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Category: Research & Evaluation Methods

CEHS launches bureau for education research, evaluation

Greg Welch, research associate professor, right, is heading CEHS’ Nebraska Bureau for Education Research, Evaluation and Policy, along with Benjamin Baumfalk, graduate assistant. Through the bureau, researchers will conduct education evaluation and policy research from preschool through higher education.
Greg Welch, CYFS research associate professor, right, is heading CEHS’ Nebraska Bureau for Education Research, Evaluation and Policy, along with Benjamin Baumfalk, graduate assistant.

UNL’s College of Education and Human Sciences, together with CYFS, has launched an interdisciplinary research initiative to improve education from preschool through higher education.

Led by Greg Welch, research associate professor, the Nebraska Bureau for Education Research, Evaluation and Policy will pursue evaluation and policy research opportunities in partnership with educational entities throughout the state, including the Nebraska Department of Education. The bureau will give special attention to accountability policies that promote improvement in education systems. Full Article

Hawley visits South Africa to advance international research, partnerships

Leslie Hawley, research assistant professor, visits Table Mountain during a recent visit to Cape Town, South Africa. Hawley attended the 2015 International Research Conference for training in international data analysis.
Leslie Hawley, research assistant professor, visits Table Mountain during a recent visit to Cape Town, South Africa. Hawley attended the 2015 International Research Conference for training in international data analysis. View photo gallery.

International data analysis, with its steep barrier to entry, remains uncharted territory for many researchers.

Leslie Hawley, research assistant professor with the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools, is applying this data to answer education policy questions—and she wants to help other researchers navigate its use. Full Article

CYFS’ MAP Academy awarded national 4-H grant

CYFS researchers working to refine the 4-H Common Measures include, from left, Leslie Hawley, research assistant professor; Andrew White, graduate student in school psychology; Ann Arthur, graduate student in educational psychology; Michelle Howell Smith, research assistant professor; and Natalie Koziol, postdoctoral research associate.
CYFS researchers recently received a grant to refine the 4-H Common Measures. The research team includes, from left, Leslie Hawley, research assistant professor; Andrew White, graduate student in school psychology; Ann Arthur, graduate student in educational psychology; Michelle Howell Smith, research assistant professor; and Natalie Koziol, postdoctoral research associate.

Researchers from the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools (CYFS) are embarking on a collaborative project to enhance program evaluations for 4-H, the nation’s largest youth development organization.

CYFS’ Nebraska Academy for Methodology, Analytics and Psychometrics recently received a $225,000 grant from the National 4-H Council to review and revise the 4-H Common Measures, a set of surveys used to identify and measure youth outcomes. Full Article

Video available for Kaplan methodology workshop

David Kaplan, Patricia Busk Professor of Quantitative Methods at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, led an April methodology workshop. The event, sponsored by CYFS' MAP Academy, drew an interdisciplinary audience and provided information about Bayesian statistics.
David Kaplan, Patricia Busk Professor of Quantitative Methods at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, led an April methodology workshop sponsored by CYFS’ MAP Academy. View video presentations.

CYFS’ MAP Academy hosted the Spring 2015 Nebraska Methodology Workshop Monday, April 13 at the Nebraska Innovation Campus. The workshop featured David Kaplan, the Patricia Busk Professor of Quantitative Methods in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Full Article

Video available for Emerging Scholars keynote address

The Emerging Scholars Series began April 9 with a free keynote presentation from methodologist Bethany Bray. Her keynote is available on video.
The Emerging Scholars Series began April 9 with a free keynote presentation from methodologist Bethany Bray. Her keynote is available on video.

Bethany Bray, outreach director of Penn State University’s Methodology Center, led the MAP Academy’s inaugural Emerging Scholars Series. The April 9-10 event included a keynote presentation, statistics workshop and an early career meeting for graduate students and postdocs. Full Article

Researchers from CYFS’ MAP Academy publish rural article

Researchers from CYFS’ MAP Academy recently published findings in the Journal of Research in Rural Education. The team includes methodologists, from left, Carina McCormick, Natalie Koziol, Ann Arthur, Kirstie Bash, Leslie Hawley, Greg Welch and James Bovaird.
Researchers from CYFS’ MAP Academy recently published findings in the Journal of Research in Rural Education. The team includes methodologists, from left, Carina McCormick, Natalie Koziol, Ann Arthur, Kirstie Bash, Leslie Hawley, Greg Welch and James Bovaird.

Gretna and Chadron, Nebraska, are each home to slightly more than 5,500 residents. That’s where their similarity ends.

The city of Gretna borders a major metropolitan suburb, while—nearly 500 miles away in Nebraska’s Panhandle—Chadron is a short drive from the Badlands of South Dakota. Full Article

Watch fifth Methodology Application presentation

Leslie Hawley
Leslie Hawley, research assistant professor, MAP Academy

In the fifth presentation of the 2014-2015 Methodology Applications Series, research assistant professor Leslie Hawley discusses “Developing Better Questionnaires and Measures: Psychometric Review.”

Once data from questionnaires and other non-cognitive measures have been collected, researchers are faced with the task of providing psychometric evidence to answer questions related to internal consistency and validity. This presentation is the final installment of our three-part series integrating practical strategies and best practices in questionnaire and measurement development from the fields of psychometrics, survey research and educational psychology. It will provide a conceptual overview and applied examples of the psychometric review process. Full Article