Webinar Series
Past Events
THE COLLABORATIVE EXPLORATION OF ALTERNATIVE FUTURES: A DIFFERENT APPROACH TO THEORIES OF CHANGE
6 April 2022, 12.45 – 14.00 BST
ParEvo is a web application that enables the collaborative construction and exploration of a range of alternative futures: likely and unlikely, desirable and undesirable. These are described in the form of a branching narrative structure, developed over a series of iterations involving the interactions of a group of participants. These detailed storylines about the future contrast with optimistic, skeletal and largely singular views of the future found in diagrammatic ToCs often encountered by evaluators. This webinar will describe a recent ParEvo exercise implemented b y the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk (CSER) in Cambridge. In this exercise 11 international experts explored ideas about how global risks associated with biotechnology research could be managed, and mismanaged, in the coming four years. Including how these alternative futures were evaluated by participants and the CSER facilitators. Issues to be discussed by the panel, and others, include comparisons with other representations of Theories of Change and other approaches to the exploration of alternative futures, described variously as scenario planning, futures or foresight work. Full details can be found on this link: Link to webpage
IMPACT EVALUATION: CAUSAL MAPS, MECHANISMS AND THE ELUSIVE QUEST FOR USEFUL MIDDLE RANGE THEORY
23 February 2022, 16.30 – 17.45 GMT
Goals of the seminar
- To demonstrate how causal mapping can aid analysis of evaluation data.
- To highlight the important distinction in impact evaluation between multi-case cognitive causal mapping and single case causal inference.
- To illustrate how far causal mapping and mechanism identification in impact evaluation can aid useful middle range theory building.
- To explain why it is not possible to produce useful middle range theory from empirical evidence alone.
Full details can be found on this link: Link to webpage
INVOLVING MEN AND BOYS IN FAMILY PLANNING (INVOLVE FP) IN LOW AND MIDDLE INCOME COUNTRIES
11 February 2022, 11.00 – 12.15 GMT
A little more than 25 years ago at the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo (1994) the Programme of Action on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Reproductive Rights (SRHR) emphasized the importance of male involvement in SRHR. Since then, there have been a number of interventions, programmes and studies that have included men as partners, addressed male involvement in SRH services including family planning, focused on men’s SRHR needs and worked with men to transform unequal gender power relations and norms by addressing masculinities or male norms. In this seminar, we seek to present a CEDIL funded systematic review alongside key partners working in the field, the World Health Organization and the International Center for research on Women (ICRW) Asia. Together we will present our understandings of the state of the evidence on engaging men and boys in family planning in LMICs and especially we present an analysis of the programme characteristics and components that can lead to male engagement and meeting the family planning needs of women and men in LMICS. Full details can be found on this link: Link to webpage
LANGUAGE OF INSTRUCTION TRANSITIONING IN LOW-AND- MIDDLE INCOME COUNTRIES: AN EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS
15 December 2021, 12.45-14.00 GMT
Children across low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are learning in bilingual or multilingual educational contexts. In this webinar we will discuss: 1) how can we apply midrange theory to understand the impacts of language of instruction transition choices on student learning outcomes; 2) what the impacts are of mother tongue education on learning outcomes in the mother tongue as well as in a national or later acquired language across contexts; and 3) what are the key ingredients of a successful language of instruction transition program across contexts? Full details can be found on this link: Link to webpage
EXPLORING THE TRANSFERABILITY OF MID-RANGE THEORIES THROUGH RECONTEXTUALISING AN EVIDENCE PORTAL
22 November 2021, 12.45-14.00
This webinar describes the process that was undertaken to recontextualise an evidence portal to the Chad Basin. The Teaching and Learning Toolkit is an evidence portal that summarises the global evidence for a number of pedagogical approaches and is used by 69% of school leaders in England. In particular, the panel will discuss the stakeholder engagement and mapping of differences in the evidence bases on pedagogical approaches between different country contexts. Link to webinar page: https://cedilprogramme.org/a-review-of-theories-of-change-for-youth-employment-using-a-mlt-approach/
A REVIEW OF THEORIES OF CHANGE FOR YOUTH EMPLOYMENT USING A MLT APPROACH
26 October 2021, 14.45-15.45 GMT
How can evidence from a study in one setting be transferred to another? How do we understand what are the ‘ active ingredients’ of a programme which make it work. These issues are addressed by using mid-level theory. That is, a theoretical approach which rises above the level of projects but below a level of abstraction which is too general to be testable or yield operational principles. MLT focuses on causal processes and other assumptions for the theory of change. This webinar will out the CEDIL approach to MLT illustrated with an example from youth employment Link to webinar page: https://cedilprogramme.org/a-review-of-theories-of-change-for-youth-employment-using-a-mlt-approach/
AMPLIFYING THE VOICES OF THE GLOBAL SOUTH
22 September 2022. 10.00 am BST
This webinar aims to deconstruct decolonisation and have a conversation about: a. What decolonisation actually means across disciplines, sectors and geographies; at the moment, incentives are organised to who you are, where you publish, and who with – – how do we change that? b. The incentives between research development and evidence use are not aligned: how do we promote this change in a way that is incremental (and therefore sustainable)? c. Capacity building: should we promote capacity sharing instead ? What are the things to share? Who needs to change and how? For full information click on this link: Link to webinar webpage
MEASUREMENT IN EVALUATION
2 June 2021, 15:30 – 16:45 BST
Measurement is crucial to evaluation. This webinar will discuss some conceptual issues linked to the construction and validation of appropriate measures that are useful for evaluation. In particular, the panel will discuss issues around what to measure, how to measure, how to use existing measures, and how to construct new measures with specific examples concerning the measurement of child development in the early years. The discussion will focus on new data and measures collected in Ghana and Colombia.
HOW TO EVALUATE IMPACT IN INTENSELY INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH
24 May 2021
Interdisciplinary research is an invaluable tool with the unique potential to address “wicked problems”. Engaging in this type of research and in evaluating its impact requires creative thinking and innovative solution finding. How do we evaluate impact in research that is deeply interdisciplinary in an accurately representative way? The UKRI GCFR Action Against Stunting Hub is conducting essential research on addressing the global challenge of child stunting to help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of Zero Hunger. The webinar will bring together views from the Action Against Stunting Hub to look at how they tackle the question of evaluating the long-term impacts of their research, and CEDIL and Campbell Collaboration expertise in mixed methods in impact evaluation. Further details by following this link: Link to webinar page
EVALUATING COMPLEX INTERVENTIONS IN INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
21 April 2021
Everyone knows that international development is complex and yet the evaluation methods used by researchers tend to ignore this complexity. Edoardo Masset will present the results of a CEDIL review of methods for evaluating complex interventions. The methods reviewed will include: adaptive trials, factorial designs, qualitative comparative analysis, synthetic controls, agent-based modelling, and system dynamics. All these methods have limitations but can be useful in some circumstances when applied to the evaluation of specific interventions. Estelle Raimondo is the co-editor of a recent book on Dealing with Complexity in Development Evaluation, and is an evaluation expert at the World Bank’s Independent Evaluation Group and she will introduce current approaches and experimentation on the evaluation of complex interventions. Peter Craig is the lead author of the influential MRC guidelines on the evaluation of complex interventions, which are currently being revised, and he will discuss the most recent developments. After their presentations the speakers will take questions from the audience. The event will be chaired by Rick Davies. Link to webinar
THE EVIDENCE-BASED PROJECT CYCLE
24 March 2021
Whilst more attention is being paid to ‘use of evidence’ there remains lack of clarity of what evidence to use and when. The event based policy cycle – which can be applied to policies, programmes, projects and practice – provides a framework for planning the use and production of evidence. The framework identifies the types and sources of evidence to be used in identifying and designing programmes, the role of formative research and evaluation, feedback loops through adaptive learning impact evaluation, the three stages of trials, and accumulating evidence to inform future policy choices. Examples are used from several sectors in several countries. Find full details at the events page: Webinar Page
BIG DATA FOR DEVELOPMENT: BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN MACHINE LEARNING AND HUMAN LEARNING
3 March 2021
Big data presents new opportunities for innovative research in international development. In this webinar, a panel of experts will draw on real-world applications in this area to reflect on key questions for the field, such as: Is the term “big data” even useful? When do the benefits of big data outweigh its blind spots? Will low-touch measurement become the new normal? More information and registration link can be found on the event page: Event Page
CROSSING THE SOCIAL BARRIER: PARTICIPATORY THEATRE AS A MEANS TO OVERCOME GENDER BASED VIOLENCE
3 February 2021
Questioning patriarchal gender relations and changing the social meaning of domestic violence to reduce its incidence: evidence from a cultural intervention in India, and its potential scale up. What works, where and for whom? Click through to find all information
INNOVATIONS IN RESPONSIVE EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS SERVICES IN THE TIME OF COVID
20 January 2021
This CEDIL webinar aims to share and discuss innovations both in the way in which evidence is synthesised to inform decisions, and in the way that evidence services are delivered. Click through to find all information
THE PRODUCTION AND USE OF EVIDENCE AND GAP MAPS
9 December 2020
CEDIL has funded a range of evidence syntheses including maps. This session presents two CEDIL-funded maps and an overview of the use of maps, including examples from CEDIL-funded work. Click through to find all information
ENGAGING STAKEHOLDERS WITH EVIDENCE AND UNCERTAINTY
25 November 2020
While policy teams may be uncertain about what to do and how their decisions will play out, research teams may be uncertain about what they know and how to learn more. Both may reach out for evidence and to other stakeholders for help – stakeholders who are potentially affected by policy decisions or the research that informs them. This webinar will discuss different ways for policy teams, research teams and other stakeholder to engage with evidence and each other depending on the task and circumstances; and consider some tools that might help them. Click through to find all information
EVALUATING RESEARCH UPTAKE AND IMPACT; JUGGLING EVIDENCE, POLITICS AND UNCERTAINTY
21 October 2020
In the context of Covid-19, juggling politics, evidence and uncertainty has become quite challenging. How can development projects know they are making a difference? How can politics be factored into research uptake rather than ignored? What are the implications of the necessary uncertainty and ambiguity of policy and practice change? Click through to find all information
EVALUATIONS IN HUMANITARIAN SETTINGS DURING COVID-19
16 September 2020,
Reflections on the generation and use of evidence in humanitarian, conflict and fragile state settings with insights on Covid-19 additional challenges. Click through to find all information