Task 5 | clm440

Initial Submission

Task 5 Research Plan

Chandell Mitchell

Old Dominion University

HMSV 440W

Total Action for Progress is a community-based program that has an array of services. Their goal is to assist low-income families in the community and surrounding area. TAP helps participants directly, but they also provide recommendations to other resources. TAP is somewhat a one-stop shop for participants; parents can continue their education plus have daycare services for their children. The stakeholders for TAP would be the Board of Directors. The board of directors consists of individuals from the community. For this project, I’m specifically interested in the Head Start program, so the stakeholder for that program is Ms. De la Cruz and her employees.

Ms. De la Cruz is the new Director of Head Start, so she plays the most important role in my evaluation. The teachers also play an important role in the evaluation because they’re involved with participants directly. For my evaluation, I will be using the improvement- focused method. This method would be beneficial because I can point out some discrepancies in the program (Posavac, 2011). I can also asses if the program suits the participants needs (Posavac, 2011). With this method, I would be working with the stakeholders and the participants.

For the evaluation, I will be assessing Head Start’s curriculum versus traditional preschool. Next, I will be asking educators what improvements need to be made to the program. These two questions will allow me to focus on what needs to be changed, and brainstorm recommendations. Comparing head start to a traditional preschool may result in a few changes to their current curriculum. Having the same curriculum benefits the teacher and child in the long run. Asking the educators what they think needs to be changed would be beneficial. They are working with the children on a consistent basis. For me, they have more knowledge when it comes to what works and what doesn’t. For the data collection, I will be using multiple methods.

I will be conducting interviews, observations, and surveys. Using three methods would provide the most valid and accurate results. I can conduct interviews and conduct observations to make sure my findings are accurate. It also provides me with different point of views. I would have my own point of view from the observations, and the educator’s point of view. The surveys would provide confidentiality for individuals that don’t want to disclose their identity. Also, with the evaluation, I’ll have to figure out if the qualitative or quantitative method is better. For the evaluation, the mixed method would be more accurate. The mixed method would consist of both qualitative and quantitative methods. Since I will be using 3 different methods to get information the mixed method would work better.

Overall, the evaluation for TAP will be tedious but the results will be worthwhile. Working closely with the stakeholders mentioned above will help TAP with needed improvements. I will provide a fresh set of eyes when it comes to the program. I will also provide them with accurate feedback based on my data collection. I can also give suggestions for what needs to be changed in the daycare program. In the end, the evaluation will benefit TAP and its consumers.

References

Posavac, E. J. (2011). Program Evaluation Methods and Case Studies 8th edition . In E. J. Posavac, Program Evaluation Methods and Case Studies 8th edition (pp. 22-43). Upper Saddle River : Prentice Hall.

Corrected Submission: This submission provides headings, so the explanation of the research plan is more clear and concise.

Research Plan:

Head Start and its Effects on Lower-Income Children

Chandell Mitchell

Old Dominion University

HMSV 440W

Head Start and its Effect on Lower-Income Children

Head Start has helped numerous families over the decades. They take on the task of educating lower-income children, while their parents work or further their education. Many of the children join the Head Start family while they are infants and stay until they are enrolled in Kindergarten. This is the most crucial time during the children’s life. Children are like sponges and absorb everything they see in their daily life. This paper will identify stakeholders, and the steps that will be taken to complete the evaluation.

Identified Stakeholders

The stakeholders for TAP would be the Board of Directors. The board of directors consists of elected individuals from the community. For this project, I’m specifically interested in the Head Start program, so the stakeholder for that program is Ms. De la Cruz and her employees. Ms. De la Cruz is the new Director of Head Start. She plays the most important role in my evaluation. The teachers also play an important role in the evaluation because they’re involved with participants directly.

Methods

For my evaluation, I will be using the improvement- focused method. This method is beneficial because I can point out some discrepancies in the program (Posavac, 2011). I can also asses if the program suits the participants needs (Posavac, 2011). With this method, I would be working with the stakeholders and the participants.

For the evaluation, I will be assessing Head Start’s curriculum versus traditional preschool. Next, I will be asking educators what improvements need to be made to the program. These two questions will allow me to focus on what needs to be changed and brainstorm recommendations. Comparing head start to a traditional preschool may result in a few changes to their current curriculum. Having the same curriculum benefits the teacher and child in the long run. Asking the educators what they think needs to be changed would be beneficial. They are working with the children on a consistent basis. For me, they have more knowledge when it comes to what works and what doesn’t. For the data collection, I will be using multiple methods.

I will be conducting interviews, observations, and surveys. Using three methods would provide the most valid and accurate results. I can conduct interviews and conduct observations to make sure my findings are accurate. It also provides me with a different point of views. I would have my own point of view from the observations, and the educator’s point of view. The surveys would provide confidentiality for individuals that don’t want to disclose their identity. Also, with the evaluation, I’ll have to figure out if the qualitative or quantitative method is better. For the evaluation, the mixed method would be more accurate. The mixed method would consist of both qualitative and quantitative methods. Since I will be using 3 different methods to get information the mixed method would work better.

Conclusion

References

Posavac, E. J. (2011). Program Evaluation Methods and Case Studies 8th edition. In E. J. Posavac, Program Evaluation Methods and Case Studies 8th edition (pp. 22-43). Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall.