Standard 7: Evaluation

Evaluation measures program outcomes and determines whether the expected results have been achieved. External or independent evaluators usually conduct evaluations in the middle or at the end of a program or project cycle. Evaluations can also help determine whether activities were relevant to the project’s stated priorities, policies, and legal instruments, and if the programs were implemented efficiently. Evaluation is separate from monitoring, but the two processes are related and both are key to achieving the goals and objectives of education programs. Monitoring results should guide evaluation.

Those who evaluate education response activities and EiE programs should use approaches and methods that promptly produce credible evidence of program outcomes and identify impacts that can guide future action. “Impact” refers to the measurable change a program has made in people’s lives. In a crisis, a rigorous evaluation may not be possible or practical. A quicker and simpler approach, such as remote data collection, may be needed to determine how a program is impacting the lives of affected people. Both qualitative and quantitative data are important, and they should be disaggregated at a minimum by sex, age, and disability status. Where feasible, it also is important to look at trends across different groups of learners. Quantitative data is about things that can be counted, such as enrollment, attendance, and dropout rates, and achievement measures. Qualitative data is about things that cannot be measured numerically. It can provide insights into the lived experiences of learners and teachers, information on what happens in schools or other learning environments, and why learners enroll, attend school, or drop out. Stakeholders can collect qualitative data from several sources, including focus group discussions, interviews, and classroom observations.

Any evaluation budget should include capacity sharing workshops with stakeholders, such as education authorities, community representatives, and learners. The workshops should include all learners, including girls and young women and those with disabilities. The workshops should introduce and explain the concept of evaluation. They also are a place to develop evaluation plans in a participatory and transparent way, and where participants can review and interpret findings together. Learners and teachers and other education personnel should participate in the evaluation process to make data collection more accurate. This will also help make the evaluation recommendations more realistic. For example, teachers and other education personnel can share their views on the practical issues that should be considered when implementing recommended actions.

It is important to share key findings in evaluation reports, particularly recommendations and lessons learned, in a way that is understandable and accessible to all stakeholders, including community members and persons with disabilities. These findings should shape future work. The stakeholders in charge of managing data must handle sensitive data ethically and responsibly to avoid contributing to the emergency or conflict, or putting at risk any participants who contributed sensitive information. When sharing information, they should adhere to national or regional data protection policies and ISPs.