The GSL family literacy program is dependent upon funding to continue. Because of this, accountability is paramount. GSL has various assessment tools that are used at different stages of the program. These assessments are used to determine how the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of the parents and children have changed/strengthened so that the parents and children are closer to achieving their goals. Since GSL is a program that is often the first time a parent has entered a learning program for either themselves or their child, assessment is done anonymously and all information is kept confidential. Assessment is done individually, however, the results are reported to the funder and the host sites as an aggregate so that no parent can be identified from the summary.
Both formative and summative evaluations have been developed for GSL. Formative evaluations enable agencies to make judgements about the work while it is being undertaken. They allow one to evaluate whether or not the program is meeting its intended purpose and what might need to change to further improve the program. The primary focus of a formative evaluation is for further improvements in the program.
A summative evaluation is used for decision-making. It enables agencies to demonstrate that they have fulfilled the objectives of the project. It is completed at the end of a program session.
Many parts of the program are evaluated in each session and a final report is distributed to the caseworkers, sites, and executive directors of the Region (the funder) and Project READ Literacy Network. Evaluation is done with the parents and children by the facilitator and child care workers. The host site does an evaluation of how things went in their site. Parents evaluate how and if they are benefiting from the program at mid-point and at the end of the program. As well, the caseworkers do an evaluation on how well they felt their client benefited from the program. In this way, all aspects of the program are evaluated.