The Advantages of Logic Models

According to Julie Coffman, who wrote Learning From Logic Models: An Example of a Family/School Partnership Program in 1999, “the advantages of graphically displaying a program’s inputs, activities, and outputs are (at least) threefold:

• There is power in visual representation. Visual displays or graphics are proven and effective learning instruments.
   
• A logic model ensures that a program’s process is not overlooked in an evaluation. The model makes the evaluator accountable for looking at both program process and outcomes.
   
• A logic model can enhance the process of learning through evaluation. As data are collected, the logic model can be used to put the data in perspective, examine the theory that underlies the program, and make program midcourse corrections if needed.”

Logic models provide a structural framework to help you identify the critical questions for your evaluation. With a completed logic model, you know where to begin and everyone involved has a shared understanding of what they are evaluating.

• What are Logic Models?
• The Advantages of Logic Models
• Considerations Before Getting Started
• Logic Model Types and Samples
• Building a Logic Model

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Source: Coffman, J. (1999). Learning from logic models: An example of a family/school partnership program. Cambridge, MA: President and Fellows of Harvard College.
http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/pubs/onlinepubs/rrb/learning.html

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