ASSESSMENT PRACTICES FOR SUMMER READING PROGRAM BY JACQUELINE CERON LIS 793

SUMMER READING PROGRAM Summer Reading Program or SRP was created to encourage children and teens to read during summer vacation. In addition, children and teens who participated in summer reading have higher scores in reading and vocabulary. According the American Library Association, “Summer reading programs began in the 1890s as a way to encourage school children, particularly those in urban areas and not needed for farm work, to read during their summer vacation, use the library and develop the habit of reading. Libraries also now offer summer reading programs for adults, as well as children.” Qualitative/Effectiveness The value of summer reading program. The impact of summer reading program has in children and teens.

EVALUATION QUESTIONS What are our goals and/or objectives for this program? What do we know about the needs of our children and teens? Number of participants Age group Reading levels (if possible) Is the summer reading program addressing those needs? Is the summer reading program making an impact? Reading skills increased? Improvement needed? Increased or decreased of summer reading participants from previous summers. To determine if the program is meeting the mission and goals of the library

OUTCOME-BASED EVALUATION Measures the effectiveness of the program based on the data collected. This approach is being used in California Summer Reading. California Summer Reading.

According to California Library Association, “Outcomes evaluation is the process of identifying desired outcomes from a particular program or service and then conducting some kind of data collection to determine if those outcomes have been achieved. Outcome evaluation is most effective when it is part of a systematic planning process” (CLA 2015) California Library Association follows four steps: 1. Gathering information. (demographic, community information etc…) 2. Determining outcomes. 3. Developing programs and services. 4. Conducting evaluations. Assessment tools to use - Surveys - Interviews - Focus Group

Survey According to Hernon(2014), “Descriptive Surveys, which describe the perspective or experiences of survey respondents on the questions that were asked in a predefined manner. Citation analysis is a variation of the descriptive survey method” (pg 22). Survey is used as an assessment tool to obtain information directly from the users. What makes surveys unique? A survey is quick and easy to use for gathering data/information. Online, by phone, s, in-person, paper Surveys are used to evaluate programs or services in public libraries. Surveys can help librarians redefine their goals and make any changes or improvement to the program. Surveys can demonstrate the effectiveness of the summer reading program.

ONLINE SURVEY Ohio Public Libraries

DATA SPREADSHEET Credit: Idaho Commission for Libraries

INTERVIEWS AND FOCUS GROUPS Interviews and focus groups are a popular form of evaluating a program and/or service in public library Librarians can obtain information or feedback from library patrons and generate data. Based on the gather information, Librarians can select specific topics to ask. Target underserved group. Example of questions or survey: CLA ResourceCLA Resource

USING LOGIC MODEL OR RICHARD ORR’S EVALUATION MODEL

InputProcessOutputsOutcome / Impact Books and other materials TimeNumber of children and teen participating in the program Reading and vocabulary skills increased Marketing materialsNumber of books that been checked out. Improvement in test scores Space and budgetNumber of books read by each participants. Improvement in behavior and self- esteem # of participantsThe number of hours each participant have read Strong relationship with the library and staff Gifts and prizesParent involvementPassion for books # of librarians or library staff

DATA SOURCES American Factfinder Lexile School District Report Card

RESOURCES ALA – Summer Reading Library Programs Iowa Reading Research School Library Journals sees-early- success/#_http:// how_your_stuff_

Public Libraries Onlinehttp://publiclibrariesonline.org/2013/05/evaluating-summer-reading-programs- suggested-improvements/ suggested-improvements/ CLA School Library Journals says/ says/ Idaho Commission Libraries