Broadcast, Digital Media and Games

Rockman et al Cooperative has been delivering high-quality media research and evaluations for more than 25 years and has a well-respected track record in the field. Our media portfolio includes research and evaluation projects for several award-winning public radio, television and multimedia series, as well as digital games, mobile apps, augmented reality, digital badging, transmedia initiatives and coding programs. Our team is experienced with using innovative technologies to help conduct media research, including website usability studies, virtual focus groups, and learning assessments in the field.

Our media research and evaluation services provide:

  • A tailored approach to meet the specific needs of each project
  • Continued revision and improvement of your media products or programs
  • A deeper understanding of how audiences use and respond to your media materials
  • Understanding of the impact that your media materials may have on audiences

Our staff are spread throughout the continental United States and experienced in conducting large-scale studies for federally-funded initiatives. We are also skilled in facilitating partnerships between schools, after-school and daycare centers, community groups and media production agencies.

Please explore selected examples of our media research and evaluation projects below, or learn more about our work focusing specifically on digital literacy and coding programs. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your project with you and to provide you with more information about our tailored services. Please Contact Us to schedule a free 30-minute Q&A session with a consultant.

Selected Projects Include

  • Photo courtesy of Twin Cities Public Television.

    Twin Cities PBS: Skillsville

    Twin Cities PBS is developing Skillsville, a media-based program that aims to support children’s career exposure, executive function skills, and self-regulation strategies. This large-scale effort was one of two US Department of Education Ready to Learn grants awarded in 2020. REA is leading the research and evaluation activities that include a needs assessment with caregivers of five-to-eight-year-old children and informal educators, formative user testing of digital and paper-based activities and television episodes, and implementation studies, case studies, and efficacy studies of an afterschool children’s program and family program.

  • Photo courtesy of KQED QUEST via CC licensing.

    KQED

    REA has a long history of partnering with KQED, the PBS affiliate in Northern California, on diverse research and evaluation projects involving teacher professional development, organizational development, environmental education, public science communication, and science journalism. Specific projects include evaluation of KQED Teach (an online professional development tool for teachers), a two-year organizational development study, and two NSF-funded projects applying social science research methods to investigate best practices for engaging millennial audiences in science content, and improving science media production and journalism practices.

    Report: QUEST Summative Evaluation Report
  • Photo courtesy of Lucélia Ribeiro via CC licensing.

    PBS Ready to Learn

    For nearly two decades, REA has conducted formative evaluations on behalf of PBS Kids and their partners as part of the US Department of Education “Ready to Learn” grant program. Through the years, our evaluation efforts have included youth and family playtesting for digital games at various stages during the design process, formative testing of stories for broadcast programming, and extended play studies that examine the impacts of longer-term product-usage, including gameplay and video programming.

  • Photograph courtesy of Jared Kelly via creative commons licensing.

    RadioLab

    Radiolab’s “What Curiosity Sounds Like: Discovering, Challenging, and Sharing Scientific Ideas” project, funded by the NSF Advancing Informal Science Learning (AISL) program, explored new ways to actively engage both lay and professional audiences and foster meaningful communication between scientists and the general public. As the external evaluator for the project, REA examined participants’ experiences and explored project outcomes through a series of surveys and interviews.

    Report: Radiolab. What Curiosity Sounds Like
  • Photo courtesy of joaquin uy via CC licensing.

    YR Media

    Since 2006, REA has served as the independent evaluator on YR Media’s education initiatives to engage under-represented youth in informal STEM learning through interest-driven inquiry that combines journalism, design, data, and code. Building on YR Media and MIT App Inventor’s longstanding collaboration to democratize youth media production, the Innovative Approaches to Informal Education in Artificial Intelligence project, funded by NSF-AISL, aims to improve public understanding of artificial intelligence (AI) among young creators and their audiences through youth-led journalism about AI, digital media powered by AI, and open educational resources about how AI works and its role in society. REA conducted the project’s independent evaluation, which included project team interviews, participant observations, focus groups with youth producers, online youth surveys, and audience testing to capture outcomes and lessons learned about effectively engaging youth in learning about AI.

    Report: Youth Radio Innovation Lab Final Evaluation Report