<< /Length 5 0 R /Filter /FlateDecode >> PDF How do YOU define "assessment - Indiana University Bloomington Prague, Czech Republic, Health ResearchMaking an Impact. The range and diversity of frameworks developed reflect the variation in purpose of evaluation including the stakeholders for whom the assessment takes place, along with the type of impact and evidence anticipated. In endeavouring to assess or evaluate impact, a number of difficulties emerge and these may be specific to certain types of impact. The difficulty then is how to determine what the contribution has been in the absence of adequate evidence and how we ensure that research that results in impacts that cannot be evidenced is valued and supported. The term "assessment" may be defined in multiple ways by different individuals or institutions, perhaps with different goals. The Goldsmith report (Cooke and Nadim 2011) recommended making indicators value free, enabling the value or quality to be established in an impact descriptor that could be assessed by expert panels. Citations (outside of academia) and documentation can be used as evidence to demonstrate the use research findings in developing new ideas and products for example. In the UK, UK Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills provided funding of 150 million for knowledge exchange in 201112 to help universities and colleges support the economic recovery and growth, and contribute to wider society (Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 2012). For example, following the discovery of a new potential drug, preclinical work is required, followed by Phase 1, 2, and 3 trials, and then regulatory approval is granted before the drug is used to deliver potential health benefits. Using the above definition of evaluation, program evaluation approaches were classified into four categories. This is being done for collation of academic impact and outputs, for example, Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools, which uses PubMed and text mining to cluster research projects, and STAR Metrics in the US, which uses administrative records and research outputs and is also being implemented by the ERC using data in the public domain (Mugabushaka and Papazoglou 2012). As a result, numerous and widely varying models and frameworks for assessing impact exist. Evaluation is a procedure that reviews a program critically. This work was supported by Jisc [DIINN10]. In the UK, there have been several Jisc-funded projects in recent years to develop systems capable of storing research information, for example, MICE (Measuring Impacts Under CERIF), UK Research Information Shared Service, and Integrated Research Input and Output System, all based on the CERIF standard. These case studies were reviewed by expert panels and, as with the RQF, they found that it was possible to assess impact and develop impact profiles using the case study approach (REF2014 2010). What are the methodologies and frameworks that have been employed globally to assess research impact and how do these compare? Thalidomide has since been found to have beneficial effects in the treatment of certain types of cancer. They risk being monetized or converted into a lowest common denominator in an attempt to compare the cost of a new theatre against that of a hospital. What Is Assessment? - Westminster College There is a great deal of interest in collating terms for impact and indicators of impact. These techniques have the potential to provide a transformation in data capture and impact assessment (Jones and Grant 2013). HEIs overview. 0000007777 00000 n What emerged on testing the MICE taxonomy (Cooke and Nadim 2011), by mapping impacts from case studies, was that detailed categorization of impact was found to be too prescriptive. Media coverage is a useful means of disseminating our research and ideas and may be considered alongside other evidence as contributing to or an indicator of impact. Assessment Terms and Definitions - California State University, Northridge We will focus attention towards generating results that enable boxes to be ticked rather than delivering real value for money and innovative research. The advantages and disadvantages of the case study approach. However, there has been recognition that this time window may be insufficient in some instances, with architecture being granted an additional 5-year period (REF2014 2012); why only architecture has been granted this dispensation is not clear, when similar cases could be made for medicine, physics, or even English literature. The Social Return on Investment (SROI) guide (The SROI Network 2012) suggests that The language varies impact, returns, benefits, value but the questions around what sort of difference and how much of a difference we are making are the same. What are the reasons behind trying to understand and evaluate research impact? It is acknowledged in the article by Mugabushaka and Papazoglou (2012) that it will take years to fully incorporate the impacts of ERC funding. Productive interactions, which can perhaps be viewed as instances of knowledge exchange, are widely valued and supported internationally as mechanisms for enabling impact and are often supported financially for example by Canadas Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, which aims to support knowledge exchange (financially) with a view to enabling long-term impact. The risk of relying on narratives to assess impact is that they often lack the evidence required to judge whether the research and impact are linked appropriately. 1.3. Assessment for Learning is the process of seeking and interpreting evidence for use by learners and their teachers to decide where the learners are in their learning, where they need to go and. Published by Oxford University Press. Definitions of Evaluation (By Different Authors) | PDF | Learning In 200910, the REF team conducted a pilot study for the REF involving 29 institutions, submitting case studies to one of five units of assessment (in clinical medicine, physics, earth systems and environmental sciences, social work and social policy, and English language and literature) (REF2014 2010). 2009), and differentiating between the various major and minor contributions that lead to impact is a significant challenge. different meanings for different people in many different contexts. It is possible to incorporate both metrics and narratives within systems, for example, within the Research Outcomes System and Researchfish, currently used by several of the UK research councils to allow impacts to be recorded; although recording narratives has the advantage of allowing some context to be documented, it may make the evidence less flexible for use by different stakeholder groups (which include government, funding bodies, research assessment agencies, research providers, and user communities) for whom the purpose of analysis may vary (Davies et al. Narratives can be used to describe impact; the use of narratives enables a story to be told and the impact to be placed in context and can make good use of qualitative information. Downloadable! It is perhaps worth noting that the expert panels, who assessed the pilot exercise for the REF, commented that the evidence provided by research institutes to demonstrate impact were a unique collection. Why should this be the case? If metrics are available as impact evidence, they should, where possible, also capture any baseline or control data. , . The most appropriate type of evaluation will vary according to the stakeholder whom we are wishing to inform. Differences between these two assessments include the removal of indicators of esteem and the addition of assessment of socio-economic research impact. In demonstrating research impact, we can provide accountability upwards to funders and downwards to users on a project and strategic basis (Kelly and McNicoll 2011). Indicators, evidence, and impact within systems, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 2012, http://www.arc.gov.au/pdf/ERA_Indicator_Principles.pdf, http://www.charitystar.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Return_on_donations_a_white_paper_on_charity_impact_measurement.pdf, http://www.oecd.org/science/innovationinsciencetechnologyandindustry/37450246.pdf, http://www.cahs-acss.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/ROI_FullReport.pdf, http://mice.cerch.kcl.ac.uk/wp-uploads/2011/07/MICE_report_Goldsmiths_final.pdf, http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storyCode=409614§ioncode=26, http://www.odi.org.uk/rapid/Events/ESRC/docs/background_paper.pdf, http://www.iscintelligence.com/archivos_subidos/usfacultyburden_5.pdf, http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/tag/claire-donovan/, http://www.atn.edu.au/docs/Research%20Global%20-%20Measuring%20the%20impact%20of%20research.pdf, http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/10-099.pdf, http://www.esf.org/index.php?eID=tx_ccdamdl_file&p[file]=25668&p[dl]=1&p[pid]=6767&p[site]=European%20Science%20Foundation&p[t]=1351858982&hash=93e987c5832f10aeee3911bac23b4e0f&l=en, http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/2007/RAND_RB9202.pdf, http://www.rand.org/pubs/documented_briefings/2010/RAND_DB578.pdf, http://ukirc.ac.uk/object/report/8025/doc/CIHE_0612ImpactReport_summary.pdf, http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storyCode=415340§ioncode=26, http://www.publicengagement.ac.uk/sites/default/files/80096%20NCCPE%20Social%20Value%20Report.pdf, http://www2.lse.ac.uk/government/research/resgroups/LSEPublicPolicy/Docs/LSE_Impact_Handbook_April_2011.pdf, http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/media/uploads/documents/publications/340.pdf, http://www.ref.ac.uk/media/ref/content/pub/researchexcellenceframeworkimpactpilotexercisefindingsoftheexpertpanels/re01_10.pdf, http://www.ref.ac.uk/media/ref/content/pub/assessmentframeworkandguidanceonsubmissions/02_11.pdf, http://www.ref.ac.uk/media/ref/content/pub/assessmentframeworkandguidanceonsubmissions/GOS%20including%20addendum.pdf, http://www.ref.ac.uk/media/ref/content/pub/panelcriteriaandworkingmethods/01_12.pdf, http://www.russellgroup.ac.uk/uploads/REF-consultation-response-FINAL-Dec09.pdf, http://www.siampi.eu/Pages/SIA/12/625.bGFuZz1FTkc.html, http://www.siampi.eu/Content/SIAMPI/SIAMPI_Final%20report.pdf, http://www.thesroinetwork.org/publications/doc_details/241-a-guide-to-social-return-on-investment-2012, http://www.ucu.org.uk/media/pdf/n/q/ucu_REFstatement_finalsignatures.pdf, http://www.esrc.ac.uk/_images/Case_Study_of_the_Future_of_Work_Programme_Volume_2_tcm8-4563.pdf, Receive exclusive offers and updates from Oxford Academic, Automated collation of evidence is difficult, Allows evidence to be contextualized and a story told, Incorporating perspective can make it difficult to assess critically, Enables assessment in the absence of quantitative data, Preserves distinctive account or disciplinary perspective, Rewards those who can write well, and/or afford to pay for external input. In development of the RQF, The Allen Consulting Group (2005) highlighted that defining a time lag between research and impact was difficult. What are the challenges associated with understanding and evaluating research impact? The Definition of Health: Towards New Perspectives The RQF pioneered the case study approach to assessing research impact; however, with a change in government in 2007, this framework was never implemented in Australia, although it has since been taken up and adapted for the UK REF. Its objective is to evaluate programs, improve program effectiveness, and influence programming decisions. Merit refers to the intrinsic value of a program, for example, how effective it is in meeting the needs those it is intended help. 2005). It has been suggested that a major problem in arriving at a definition of evaluation is confusion with related terms such as measurement, A taxonomy of impact categories was then produced onto which impact could be mapped. Findings from a Research Impact Pilot, Institutional Strategies for Capturing Socio-Economic Impact of Research, Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, Introducing Productive Interactions in Social Impact Assessment, Measuring the Impact of Publicly Funded Research, Department of Education, Science and Training, Statement on the Research Excellence Framework Proposals, Handbook on the Theory and Practice of Program Evaluation, Policy and Practice Impacts of Research Funded by the Economic Social Research Council. Reviews and guidance on developing and evidencing impact in particular disciplines include the London School of Economics (LSE) Public Policy Groups impact handbook (LSE n.d.), a review of the social and economic impacts arising from the arts produced by Reeve (Reeves 2002), and a review by Kuruvilla et al. A comparative analysis of these definitions reveal that in defining performance appraisal they were saying the same thing, but in a slightly modified way. Assessment Defined - Assessment for Learning - Google An evaluation essay is a composition that offers value judgments about a particular subject according to a set of criteria. A Preferred Framework and Indicators to Measure Returns on Investment in Health Research, Measuring Impact Under CERIF at Goldsmiths, Anti-Impact Campaigns Poster Boy Sticks up for the Ivory Tower. Although metrics can provide evidence of quantitative changes or impacts from our research, they are unable to adequately provide evidence of the qualitative impacts that take place and hence are not suitable for all of the impact we will encounter. Evaluative Research: Definition, Methods & Types - Maze When considering the impact that is generated as a result of research, a number of authors and government recommendations have advised that a clear definition of impact is required (Duryea, Hochman, and Parfitt 2007; Grant et al. There is a distinction between academic impact understood as the intellectual contribution to ones field of study within academia and external socio-economic impact beyond academia. Definition of Assessment & Evaluation in Education by Different Authors with Its Characteristics, Evaluation is the collection, analysis and interpretation of information about any aspect of a programme of education, as part of a recognised process of judging its effectiveness, its efficiency and any other outcomes it may have., 2. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Definitions of Performance Appraisal - By McGregor and Dale Beach . PDF Better Criteria for Better Evaluation - OECD The current definition of health, formulated by the WHO, is no longer adequate for dealing with the new challenges in health care systems. The transfer of information electronically can be traced and reviewed to provide data on where and to whom research findings are going. According to Hanna- " The process of gathering and interpreted evidence changes in the behavior of all students as they progress through school is called evaluation". PDF ' | A comprehensive assessment of impact itself is not undertaken with SIAMPI, which make it a less-suitable method where showcasing the benefits of research is desirable or where this justification of funding based on impact is required. 2005; Wooding et al. While aspects of impact can be adequately interpreted using metrics, narratives, and other evidence, the mixed-method case study approach is an excellent means of pulling all available information, data, and evidence together, allowing a comprehensive summary of the impact within context. Clearly the impact of thalidomide would have been viewed very differently in the 1950s compared with the 1960s or today. Research findings including outputs (e.g., presentations and publications), Communications and interactions with stakeholders and the wider public (emails, visits, workshops, media publicity, etc), Feedback from stakeholders and communication summaries (e.g., testimonials and altmetrics), Research developments (based on stakeholder input and discussions), Outcomes (e.g., commercial and cultural, citations), Impacts (changes, e.g., behavioural and economic). Indicators were identified from documents produced for the REF, by Research Councils UK, in unpublished draft case studies undertaken at Kings College London or outlined in relevant publications (MICE Project n.d.). 0000334705 00000 n The university imparts information, but it imparts it imaginatively. It is therefore in an institutions interest to have a process by which all the necessary information is captured to enable a story to be developed in the absence of a researcher who may have left the employment of the institution. 60 0 obj << /Linearized 1 /O 63 /H [ 1325 558 ] /L 397637 /E 348326 /N 12 /T 396319 >> endobj xref 60 37 0000000016 00000 n 8. In many instances, controls are not feasible as we cannot look at what impact would have occurred if a piece of research had not taken place; however, indications of the picture before and after impact are valuable and worth collecting for impact that can be predicted. In terms of research impact, organizations and stakeholders may be interested in specific aspects of impact, dependent on their focus. Other approaches to impact evaluation such as contribution analysis, process tracing, qualitative comparative analysis, and theory-based evaluation designs (e.g., Stern, Stame, Mayne, Forss, & Befani, 2012) do not necessarily employ explicit counterfactual logic for causal inference and do not introduce observation-based definitions.