EvalByte Sep2022 - ECN Evaluation Y2

EvalByte
ECN Partnership Evaluation Year 2
Written by Jenae Gauthier and Anja Dzunic (ECN Research Assistants)
What is the context of the project?
In 2019, the Theory of Change Working Group was tasked by
the Steering Committee of the Evaluation Capacity Network
(ECN) to develop a dynamic Theory of Change framework as a
foundation for evaluating the ECN's partnership engagement,
scholarship, and impact. This Theory of Change has guided the
Strategic Learning team in building and implementing an
evaluation plan. We, the ECN, have done two full annual
evaluation cycles to date.
The purpose of the evaluation is to examine how we are working
according to our four guiding principles (see figure below) and
also understand the impact we are collectively making. This is in
order to learn, grow, and adapt what we do within the
partnership and share lessons learned with external
stakeholders beyond our partnership.
Key points
THE 2ND EVALUATION CYCLE
OF THE ECN HAS BEEN
COMPLETED
WE USED A MIXED METHODS
APPROACH TO DATA
COLLECTION
WE HOPE TO EXAMINE OUR
WORK THROUGH THE LENS
OF OUR 4 PRINCIPLES AND
THE IMPACT WE MAKE
Community-
Driven
Culturally
Responsive
Equitable
Participation
Actionoriented
THE EVALUATION CAN
IDENTIFY AREAS OF
STRENGTH, AREAS OF
GROWTH, AND HIGHLIGHT
RECOMMENDATIONS
Who is the ECN?
The Evaluation Capacity Network (ECN) is housed within the
Community-University Partnership (CUP) at the School of Public
Health at the University of Alberta. The network aims to
September 2022

uild evaluation capacity within the early childhood
field and broader social serving sector by building
capacity (i.e., knowledge, skills, and motivation) of
individuals and organizations to do and use
evaluation in their work. This is done by facilitating
access to evaluation resources, offering learning
opportunities and courses, and supporting and
engaging organizations in evaluation work. We also
conduct a variety of research projects that aim to
better understand the evaluation landscape.
Through this work, we hope to improve day-to-day
practices, programs, and policies for the wellbeing
of children, families and communities.
What is the project working
on?
The Strategic Learning team used a mixed methods
approach and collected data from five sources this
year for the purpose of the second ECN Evaluation.
The methods were student community of practice
focus groups, meeting minutes, CUP/ECN student
survey, post-meeting surveys and activity tracking.
This year, the bulk of our data came from student
insights. The Strategic Learning team has just
released the year 2 evaluation report with the
findings. Overall, we are meeting several of our
outcomes, but as expected have not yet reached
the ultimate outcome of creating more innovative
ECD practices, programs, and policies towards
greater system effectiveness.
You can view the full report on page 19-29 of the
Fall 2022 Partner Report.
The Strategic Learning team will continue to
evaluate the ECN to promote ongoing growth and
change in the network. Next year, the team is
hoping to collectively deepen our Theory of
Change so it accurately reflects the current and
future work that is being done.
Why is the project
meaningful?
It is important that we practice what we preach
by evaluating ourselves! We hope to identify
areas of strength, areas of growth, and highlight
recommendations for improvement. This will
inspire positive and meaningful change so we are
better able to meet the needs and interests of
our students and partners, as well as the
community organizations we serve.
Resources
ECN Partner Report 2022: Evaluation Year 2
Report
Looking back: ECN Evaluation Year 1 Report
Acknowledgment
We thank the guidance and support for the 2nd cycle of the ECN partnership evaluation which was provided by members of the Strategic
Learning team: Rich Janzen (Centre for Community Based Research), Pieter de Vos (Postdoctoral Fellow), Anja Dzunic, Jenae Gauthier,
Shelly Jun, Hannah Bowley, and Pauline McPherson.
September 2022