Performing an analysis of data is one of the most important stages in this process. Departments should be able to determine where you are in meeting the targets for this goal. Below are a few things to consider in this stage.
Prepare Data for Analysis
- Remove identifiable information
- Request additional data, if needed, to expand scope of analysis
- Review and revise data to ensure accuracy
- Reformat data for the analysis software
Closing the Loop
This phase is the end of the assessment process and the beginning of the continuous improvement process. Closing the loop means you are examining the results of the outcomes and goals from the beginning of the process.
Review Assessment Data
Now is time to interpret the assessment evidence and look for themes. Consider the questions below:
- What are the characteristics of the families who received the program?
- How many families participated?
- How often did families participate?
- How did families hear about the program?
- Were the program activities implemented with fidelity?
- How satisfied were the participants with the activities?
- What do home visitors and other staff think of the program delivery?
- Collecting participant characteristics
- Tracking the number of home visits received by each family to see whether most families received all three sessions
- Collecting information from the home visitors to make sure that they covered all the session material during the home visits
- Conducting satisfaction surveys with families during and/or after the program to see what they thought of the program
- Surveying home visitors to see whether they feel that the participants were engaged.
Discuss and Reflect on Your Findings
Now it is time to determine which groups or people should see the data, disseminate data to program stakeholders and schedule a time to discuss the data.
Make a determination on whether you were successful or unsuccessful:
- Compare with benchmarks
- If changes were made, determine their effectiveness
Document and Report
Now it is time to tell what happened, what activities were performed and how the data was collected. Describe the meaning of the data. Determine if you need to make changes or end the assessment. Share how you analyzed your data, who you met with, suggestions from meetings and if your criteria was met.
Questions Your Report Should Answer
A successful report will answer the following questions.
The Plan
- was it achievable?
- did it happen as planned?
- if not, then why?
- what changes can be made to better implement?
Data
- how did the data collection tools work?
- how did the data analysis tool work?
- is the data useful?
- what do we still need to know?
Program Decisions
- what explains student successes?
- why is achievement different than expected?
- what is needed for students to reach the desired level of achievement?
- what changes to curriculum, courses, services, etc. can be made?
Systems
- How are changes implemented and documented?
- is this an effective method?
- are lines of communication effective?
- are documentation, storage and retrieval process working?
