Systems Week: Beverly Parsons on Resources for Applying Systems Concepts to Evaluation. My name is Beverly Parsons.
I’m the executive director of InSites (a non-profit research, evaluation, and planning organization) and an AEA board member. I have a tip about resources for applying systems concepts to evaluation. This tip is based on InSites’ continually expanding use of systems orientations in evaluations in education, social services, community change, and health. Hot Tip: Whether you are an old hand at using systems concepts or new to the topic, get your hands on a copy of Ramage and Shipp’s 2009 book, Systems Thinkers (Springer London).
This book is about the people who have shaped the systems fields across many disciplines. Each of the book’s 30 chapters gives a brief, well written synopsis of a system thinker’s background, contribution, and links to other thinkers along with a short extract from his/her writings. The American Evaluation Association is celebrating Systems in Evaluation Week with our colleagues in the Systems in Evaluation AEA Topical Interest Group. Publications and Resources. Here are publications and resources that illustrate InSites' orientation and approach to evaluation, planning, and related professional development.
They are grouped into materials produced in 2012, 2009-2010 and those prepared prior to 2009. Over the years, InSites has produced numerous evaluation and planning reports and other documents for specific clients. Some of these are available upon request. Resource Materials from 2012 Systems Thinking in Evaluation Workshop (7/17/12) In this workshop ways to apply systems thinking to evaluation were explored.
Resources Materials from 2009 and 2010 Two sets of resources from 2009 and 2010 are available: Tools and Resources for Conducting Evaluations in Complex Systems The evaluation of complex systems interventions is a major focus of InSites’ work. 2010 American Evaluation Association Presentation Materials. Uating Complex System Interventions. Systems Thinking and Logic Models: Two Sides of the Same Coin? The Logic Model and Systems Thinking – Can they co-exist?
10 Session 283: Using Systems Thinking Concepts in Evaluation of Complex Programs. Systems Concepts and Tools. Provide training and consultancy support in the use of systems concepts in evaluation.
This includes the material below, workshops, evaluation design, and one-on-one mentoring and advice. Contact me for more details about what I can do for you and your work. Why? Uation Questions to Systems Methods. Kellogg%20enfoque%20sistematico%20en%20evaluacion. 7 myths about systems approaches to evaluation. This week’s conference on ‘Systemic approaches in evaluation’, hosted by GIZ in Frankfurt showcased some useful approaches to evaluation (which will be made available on the conference website soon).
It also highlighted some common myths about systems approaches to evaluation: 1. Systems approaches are about including everything This is impossible. And trying to do it is not useful. 2. This myth follows on from a misconception that systems approaches require measuring everything. 3. Frameworks that distinguish between simple, complicated, and complex aspects of programs and situation (such as Glouberman and Zimmerman, and Kurtz and Snowden) make important distinction between complicated and complex. If it is possible to identify all the components and their relationships, at least for experts, then it is more useful to classify this as complicated. 4. Many people think that systems dynamics is the only systems approach, which uses quantitative data to model situations or interventions. 5. 20001012_hummelbrunner_richard.