Evaluation Roundup - August 2020

September 3, 2020 Kristy Madsen

Welcome to our August roundup of new and noteworthy evaluation news and resources – here is the latest.

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New and Noteworthy

Evaluation Podcasts

While podcasts aren’t new it seems like podcasts are a new medium for the evaluation field. Recently there was a Twitter thread asking about evaluation podcasts. Below is a summary of current evaluation podcasts that were mentioned and what they are all about:

Eval Cafe – is co-hosted by Carolyn Camman (@c_camman) and Brian Hoessler (@strongRoots_SK). The premise for this podcast is “informal chats on evaluation-related topics – the kind you might overhear at your favourite coffeeshop, if it was frequented by evaluators.” There have been 35 episodes produced since its first episode in June 2017. Previous guests have included Khalil Bitar (@khalilbitar), Kylie Hutchinson (@evaluationmaven), Dana Wanzer (@danawanzer), Sarah Farina (@broadleafc) and Michael Quinn Patton (@MQuinnP). When there isn’t a guest, Brian and Carolyn discuss and explore various evaluator topics like: how do we explain what we do? What is so scary about evaluation? And other evaluator questions you may grapple with.

The Glass Frog Podcast – This podcast started in 2018 by GlassFrog Solutions (@glassfrogtweets) – a research and evaluation firm. It has produced 20 episodes with a wide-variety of evaluation-related content, including a) empathy in evaluation, b) survey design, c) evaluating collaboratives, d) photography and evaluation, and so much more!

EvalCrisis – is produced by the DEVCO/ESS Evaluation in Crisis Initiative. The purpose of the podcast is to share teachings for the evaluation community to learn from so they can adapt evaluations in crisis situations, like the current COVID-19 pandemic. The podcast series began in June 2020 and have eight episodes posted on its site. Topics discussed so far have included, safety, remote data collection, ethical issues, and shifting evaluation foci.

Evaluland – is hosted by Dana Wanzer (@danawanzer). The podcast discusses the land of evaluation. It is a relatively new podcast that started this year; so far there have been six episodes produced. The focus of the podcast thus far has been on evaluation theory and teaching evaluation, which is a natural fit for Dana who is an Assistant Professor teaching evaluation at the University of Wisconsin-Stout.

EvalEdge – The European Evaluation Society started a podcast series last month. So far there have only been two episodes produced. The first episode introduced the podcast and co-hosts @1marcolorenzoni, @hurhassnain and @saskia_sbr and the second podcast hosted Linda Raftree (@meowtree), co-founder of MERL Tech, about innovative examples of using big data and the ethical considerations to be aware of.

New and Noteworthy — Tools

Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation – A guide toward diversity, equity and inclusion in data collection

At Three Hive Consulting, have been discussing how we can be more mindful and intentional when collecting our data to promote inclusion and equity - this guide is a great resource. It was produced “as a starting point to spark inquiry, conversation, disruption and, ultimately, better data collection practices within organizations.” In this guide they provide examples for collecting survey data related to gender identity, sexual orientation, race and ethnicity, and disability. It also includes a list of additional resources to access.

Clear Horizon Academy – Tools and resources

I stumbled across Clear Horizon’s Academy where they have a tools and resources section. This section of the site includes “must haves” for change makers. It includes tools and approaches for measurement, evaluation and learning; guides for different approaches like Most Significant Change, and; real-life examples on how these tools and approaches can be applied to support change.

Khulisa’s #evaltuesdaytip for photo elicitation and evidence maps

Each Tuesday Khulisa outlines, you guessed it, tips for evaluators. This month Khulisa created a blog post that unpacks photo elicitations and how it can be applied in youth or children in the education sector by providing seven insightful resources. Another helpful post was its #evaltuesdaytip that provided 14 links to evidence maps. Check out Beam Exchange for an example of what an evidence-map is and how it can be used.