Evaluation Services
Words & Numbers Research, Inc. has been commissioned to plan and implement hundreds of large-scale multiyear program evaluations projects throughout the United States. The customized designs of each program evaluation, the respective implementation, and then the completion of the contracts have been achieved with the highest standards. The firm also offers excellent technical expertise and capacity building while considering the ongoing needs of the project.
The firm has designed numerous data collection tools that are user-friendly, valid and reliable, and effective. From these instruments, quantitative and qualitative data have been compiled in SPSS, our computer statistical package for data analysis. The generation of tables that are simple and straightforward, the development of reports from the data sets, and the interpretation of findings have been our areas of expertise for 40 years.
For multiyear projects, our evaluation designs have a formative component which means that the project will receive timely and valid information on management, implementation and efficiency during the course of implementation. The summative component is grounded in evidence-based research. It relies on objective performance measures that create hard data that can be statistically analyzed. Multiple methods of data collection must be integrated for corroboration of findings.
Words & Numbers Research, Inc. has provided evaluations for the U.S. Department of Education and the National Science Foundation. Some evaluation reports have been published as models for evaluation design, methodology and implementation in ERIC, the federal government’s clearinghouse for best practices in program evaluations.
EXAMPLES:
The firm has designed numerous data collection tools that are user-friendly, valid and reliable, and effective. From these instruments, quantitative and qualitative data have been compiled in SPSS, our computer statistical package for data analysis. The generation of tables that are simple and straightforward, the development of reports from the data sets, and the interpretation of findings have been our areas of expertise for 40 years.
For multiyear projects, our evaluation designs have a formative component which means that the project will receive timely and valid information on management, implementation and efficiency during the course of implementation. The summative component is grounded in evidence-based research. It relies on objective performance measures that create hard data that can be statistically analyzed. Multiple methods of data collection must be integrated for corroboration of findings.
Words & Numbers Research, Inc. has provided evaluations for the U.S. Department of Education and the National Science Foundation. Some evaluation reports have been published as models for evaluation design, methodology and implementation in ERIC, the federal government’s clearinghouse for best practices in program evaluations.
EXAMPLES:
- Funded by the US Department of Education, Project 2e-ASD is a groundbreaking initiative. Over the course of five years, Project 2e-ASD has identified and tested successful strategies for 2e-ASD students in post-secondary education settings. Project 2e-ASD aims to address the research gap and provide evidence-based strategies for gifted students with ASD to reach their high school, college, and adult transition goals. The Project shares these strategies with teachers, parents, and practitioners in the form of professional development material and online resources. With its five-year scope, diverse and experienced research team, and generous support from the U.S. Department of Education’s Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act, Project 2e-ASD is well-positioned to provide successful tools for this uniquely gifted population. Current
- Funded by the US Department of Education, Project LIFT builds on and scales up aspects of the Young Scholars Model and its further implementation in Project SPARK, placing particular emphasis on using instructional practices to elicit high-potential behaviors and to promote teacher understanding of the evidence of high potential across diverse populations. The broad focus of Project LIFT is to develop professional learning experiences and support structures that will assist in strengthening professional practice such that students from all backgrounds have opportunities to engage with high-level work, develop critical and creative thinking skills, demonstrate evidence of high potential, and experience challenging instruction that matches their need. The overall premise of the project is that through instructional activities that reflect best practices as supported by promising evidence, and with specific attention to how gifted behaviors may emerge within the context of those instructional activities, students with high potential are more likely to demonstrate their high-potential behaviors. Further, through professional development specifically focusing on how such instructional and high-potential student behaviors align, teachers will be more ready to recognize and respond to learning behaviors that indicate high potential. S206A170030
- Funded by the US Department of Education, Project SPARK is designed to scale up the Young Scholars Model as an approach to increasing participation of underrepresented groups in gifted and talented programs, supporting their achievement in core subject areas, and promoting their readiness for participation in advanced coursework. The model focuses on increasing access to advanced learning opportunities, affirmation of students’ academic potential, and advocacy for experiences that will respond to their needs. The project evaluation design involves 12 treatment and 12 comparison schools, with professional development and curricular resources for teachers and summer programming and academic year cluster grouping for students in the treatment schools. Outcome measures include NWEA’s MAP and MPG assessments, identification for district gifted programs, and teacher measures including a survey and classroom observations. S206A140017
- Funded by the National Science Foundation in 2015, Words & Numbers Research served as the external evaluation firm on Mathematical Writing: Implications for Mathematics Education Stakeholders Project. The Elementary Mathematical Writing Task Force collectively represented the fields of mathematics education, mathematics, and writing education; had expertise across the elementary grades; were knowledgeable about particular student groups, including students with special needs, English language learners (ELLs), and those identified as gifted; drawn from work being done at the international level; and/or had background with elementary-level writing (e.g., curriculum design, assessment development, science writing). At the completion the Task Force published guidelines that defined the types of and purposes for mathematical writing at the elementary level.
- Funded by the National Science Foundation, Words & Numbers Research is serving as the external evaluation firm on Boston University’s Elementary Pre-Service Teachers Mathematics Project Phase II. (WNR also served as evaluation firm in Phase I.). This project is designed to provide elementary school teachers with mathematical skills that are expected of students with the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics. There are 19 colleges and universities across the US participating in the project. Pre and post assessments will be used to track impact and to assess the differential effect of instructional supports. NSF #5022124 (2010-2015)
- Funded by the US Department of Education and administered by the CT State Department of Education, Words & Numbers Research Math and Science Project MSP Bridging Practices across Connecticut Mathematics Educators project brought together multi-grade teams of mathematics teachers in school districts with mathematics faculty, teacher educators, and master’s level pre-service teachers to identify, develop, implement, and refine curricular and pedagogical tools that support students in constructing, communicating and critiquing arguments in mathematics. Through engaging pre- and in-service teachers with university faculty, the BPCME deepened content knowledge for teaching mathematics with a focus on proportional and algebraic reasoning and mathematical argumentation Schools and districts were provided with high quality curricular and instructional tools to support teachers and students in meeting the Common Core State Standards and learning materials to support pre-service teachers in developing high-leverage teaching practices in mathematics. (#5619450)
- Funded by the National Science Foundation, Words & Numbers Research served as the external evaluation firm on the Connecticut Business and Industry (CBIA) Foundation’s ITEST grant for four concurrent years. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected on 9th and 10th graders at three urban high schools. The goal of the project was to expose high risk students to STEM careers and encourage respective academic preparation and postsecondary plans. The Carroll CBIA Math and Science Index© was developed to measure attitudes and interests as they relate to math and science. DRL 0929788 (2010-2014)
- Funded by the National Science Foundation, the Mentoring Mathematicians (M2) Project was a three-year UCONN demonstration project intended to increase mathematical achievement of students in Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grades. Students were from 20 schools in SC, CT, KY and TX and from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds. The evaluation was designed by Dr. Carroll with quantitative and qualitative components. Pretest and posttest statistical measurement of data, focus groups, in-depth interviewing and surveys have been included in the evaluation. There were both experimental and comparison groups to track changes in mathematics over the course of the project. The evaluation results were presented at American Educational Research Association Annual meeting in March 2011 and published in a peer review journal in 2013. NSF#0733189 (2008-2012)
- Funded by the US Department of Education, the Mentoring Mathematical Minds (M3) Project was a three-year UCONN demonstration project intended to increase mathematical achievement of elementary level students in 3rd, 4th and 5th grades. Students were from 20 schools in KY, CT and TX and from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds. The evaluation was designed by Dr. Carroll with quantitative and qualitative components. Pretest and posttest statistical measurement of data, focus groups, in-depth interviewing and surveys have been included in the evaluation. The results were presented at the American Educational Research Association Annual meeting in March 2008. The research has been published in the Journal for Advanced Academics and the Gifted Child Quarterly where it was awarded the best journal article in 2010.# S206A020006 (2003-2007)
- Funded by the CT Department of Public Health (DPH), Stay in the Game CT (SITG CT) was a social marketing initiative evaluated by WNR. The goal of this statewide public education campaign was to raise awareness about women’s health issues specifically, the need to be screened for breast/cervical cancer and heart disease. For Stay in the Game CT, Results Based Accountability (RBA) served as the WNR evaluation model that was used to assess impact and report findings. (2010-2011)
- Funded by a US Department of Education, the School wide Enrichment Program in Reading (SEM-R) at UCONN was a five year demonstration project intended to improve attitudes and increase reading achievement of students in the primary grades. Students were from schools throughout the country and from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds. Pretest and posttest statistical measurement of data, focus groups, in-depth interviewing and surveys have been included in the evaluation. There was random selection to experimental and control groups to track changes in reading over the course of the project. A recent article in the Elementary School Journal documented the impact of the program. (2008-2011)