Exploring the EvaluateUR Method: Variants and Options
The EvaluateUR method provides several variants for assessing a range of educational experiences, including independent undergraduate research, course-based research (CUREs), collegiate competitions, and internships. Within each variant, there are options that provide flexibility, allowing for the selection that best aligns with the particular experience. The information below introduces the EvaluateUR method variants and options with suggestions about when each might be used.
EvaluateUR: For Independent Undergraduate Research Experiences
EvaluateUR provides a structured framework for providing feedback to students and assessing undergraduate research experiences.
EvaluateUR Standard:
- Intended for: Summer and academic year undergraduate research programs.
- Description: This variant is designed for programs where there are student-mentor pairs with frequent interactions between the student and mentor. The students complete an initial assessment and both the students and mentors complete the mid-research and end-of-research assessments. Each assessment is followed by a conversation to discuss reasons for assigning scores to the outcome components included in the assessments.
EvaluateUR Student-Only:
- Intended for: Summer and academic year undergraduate research programs.
- Description: This variant is designed for programs where student self-assessment is the primary method of evaluation and only the students score the initial, mid-, and end-of-research assessments. This variant is useful for larger research programs where the mentors are less familiar with the research student they are mentoring (e.g., REU programs, students conducting research at a government laboratory, or any research situation where the mentor is willing to provide verbal feedback to students but hesitant to complete an online assessment).
EvaluateUR Small:
- Intended for: Summer and academic year undergraduate research experiences with a single mentor and three or fewer students.
- Description: This variant, featuring mentor and student scoring, is tailored for focused evaluations within smaller, more intimate research settings during summer and academic year programs. Note: There is no charge to request a dashboard to use this option. Due to the small number of research students, no summary statistics are provided.
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EvaluateUR-CURE: For Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences
EvaluateUR-CURE (E-CURE) provides a framework for providing feedback to students and assessing course-based research experiences.
EvaluateUR-CURE Standard:
- Intended for: One Quarter/Semester CUREs where the research project is the primary activity in the course.
- Description: The CURE instructor selects the outcomes categories that are best aligned with the research component. Only students score all three assessments (early, mid-point, and end of the research project) and the CURE instructor scores the mid- and end-of-research assessments for each student. CURE instructors can leave any outcome component blank and score only those they are confident about.
EvaluateUR-CURE Extended:
- Intended for: Two Quarters/Semesters CUREs where the research project is the primary activity in both quarters/semesters of the course.
- Description: Similar to the E-CURE Standard option described above, but includes an additional assessment providing feedback to students in both quarters/semesters.
EvaluateUR-CURE Standard Student-Only Scored:
- Intended for: One Quarter/Semester CUREs where instructor-student interaction is limited due to large class size, less frequent direct interactions between the students and the CURE instructor, or any situation where the CURE instructor opts not to score the students.
- Description: This variant is scored only by students and includes a set of open-ended questions at the beginning and end of the research experience.
EvaluateUR-CURE Short Student-Only Scored:
- Intended for: One Quarter/Semester CURE with shorter duration or smaller-scale research projects.
- Description: Designed for CUREs where the research is a partial course component. Due to the smaller scale/shorter duration project, only two assessments are scored by the student (2-3 weeks after the project has started and at the end of the project).
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Evaluate-Compete: For Collegiate Competition Experiences
Evaluate-Compete provides a framework to assess the educational impact of team-based collegiate competitions, such as robotics and other engineering/designs.
Evaluate-Compete Standard:
- Intended for: Robotics and other engineering design competitions.
- Description: This option involves scoring by both the team advisor(s) and students and is intended for teams tht have frequent interactions with the team advisor(s).
Evaluate-Compete Student-Only:
- Intended for: Robotics and other engineering design competitions.
- Description: Designed for situations with larger teams or teams that work independently with less regular interactions with the team advisor.
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EvaluateUR-Internship: For Professional Internship Experiences
EvaluateUR-Internship (E-Internship) offers a focused evaluation tool for students participating in professional internships, allowing for the assessment of learning and development in real-world settings.
EvaluateUR-Internship Student-Only:
- Intended for: Students participating in business, government, or industry-based internship experiences.
- Description: This variant utilizes student self-assessments to evaluate the internship experience, providing insights into their learning and professional development.
Learn more about E-Internship Request to use E-Internship
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grants No. 1347681 and 1347727. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.