Categories
5x52

Blog Relaunch: The start of a 5×52 journey.

Commonplace book, detail
Commonplace book, detail (Photo credit: vlasta2)

For about a year and a half, I’ve kept a blog here at chiyanlam.com. During this time, I have not been posting as enthusiastically as I originally intended. I felt pressured to publish only fully worked-out ideas and to showcase my best wors.  In short, I was bringing to this blog space the same pressures and standards associated with academic publishing. This approach proved crippling.

Instead, starting today, I am transforming this blog space into more of a process journal. More specifically, this shall become my commonplace blog where I chronicle and archive my emerging thinking and serendipitous discoveries around evaluation and design.

I borrowed the concept of writing a commonplace blog from the keeping of commonplace books . Commonplacing is a common practice among authors, a practice I was first introduced to by a poet. It is dissimilar from keeping a journal in that the focus is less about producing a narrative account (I did this… then I did that… ). Instead, commonplacing is more about chronicling and aggregating various bits and pieces of information over time. In effect, it produces a trail of evidence suggestive of the route taken.

Taking this editorial turn  is timely and purposeful. With coursework behind me, I have comprehensive exams and my doctoral research remaining in my doctorate. The act of writing for this blog shall hopefully force me to articulate my emerging understanding around the intersections of evaluation and design.

I shall commit to writing one post for each workday over the next 52 weeks (hence the name, 5×52).

Finally, I hope this space will offer a platform for like-minded evaluation practitioners and theorists to contemplate the potential contributions design theory could make to the field.

Categories
Social Innovation

CES Toronto 2013 Presentation: Insights on Using Developmental Evaluation for Innovating: A Case Study on the Co-Creation of an Innovative Program

I’m delighted to be speaking on this topic tomorrow at the CES Toronto 2013 conference, Tuesday, June 11, from 10:15-11:45AM, Main Mezzanine,  Confederation 6.

Title:  Insights on Using Developmental Evaluation for Innovating: A Case Study on the Co-Creation of an Innovative Program

Abstract:

Developmental evaluation (DE) supports social innovation and program development by guiding program adaptation to emergent and dynamic social realities (Patton, 2011; Preskill & Beer, 2012). This presentation examines a case study of the preformative development of an innovative educational program. It contributes to research on DE by examining the capacity and contribution of DE for innovating. This case provides evidence supporting the utility of DE in developing innovative programs, but challenges our current understanding of DE on two fronts: 1) the necessary move from data-based to data-informed decision-making within a context of innovating, and 2) the use of DE for program co-creation as an outcome to the demands of social innovation. Analysis reveals the pervasiveness of uncertainty throughout development and how the rendering of evaluative data helps to propel development forward. DE enabled a nonlinear, co-evolutionary development process centering on six foci of development-definition, delineation, collaboration, prototyping, illumination, and evaluation-that characterize the innovation process.

Categories
Social Innovation

CES Toronto 2013 Presentation: Insights on Developmental Evaluator Roles during Innovation: A Case Study

I’m delighted to be speaking on this topic tomorrow at the CES Toronto 2013 conference, Tuesday, June 11, from 3:45-5:15, Main Mezzanine,  Tudor 7.

Title:  Insights on Developmental Evaluator Roles during Innovation: A Case Study

Abstract: Developmental evaluation (DE) supports social innovation and program development by guiding program adaptation to emergent and dynamic social realities (Patton, 2011; Preskill & Beer, 2012). To that end, the developmental evaluator is expected to draw on a multitude of skills and to take on multiple roles depending on the situational demands of the DE. Beyond that little guidance is provided in the literature to guide evaluation practice amidst the decidedly complex and turbulent space of social innovation.

This presentation explores the contextual demands made of the evaluator and the emergence of the different roles taken on by the developmental evaluator to enable social innovation in a case of DE. The ‘preformative development’ of this social innovation saw the integration of microblogging into teacher education. Analysis revealed four roles assumed by the developmental evaluator when innovating: a) evaluator, b) facilitator of learning, c) project manager, and d) innovation thinker.

Hope to see you there!

Categories
Conference Program Evaluation

15 Days to Canadian Evaluation Society 2013 #cestoronto2013 #eval

header-logo10The Canadian Evaluation Society Conference 2013 is right around the corner! It’s happening in Toronto, from Sunday, June 9 to Wednesday, June 12. Among the keynote speakers who will be speaking include Hallie Preskill of FSG (whose contributions to evaluation theory include Appreciative Inquiry, evaluation capacity building, and organizational learning); George Roter of Engineers Without Borders Canada (@geroter); Sanjeev Sridharan, Director of Evaluation Centre for Complex Health Interventions; and, my man, John Gargani (@john_gargani), whose pioneering work in thinking about design excites me.

If anyone is going to be attending, I’d love to get together. I will be presenting the results of my project on  Developmental Evaluation and its application to social innovation, which won the CES/CESEF SEEK award, over two sessions: Tuesday, June 11, 15:45 – 17:15 EST, the second, to be confirmed.

I’ll be tweeting about the conference at @chiyanlam under #cestoronto2013 and posting lessons-learned following the conference! See you there and online!

Categories
Graduate Student Development

Nuggets of Wisdom for Grad Students from AERA 2013 Div. D Grad Stud Seminar

AERA Division D organized a graduate student seminar that took place on the Saturday (Apr 27) of AERA 13. The session, entitled “Preparation, Perspiration, and Progress: Thoughts on Building a Career in Measurement or Research Methodology“, featured established academics and industry professionals working in measurement (list below). The speakers reflected back on their career and identified lessons for graduate students. Here’s what they have to say (in no particular order; speaker attributed where possible).

On scholarship…

Find people who will constructively criticize your work (Kane).

Learn to take feedback. People will also become more honest with you, as a result.

Invite feedback from a variety of audience (i.e. beyond your immediate colleagues or folks interested in your field).
Embrace your ignorance.
On on-the-job…
Be legally defensible when making decisions (in the context of consulting / educational testing).
On work-life balance… 

Your job is not your life. And your life is not job.

Your work is more than your job.

On transitioning from grad student to faculty…
Position yourself as a colleague. Reshape the power relation.
Take responsibility of checking the  accuracy and ensuring quality of  work (Kane; in the context of being handed a dataset)
On interviewing and asking intelligent, meaningful questions…
Under what circumstances do you feel that you grow best?
What ties you together as a faculty?
On joining a faculty…
Find mentors who can help you with your scholarship and navigate the politics of the faculty.
Be confident but not arrogant about your work and yourself.

And the one advice that most resonates with me at the moment…

On developing scholarship….
Write every day.

And, there you have it. Many thanks to AERA Division D for organizing this worthwhile session!

What do you think? Do you have tips of your own? Share below!

Speakers:

Tasha Beretvas, The University of Texas – Austin
Erika Hall, National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment
Michael T. Kane, Educational Testing Service
Aaron Kuntz, University of Alabama
Jacqueline P. Leighton, University of Alberta
David M. Osher, American Institutes for Research
Emily J. Shaw, The College Board (Session Organizer/Chair)

Categories
Graduate Student Development Main

11 Insider Tips on How to be Photographed at a Social Event

If you attend any social events these days, be it a wedding, a business meeting, or a birthday party, chances are someone will be photographing the event. Learning how to be photographed as an attendee and how to be comfortable in front of a camera goes a long way both personally and professionally. You’ll help to ensure that the most flattering ‘you’ is captured, and this, in turn, will ensure that you’ll have one kick-ass image that you could use for your own blog, Facebook, or portfolio! As an event photographer, I have shot thousands of images of folks attending social events. Let me give you 11 insider tips on how to be photographed at a social event.

Professional photographers are best at making attendees feel comfortable. But they can be the most intimidating with their professional gear. Professional photographers are there to capture the best of the event: the atmosphere, the decorations, the attendees, their interactions, and the “buzz” of the event. A skilled professional photographer knows how to shoot an event without being intrusive. A skilled photographer makes his/her presence known in order to help his subjects feel at ease. The professional photographer will try to stay stealthy. While you may not know when a photographer may photograph you, do know that photographers only want to publish the best of you.

Without further ado, here are 11 tips for being photographed in a social event as an attendee.

11. When in doubt, relax and smile. Enjoy yourself.

10. When spotted by the photographer, keep doing what you’re doing, unless otherwise instructed. There’s no need to suddenly stop and smile for the camera. The photographer is often interested in candid shots of people mingling, interacting, and generally having a good time. If you know you’re being photographed doing something, it does help if you slow your action by just a tad. If you would prefer to not be photographed, simply smile and wave no.

9. Act like you’re interested in your companions, even if you’re not.

8. Tyra Banks knows how it’s done: smize. Smile and let your eyes sparkle, especially when you’re talking to someone else. Photographers want to see life and engagement in your eyes.

7. When being photographed in a group shot (you know those elementary school class photos where everybody stands in rows), don’t leave a gaping hole between you and the next person. Stand close, shoulder-to-shoulder, and stand tall. Stand on both feet. Smile.

6. If a photographer raises a lens at you, it’s because he noticed you doing something interesting or photo-worthy. The photographer will likely stay on you for a few seconds, snapping consecutive shots, hoping one might work out. So, keep on doing whatever you were doing.

5. If there’s a speaker speaking at the event, try to stand/sit close to the speaker. Don’t be the odd one lingering at the back of the room.

4. If you’re being photographed chatting in a small group (the “huddle shots”), make sure you’re looking at the speaker. You don’t want to be the odd one out looking disinterested. If you’re chatting with another person (2-person shot), try to stand shoulder-to-shoulder (and not facing each other). This opens up a space for the photographer to get in and photograph the two of you chatting.

3. Don’t track the photographer at an event. Don’t start looking for where he/she is.

2. Photographers have no interest in photographing you eating. Don’t worry. Do not stuff your face full of food if you want to be photographed. If an event serves food, carry your plate near your belly level and not at the chest level. No body wants to see a plate of sandwich.

1. Photographers love animated speakers. When you’re gesturing, keep it hands above your waistline but below your chin. Do not let your hands block your face or eyes. Do what conductors do—they work within an imaginary box that’s above the waist, below the chin, and extends left-and-right. Never crisscross your arms.

Above all, have trust in your photographers. They’re there to make you look good! Be gentle and kind to the photographer. His goal is to bring out the best of you and highlight how awesome the event was.