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G2S Project Code: 2015-AZ-75645
State: Arizona
Fiscal Year: 2015

Grantee
Scottsdale Public Library

Project Director
Director Name: Mariko Whelan
Director Phone: 480-312-7164
Director Email: mwhelan@scottsdaleaz.gov

General Information
Title: Measuring for Success
State Project Code: 2015-0260-26
Start Date: 05/20/2015
End Date: 08/01/2016
Abstract: With support from the Arizona State University T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, the Scottsdale Public Library gathered data from families participating in two of its Knowing & Growing Programs (Fun with Math & Science and Books Can©) to begin looking at the impact these programs have on families and the interactions they have with their children on a daily basis. The data will be used to help "evidence base" these programs as effective strategies to support early learning.
State Goal: Learning

Budget Information

LSTA

MATCH-State

MATCH-Other

Total

$67,486.00

$0.00

$4,479.00

$71,965.00

Intent(s)
Improve users' ability to apply information that furthers their parenting and family skills.
Parenting & Family skills
Early Literacy

Activities
Activity Details
Title: Books Can...© Program
Narrative: Books Can…© introduces fundamental concepts of children’s social-emotional development using play and books. In this fun and interactive course, designed in line with the Arizona Early Learning Standards for social emotional development, parents learn simple strategies to involve children from birth to four years in warm, responsive interactions. This 6-week program covers topics including: attachment, recognizing and labeling emotions, self awareness, self-regulation, relationships, and effective praise.
Intent: Improve users' ability to apply information that furthers their parenting and family skills.

Activity: Instruction
Mode: Program
Format: In-person

Quantity
Session length (minutes): 45
Number of sessions in program: 6
Average number in attendance per session: 19
Number of times program administered: 13

Partner Information

Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: No
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No

Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No

Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: Targeted
Geographic community of the targeted group: Urban
For what age groups: 0-5 years
For what economic types: Economic Not Applicable
For what ethnicity types: Ethnicity Not Applicable
Is the activity directed at families: Yes
Is the activity directed at intergenerational groups: No
Is the activity directed at immigrants/refugees: No
Is the activity directed at those with disabilities: No
Limited functional literacy or informational skills: No
Is the activity category not already captured: No

Locale
Is the activity state-wide: No
Specific Locations: Yes
Name: SCOTTSDALE PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 3839 N. DRINKWATER BLVD.
City: SCOTTSDALE
State: AZ
Zip: 85251
Name: Vista del Camino Community Center
Address: 7700 E. Roosevelt St.
City: Scottsdale
State: AZ
Zip: 85257
Question 1: I learned something by participating in this library activity.
Strongly Agree: 0
Agree: 0
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 2: I feel more confident about what I just learned.
Strongly Agree: 0
Agree: 0
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 3: I intend to apply what I just learned.
Strongly Agree: 0
Agree: 0
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 4: I am more aware of resources and services provided by the library.
Strongly Agree: 0
Agree: 0
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 5: I am more likely to use other library resources and services.
Strongly Agree: 0
Agree: 0
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0

Activity Details
Title: Fun with Math & Science
Narrative: Fun with Math & Science introduces fundamental concepts of math and science using play and books. In this fun and interactive course, designed in line with the Arizona Early Learning Standards for Math and Science, parents learn simple strategies to involve children from two to five years in science- and math-concept building activities. This 6 week program covers topics including: observation and hypothesis, our senses, sorting and comparing, cause and effect, patterns and sequencing and geometry and measurement.
Intent: Improve users' ability to apply information that furthers their parenting and family skills.

Activity: Instruction
Mode: Program
Format: In-person

Quantity
Session length (minutes): 60
Number of sessions in program: 6
Average number in attendance per session: 21
Number of times program administered: 16

Partner Information

Activity Details
Title: Measuring for Success Evaluation Report
Narrative: The Scottsdale Public Library gathered data from families participating in two of its Knowing & Growing Programs (Fun with Math & Science and Books Can©) to begin looking at the impact these programs have on families and the interactions they have with their children on a daily basis. The Arizona State Univeristy T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics evaluated the programs and reported preliminary findings indicating that the programs are evidence-informed.
Intent: Improve users' ability to apply information that furthers their parenting and family skills.

Activity: Planning & Evaluation
Mode: Retrospective
Format: Third party

Quantity
Number of evaluations and/or plans funded: 1
Number of funded evaluation and/or plans completed: 1

Partner Information

Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: General

Locale
Is the activity state-wide: No
Specific Locations: Yes
Name: SCOTTSDALE PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 3839 N. DRINKWATER BLVD.
City: SCOTTSDALE
State: AZ
Zip: 85251

Project Outcomes
Project Outcomes
List any important outcomes or findings not previously reported:
There were significant and marginally significant findings from the project. Please see the attached Measuring for Success evaluation report for full details, but here are a few: Parents who attended Books Can…© reported changes in their knowledge, specifically there was a significant decrease in agreement with the statement that all types of praise are equally good for their child, indicating growth in understanding that different types of praise (i.e., person-based versus effort-based praise) have different impacts on child development. Parents who attended Fun with Math & Science reported a significant increase in their perception of the library as a place they can go to learn about how to be a better parent/caregiver and in their child development knowledge, indicating that young children learn math and science best through play. Parents also reported feeling more equipped to support their child’s math and science skills indicating they felt more prepared to support their child’s math and science education, were better prepared to use everyday opportunities to incorporate math and science into their daily routines, and had increased their use of “why” questions to encourage their children’s thinking post-program participation. Looking across both programs, parents reported a significant increase in their perceptions of the library as a place they can go to learn about how to be a better parent/caregiver than they did prior to participation.
Please briefly describe the importance of these outcomes and findings for future program planning:
The preliminary evaluation of the Knowing and Growing Programs represents a shift in philosophy regarding implementation of evidence-based programming versus researched-based programming. For libraries, evidenced-based programming is a challenging task. Collecting data that will help lead to establishing parent/child programs as evidence-based is an arduous, but necessary task. These data will help libraries develop/implement evidence-based programs that support parent/child learning and support school readiness.
Explain one or two of the most significant lessons learned for others wanting to adopt any facets of this project:
The variance between pre- and post-surveys although significant, was not as significant as expected. This might be because of the following: The majority of the families who participated were well educated, reporting achieving a bachelor’s degree or higher; reported very little, if any, socioeconomic hardship; and nearly all families spoke English in the home.
Do you anticipate continuing this project after the current reporting period ends:
Yes
Do you anticipate any change in level of effort in managing this project:
No
Explain:

Do you anticipate changing the types of activities and objectives addressed by the project:
No
Explain:

Was an evaluation conducted for this project:
Yes
Was a final written evaluation report produced:
Yes
Can the final written evaluation report be shared publicly on the IMLS website:
Yes
Was the evaluation conducted by project staff (either SLAA or local library) or by a third-party evaluator:
Third-Party
What data collection tools were used for any report outcomes and outputs:
Review Surveys
Direct Observation
Other: Observational coding, program fidelity
Did you collect any media for the data:
Videos
What types of methods were used to analyze collected data:
Statistical Methods
Other:
How were participants (or items) selected:
Other: Convenience sampling -- families who were already participating in programming were recruited
What type of research design did you use to compare the value for any reported output or outcome:
Pre-post comparison for a reported output or outcome: Descriptive statistics regarding participant demographic information were run. For all survey data, composite scores were first created for each scale and compared using paired samples t-tests to determine whether scores changed significantly from pre- to post-survey for parent and child outcomes. Scores were also compared based on a number of subgroups, including Knowing and Growing Program, level of parent education, childcare usage, and race/ethnic minority status. Finally, descriptive analyses regarding why parents attend library programming, levels of parent engagement during programming, and instructor fidelity were performed.

Exemplary: Yes
Exemplary NarrativeWith support from the Arizona State University T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, the Scottsdale Public Library gathered data from families participating in two of its Knowing & Growing Programs (Fun with Math & Science and Books Can©) to begin looking at the impact these programs have on families and the interactions they have with their children on a daily basis. For libraries, evidenced-based programming is a challenging task. Collecting data that will help lead to establishing parent/child programs as evidence-based is arduous, but necessary. These data will help libraries develop and implement evidence-based programs that support parent/child learning and support school readiness.

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