Outcomes and Evaluation of abcd.

Connie Fossen
Connie Fossen
@connie-fossen
11 years ago
3 posts

I have been asked to develop an evaluation of most recent abcd project in Nicaragua for the sponsor organization. So far the evaluation is 'counting' number of participant etc. but I know there most be evaluation tools that assess the empowerment and relationships developed through abcd. Any tools and ideas are welcome. Connie


updated by @connie-fossen: 10/24/16 04:45:18PM
Joe Erpenbeck
Joe Erpenbeck
@joe-erpenbeck
11 years ago
5 posts

Hi Connie,

I am working with several ABCD initiatives in vancouver BC and am in conversation with several groups about outcomes and measurements that really matter. Drop me an email or a call if you would want to discuss more.

Joe Erpenbeck

Director ABCD Vancouver

604-365-9113

joeerp@gmail.com

Connie Fossen
Connie Fossen
@connie-fossen
11 years ago
3 posts

I would like to learn about various outcome and measurement tools used in other ABCD efforts.

Do you have materials electronic I could take a look at and then let you know my questions?

Thanks for your response!

Connie

Ron Dwyer-Voss
Ron Dwyer-Voss
@ron-dwyer-voss
11 years ago
48 posts

Some of the best tools for measuring community connectedness - often a goal of ABCD efforts - have been developed by Success Measures at NeighborWorks America. Here are some questions they use in a survey tool. These reflect research on social capital.

We are also interested in the ways in which other residents are involved in the community.

7. How likely would you say it is that people in your community would help out if the following occurred?

Very

likely

Somewhat

likely

Somewhat unlikely

Very

unlikely

I needed a ride somewhere.

A package was delivered when I was not at home and it needed to be accepted.

I needed a favor, such as picking up mail or borrowing a tool.

I needed someone to watch my home when

I was away.

An elderly neighbor needed someone to periodically check on him or her.

A neighbor needed someone to take care of a child in an emergency.

Connie Fossen
Connie Fossen
@connie-fossen
11 years ago
3 posts

Thank you so much for the helpful info, I found great materials on the NeighborhoodWorks website! Now to get busy reading and adapting to our Nicaragua village.

thanks again,

Connie

JOHN BLACK
JOHN BLACK
@john-black
11 years ago
1 posts
We are interested if there has been any measurement tools that gage individuals self image as partners in ABCD movement in their neighborhoods as well as community overall rating scale or tool to measure ABCD efforts in those communities. We work with folks who transitionally receive services but now we are offering opportunity to be of service so our measurements tools could use a tune up!
Dennis Crispin
Dennis Crispin
@dennis-crispin
11 years ago
4 posts

Hi Ron, great measure of community connectedness - I wonder how our own communities would rate???

Magdalena Valderrama Hurwitz
Magdalena Valderrama Hurwitz
@magdalena-valderrama-hurwitz
11 years ago
29 posts

I appreciate this item.

Suzanne Vaughan
Suzanne Vaughan
@suzanne-vaughan
10 years ago
1 posts

Hi Connie

I hope your project is going well? I'm new to ABCD and to this group and finding it really useful so far. My background is in Social Network Analysis and I am planning an evaluation that will use SNA - looking at change in relationships (perhaps defined as interactions around specific activities such as sharing information/resources/support and engaging in collective action) and outcomes of interactions over time. Quite complex relational data can be gathered very simply using a survey or built into the existing dialogue.

I found some others doing this in Australia:http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0312407X.2010.508167#.VEhtD0tpbaI

I'd enjoy discussing this with anyone interested.

Suzanne

Tammi Mott
Tammi Mott
@tammi-mott
5 years ago
1 posts

Good afternoon.

I'm jumping on an old thread, with hope that it is still alive. 

At the faith-based organization where I work, we have recently developed an organizational Theory of Change (TOC) intended to guide our work/decisions across a number of thematic international development programs. ABCD and participatory learning and action (PLA) tools are a foundational component to all our work. As such, our TOC suggests that our programs can contribute to more than just the standard development project indicators (i.e., health, economic, food security metrics). Our TOC advances that the ABCD/PLA approaches we use also contribute to long-term changes in people's empowerment (sense of Dignity), relationships (sense of Trust), resilience (sense of Hope), and collective/community action (sense of Love). We are looking to talk with folks who may have experience in MEASURING these sorts of outcomes, i.e., Dignity via Agency, Trust via Trust or perhaps Belonging, Hope via Will & Way Power, and Love via Social Cohesion. There are existing scales for these and other attributes, but is it possible to combine aspects of each to make one that is unique to us? Has something like this been built already with a focus on different attributes? Can we build one to look at our contribution to these, as they have strong meaning to us and the results we hope our work is contributing to? We have read a few case studies of organizations that have built their own scales. We'd like to do something similar, but we would like to do it in partnership with another organization or academic institution that has the experience. We have the dream. If you have the experience and know-how, please contact us (me: tmott@episcopalrelief.org).

Thanks,

Tammi


updated by @tammi-mott: 04/06/19 09:09:34AM
Fasoranti Damilola
Fasoranti Damilola
@fasoranti-damilola
3 years ago
23 posts
Ikhala Trust created a beautiful tool to measure about 6 areas of development for a community. If I can get a hold of it, I will share it here.

By the way, has anyone used the MEAL (measurement, evaluation, accountability and learning) approach to track ABCD development in a place?
Daniella Fast
Daniella Fast
@daniella-fast
3 years ago
3 posts

Tammi,

I am looking into the similar evaluation tools that you described in your post (2 years ago...). I'm wondering if you ended up developing something that you could share?  We are specifically focussing on evaluating the impact of community initiatives in the development of community functions:

(Health- caring for physical ailments; Security- protecting each other; Earth Care- stewarding the environment; Child Care- raising & educating children; Social Wellness- a safe environment for interdependent relationships to flourish; Agriculture- feeding each other; Economic- exchange of goods & services)

Not sure if there would be any overlap in what you have developed...

Thanks,

Daniella

Lauren Schwaar
Lauren Schwaar
@lauren-schwaar
2 years ago
7 posts

Hello all,

It's exciting to see this thread. I'm a founder of a small tech startup building a software tool for monitoring/evaluation and am happy to have conversations if I can support anyone who posted previously (though I know those posts have been here for a bit so I imagine other solutions have been solidified already). If any future viewers of this post want to connect, I'm always up for a phone call or connection to discuss your M/E strategy and see if I can help.

Best,

Lauren
Fathom Performance

Fasoranti Damilola
Fasoranti Damilola
@fasoranti-damilola
2 years ago
23 posts

Hello, @lauren-schwaar I am interested in connecting with you and I learn more about the software you are building to help M/E. What's the best way to reach you? Or you can send your calendly?

Lauren Schwaar
Lauren Schwaar
@lauren-schwaar
2 years ago
7 posts

[quote="Fasoranti Damilola"]

Hello, @lauren-schwaar I am interested in connecting with you and I learn more about the software you are building to help M/E. What's the best way to reach you? Or you can send your calendly?

[/quote]

Hello Fasoranti,

Absolutely! I'd love to get in touch. Here's my calendly link: http://calendly.com/fathomperformance/

Feel free to schedule with me any time! I'm also happy to connect via other channels if that's helpful - send me a DM if so.

Best,

-Lauren

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