Slope charts are an effective data visualization tool for illustrating changes over time. They allow for easy comparisons between two distinct time periods, simplify complex data, and enhance data storytelling. This article provides a step-by-step guide on how to create an impactful slope chart in Excel, including best practices for formatting, highlighting key insights, and improving the overall appearance.

Explore the key differences between research and evaluation in this comprehensive guide. Learn about their distinct goals, methodologies, data collection and analysis approaches, and reporting styles. Ideal for professionals and students looking to understand the unique roles of research and evaluation in advancing knowledge and improving programs.

Discover our new Stratified Sampling Tool template, designed for researchers and evaluators working with large datasets. Learn how to generate representative samples, ensure fair subgroup representation, and increase precision in your data collection. Includes both single strata and multiple stratum versions with step-by-step instructions.

Explore how cognitive biases impact evaluation practice. Drawing insights from Hans Rosling's "Factfulness," this article examines 10 common mental shortcuts that can affect data analysis, reporting, and decision-making in evaluation. Learn practical strategies to overcome these biases and improve your evaluation methods.

In every research and evaluation project, it is important to identify and address sources of error that may impact the accuracy of your findings and the relevance of your recommendations. Here, we will look at what bias and confounding are (and are not), the differences between them, and important considerations to take to prepare for and address both in your next evaluation project.

Eval Academy just released a new tip sheet for Conducting Interviews. If you will be conducting interviews in your evaluation, then this tip sheet is for you! Whether you’re new to the process or have conducted interviews before, this tip sheet provides a good overview and refresher to make your next interview experience a great one.

Eval Academy just released a new infographic about qualitative data saturation. This infographic is for those who collect or who will be collecting qualitative data and are looking to support the validity of their results. It’s a helpful resource for those who are both new and experienced in evaluation!

While member checking is commonly used in qualitative research, it’s less commonly used in evaluation and we think that should change! In this article, we’ll review what member checking is and why, when, and how you should use it.

Check out the top 10 posts of 2022 from Eval Academy.

Bias in evaluation is inevitable. Reflection helps us to identify our bias and when we do, it is necessary to identify sources of bias in our processes, eliminate which bias we can, and acknowledge which bias we cannot.