluation theory and methods. To address this challenge, we conducted an instrumental case study of evaluation within an exemplary…

Evaluators frequently confront situations in which local programs struggle to meet the expectations and requirements specified by the external program funder. How can evaluators meaningfully evaluate programs (for both the funder and grantee) in situations in which the external program logic clashes with local complexities? This paper discusses…

Community-campus engagement (CCE) offers transformative opportunities for collaborative knowledge creation. Over the last few decades, thoughtful energy has gone into identifying the parts of a CCE and then developing tools to study these parts, with discrete focus on community groups, students, and faculty. Bringing a complexity science approach…

Policy evaluation focuses on the assessment of policy-related personal, family, and societal changes or benefits that follow as a result of the interventions, services, and supports provided to those persons to whom the policy is directed. This article describes a systematic approach to policy evaluation based on an evaluation framework and an…

The National Academies Global Forum on Innovations in Health Professional Education held a public workshop in November 2023. Speakers explored how health professional educators and providers with health systems science (HSS) training can prepare learners to work together within health systems, resulting in better patient care, improved population…

This article examines the intersection of service-learning with complex systems theory. It is based on a research project we undertook to explore whether complex systems theory might be useful for better understanding the dynamics of service-learning practice and thus for assisting in the design, running, and evaluation of service-learning…

The role of research in transition education has been prominent and influential. Yet too many young people with disabilities are still not experiencing outcomes aligned with their personal aspirations and priorities. Moreover, individuals with disabilities continue to experience barriers to employment, educational, economic, and other challenges…

Although many have suggested the use of games to motivate active learning, studies that evaluate the learning outcomes of games with high school students are scarce. Here, we present the evaluation of the board game "Taphonomy: Dead and Fossilized" as an active learning tool to teach fossilization and Earth systems thinking with rising…

Recent literature has usefully explored the application of complexity theory to evaluation. However, there is little discussion of the contextual conditions in applying complexity theory. Drawing upon a single complexity-consistent public health programme evaluation and subsequent policy decisions, this paper considers how programme framing and…

Project EQuIPD--Engaging Quality Instruction through Professional Development--sought to establish and test for efficacy a professional development model to produce highly qualified teachers in STEM practices for all children, especially for students who are in traditionally underserved schools and districts within the State of Florida. The…