Assessments
Living Data for Real-Time Insights & Real-World Impact
At Partnerships in Education and Resilience (PEAR), we provide research-backed assessment tools that go beyond static reports—they deliver living data that educators and program leaders can use right now to support every student. Our assessments measure youth resilience and STEM engagement, equipping schools and out-of-school-time programs with real-time, individual-level insights to understand each child’s strengths and challenges.
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With actionable data at both the student and program levels, educators can make data-informed decisions that lead to proactive support, continuous improvement, and stronger learning environments. Whether identifying students in need of extra support, tracking progress over time, or enhancing STEM programming, PEAR’s assessments turn data into meaningful action—ensuring every young person has the opportunity to thrive.
Resilience
The Holistic Student Assessment
The Holistic Student Assessment (HSA) is a data-driven tool to promote developmental resilience in young people in school and afterschool settings. The self-report tool provides teachers, program staff, and administrators with a “portrait” of the unique strengths and challenges of each young person. Data can be reported at individual, classroom, school, and district levels. The HSA can be administered to students at different times in the year.
STEM Outcomes and Quality
Common Instrument Suite - Student
The Common Instrument Suite (CIS) is a self-report survey that measures a variety of STEM-related attitudes, including STEM interest/engagement, STEM career knowledge, and STEM identity. This tool was specifically developed with informal/outside-of-school time (OST) STEM programs in mind, but it is flexible enough to use in school as well. The purpose of this survey is to better understand how informal STEM programming impacts students’ perceptions/attitudes towards STEM. This survey complements the Dimensions of Success (DoS) STEM program quality tool, as we have found that higher ratings of quality using DoS is associated with larger gains in student outcomes using CIS.
Dimensions of Success
Dimensions of Success (DoS) is a suite of tools and guides designed to help out-of-school-time (OST) programs (e.g., afterschool programs, summer camps, etc.) improve the quality of their STEM offerings. It was developed and studied with funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) by PEAR, along with partners at Educational Testing Services (ETS) and Project Liftoff. The DoS suite of tools allows researchers, practitioners, funders, and other stakeholders to track the quality of STEM learning opportunities and to pinpoint strengths and weaknesses.