Evaluation Projects

We conduct systematic evaluations to understand and improve the impact of promising practices, programs and policies.

Teacher Compensation Models and Advanced Teaching Roles: Evaluation Scope of Work

A collaborative team from the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation and the NC State College of Education are assessing the impact of the teacher compensation models and advanced teaching roles (ATR) program on teaching and learning in North Carolina. In addition, this evaluation includes a comparative analysis of program implementation in order to help identify and scale the most effective components of these programs.

NC Education Corps

This program was developed in response to the drastic impact of COVID-19 on students and families, and in partnership with the NC State Board of Education and Office of the Governor. NC Education Corps provides local schools K-3 early literacy tutors to help accelerate learning recovery. Our PEER Group is co-leading the three-year program evaluation with Duke Social Science Research Institute.

NC Digital Equity Plan: Asset Inventory, Statewide Survey, Listening Sessions, Digital Equity Plan Review

In partnership with North Carolina Central University and the Institute for Emerging Issues, the Program Evaluation and Education Research (PEER) Group at the Friday Institute is leading the effort to manage the development of a Digital Equity Asset Inventory for North Carolina, conduct a series of listening sessions across the state and facilitate the implementation and analysis of a statewide digital equity survey to help the North Carolina Department of Information Technology Division of Broadband and Digital Equity (NCDIT) develop a five-year digital equity plan.

Building Educator Capacity to Support Students with Learning Differences

For the last seven years, the Friday Institute has offered a range of online professional development experiences that focus on learning differences, social and emotional learning (SEL) and learner agency supported by Oak Foundation. A project team at the Friday Institute is evaluating the impact of these programs on students and educators; identifying evidence-based lessons learned and leveraging partnerships and open source technologies to provide support for organizations to integrate and customize content to meet their unique needs.

NCDPI Innovative Assessment System Pilot Program

Researchers from the Friday Institute are supporting the development of a through-grade assessment system the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction is piloting, the North Carolina Personalized Assessment Tool (NCPAT).

Building Confidence through Culturally Relevant Co-requisite Mathematics Courses within Math Pathways

This three-year NSF grant will allow our PEER Group to help investigate strategies aimed at improving the outcomes of undergraduate Black or African American men in entry-level mathematics courses in an effort to grow and diversify the STEM workforce.

Insight into Contemporary Professional Growth Needs for North Carolina Educators

Researchers from the Friday Institute conducted this exploratory qualitative study to better understand the classroom-, school- and district-level challenges North Carolina educators were facing one year into the pandemic.

Three college students in business casual clothes talk in chairs in the lobby of the Friday Institute

Teaching for the Long Haul: Professionalizing Career Pathways for North Carolina Teachers

In 2016, the North Carolina General Assembly provided support for school districts across North Carolina to propose and implement pilot advanced teaching roles programs that would allow highly effective classroom teachers to take on leadership roles in their schools and reach more students. Six districts were chosen to develop pilot programs attuned to their local needs. The Friday Institute conducted a formal three-year evaluation of these six pilots to answer several “whether” questions (for example, whether the pilot programs helped improve student outcomes). In addition, with the support of The Belk Foundation, the Friday Institute completed “deep dive” closer-look investigations with three of the pilots.

ASSISTments Use During In-Person and Remote Instruction

Using surveys and interviews, researchers at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation conducted a case study of teachers’ use of ASSISTments in in-person instruction and in remote instruction, both during the NC ASSISTments Replication Study and outside of the study.