Rebecca M. Teasdale
Assistant Professor
Educational Psychology
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Contact
Building & Room:
1238 ETMSW MC 147
Address:
1040 W. Harrison St.
Office Phone:
Email:
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About
Rebecca Teasdale's research focuses on the criteria that guide evaluations of educational, social, and health programs. Her scholarship explicates definitions of quality and supports evaluators in systematically identifying, negotiating, and applying quality criteria. Through her research, she has developed and applied two frameworks to investigate and strengthen evaluation practice: (1) a model that identifies broad criteria domains and describes the sources from which criteria are drawn, and (2) a typology that categorizes types of sources and characterizes how criteria are applied.
Dr. Teasdale's research has yielded guidance for explicitly and systematically addressing criteria in evaluation planning and design, reporting, and evaluator education. Her research has also clarified how equity and social justice might be defined and investigated when evaluating programs. This supports evaluators in specifying and examining multiple equity-focused definitions of program quality such as equity of access, equitable and just outcomes, and equitable resource allocation. In addition, her scholarship helps evaluators systematically center the values of program participants and community members when specifying criteria and considering how criteria can be individualized to address variations in program participants’ needs and values.
Courses Taught
EPSY 564 Evaluation I: Principles and Methods
EPSY 565 Evaluation II: Theory and Practice
EPSY 540 Applied Qualitative Research Methods
EPSY 542 Advanced Qualitative Data Analysis
Affiliate Appointment
Community and Applied Developmental Psychology, Psychology Department, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Selected Grants
Institute for Museum and Library Services (federal agency), National Leadership Grant for Libraries, National Forum to Connect and Advance Library Makerspaces, 2024-2026, Co-PI
Institute for Museum and Library Services (federal agency), National Leadership Grant for Libraries, Individualized, Equity-Focused Evaluation of Public Library Makerspaces, 2023-2025, PI
UIC Office for the Vice Chancellor for Research, Award for Creative Activity, Making in Chicago: Toward a Framework for Evaluating Public Library Makerspaces, 2022-2023, PI
UIC Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy, Faculty Fellowship, Are We Moving the Needle? Evaluation of Policies and Programs to Advance Racial Equity, 2021-2022, PI
Selected Publications
Teasdale, R. M., Avent, C., Moore, C., Serrano Abreu, M. B. & Yan, X. (2024). “It has to be the common thread”: Weaving attention to racial equity and justice across evaluative criteria and lines of inquiry. American Journal of Evaluation. Advanced online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/10982140241260069
Teasdale, R. M., McNeilly, J.R., Ramírez Garzón, M. I., Novak, J., & Greene, J.C. (2023). “A lot of it really does come down to values”: An empirical study of the values advanced by seasoned evaluators. American Journal of Evaluation. Advanced online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/10982140231153805
Teasdale, R. M., Strasser, M., Moore, C, & Graham, K. E. (2023). Evaluative criteria in practice: Findings from an analysis of evaluations published in Evaluation and Program Planning. Evaluation and Program Planning 97. 102226. doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2023.102226
Teasdale, R. M., Pitts, R. T., Gates, E. F., & Shim, C. (2023). Teaching specification of evaluative criteria: A guide for evaluation education. New Directions for Evaluation 2023 (117), 31-37. https://doi.org/10.1002/ev.20546
Teasdale, R. M. (2022). How do you define success? Evaluative criteria for informal STEM education. Visitor Studies. Advanced online publication. doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2022.2056397
Teasdale, R. M. (2022). Representing the values of program participants: Endogenous evaluative criteria. Evaluation and Program Planning 94, 102123. doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2022.102123
Teasdale, R. M. (2021). Evaluative criteria: An integrated model of domains and sources. American Journal of Evaluation 42(3), 354-376. doi.org/10.1177/1098214020955226
Teasdale, R. M. (2021). “It’s a lab full of art machinery”: Implications of women’s experiences, values, and visions of success for makerspace evaluation. Information and Learning Sciences 12(3/4), 223-245. http://doi.org/10.1108/ILS-08-2020-0177
Teasdale, R. M. (2020). Defining success for a public library makerspace: Implications of participant-defined, individualized evaluative criteria. Library and Information Science Research 42(4), 101053. doi.org/10.1016/j.lisr.2020.101053
Professional Leadership
Chair, Research on Evaluation Topical Interest Group, American Evaluation Association, 2024-present
Program Co-Chair, Research on Evaluation Topical Interest Group, American Evaluation Association, 2022-2023
Treasurer, Chicagoland Evaluation Association, 2019-2022
Notable Honors
2023-2024, Teaching Recognition Program Award, UIC Office of the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
Education
PhD, Educational Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Certificate, Program Evaluation, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities
MA, Library and Information Science, University of Iowa
BA, Biology, University of Northern Iowa
Professional Memberships
American Evaluation Association
American Educational Research Association
American Library Association
Chicagoland Evaluation Association
Research Currently in Progress
Dr. Teasdale is currently developing a comprehensive evaluation framework for library public makerspaces. Conducted in partnership with six public libraries in three states, this research will guide makerspace evaluators nationwide in specifying and applying individualized, participant-derived criteria and examining equity of makerspace access, experiences, and outcomes. This work has been supported by a National Leadership Grant for Libraries from the federal Institute for Museum and Library Services and an Award for Creative Activity from the UIC Office for the Vice Chancellor for Research.