1 The project is financed from the European Union funds within the framework of Erasmus+, Key Action 2: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices.

Evaluation is a systematic investigation of the worth or significance of an object. It is the process of gathering data and interpreting them in order to make some decisions. 2

Effective monitoring and evaluation helps ensure you get the most out of your project. By keeping a close eye on how the project is progressing, you will also be able to adapt your objectives and activities to new or changing needs. 3

Project evaluation assesses activities that are designed to perform a specified task in a specific period of time. (i.e. a three-day workshop on volunteerism, a one-year online language course). 4

Project evaluation helps you understand the progress, success, and effectiveness of a project. It provides you with a comprehensive description of a project. 5

The criteria of evaluation Relevance Effectiveness Efficiency Utility 6

The aim of evaluation Process evaluation is used to monitor activities to make sure a project is being implemented and completed as designed and on time. 7

Outcome evaluation assesses the extent to which a project has achieved its intended effects and other effects which it could have had on the project’s participants or the environment. 8

It focuses on immediate, intermediate or ultimate outcomes resulting from the completion of the project. The results of this evaluation should identify both the desirable and undesirable impacts of the project. 9

The starting moment of evaluation The starting moment of evaluation Ex-ante evaluation is conducted before the activity is started. It verifies the project assumptions. Mid- term evaluation is conducted in the middle of the realisation of a given project. On going evaluation is conducted during the realisation of the project. It is supposed to provide the support for managing the project. Ex-post evaluation is done after the end of the project. It focuses on assessing the results and long-lasting effects. 10

The organisation of evaluation Internal evaluation which is done by people from the institution which is responsible for implementing the analized activity. 11

The stages of the evaluation process: Planning Projecting Realisation Reporting Using the evaluation results 12

When we plan the evaluation, we should consider: The aims The scope of the evaluation The time of the evaluation The addressees/ stakeholders The accessible data Institutional matters 13

Projecting This process consists of: Specification of the object of evaluation A list of detailed questions Codifying the questions in a form of tasks, expectations and procedures of conducting a good survey. 14

The realisation of the evaluation Evaluation survey can be divided into four stages: Structuring Gathering data Analysis Assessment Realisation of the evaluation is finished with formulating conclusions and recommenda- tions. 15

Reporting The elements of the report: The object of evaluation Survey procedure Survey results Conclusions Recommendations 16

The use of evaluation results The use of evaluation results Who is the addressee of our project report? Why does he want this project report? Producing a report is one way to communicate the results with your stakeholders such as project funders, decision makers, project managers, or those who act or modify their actions based on the evaluation results. 17

The report should include those aspects of the project and its evaluation that are, based on your knowledge, important to the readers. The report should also encourage them to use the information and recommendations. 18

Using the Media Using the media is another way to communicate all or part of the results to external stakeholders. By getting your results published, you can increase the visibility of your organization and contribute positively to the way its work is perceived by the public. Target the audience who may be most interested in and find potential benefits from the results. 19

The types of data The gathered information can be divided into: primary data and secondary data quantitative data and qualitative data 20

Primary data are gained directly from the source of origin and are gathered for the use of the evaluation. Secondary data have already been gathered and transformed. These are all the data available at the starting moment of the research. 21

Quantitative data describe a situation by using numbers. These data could be the actual numbers or the numbers that represent the relationships among concepts. We may collect this type of data when we use a survey questionnaire, an evaluation form, a test (i.e. knowledge test). 22

Quantitative indicators response rate to the course etc. number of visits to the project website number of inquiries participants’ level of satisfaction or engagement frequency of communications number of resources used percentages related to the use of various services knowledge test scores or ranks 23

Qualitative data take the form of words, texts, ideas and stories that explain a situation.  We typically collect this data when project participants describe a situation in their own words, whether you use formal or informal conversations, interviews or focus groups. 24

Qualitative indicators types of responses to an advertisement, announcement types of inquiries feedback on the effectiveness of services, benefits of a program, comprehensiveness of materials etc. observable changes in attitudes, behaviors, skills, knowledge types of communications types of problems, complaints about services, programs etc. types of resources used participants’ perceptions of the project programs, services etc. 25

Outputs as indicators number of workshops held number of people trained number of organizations engaged website training tool kit or workshop tool kit 26

The methods of gathering data Analysing documents/records Individual interviews Questionnaires Group interviews Observations 27

Examples of evaluation questions Evaluation questions related to process: Are the activities being performed as planned? Is the project reaching the intended target population? How satisfied are the participants with their involvement in this project? How should the planned activities be modified to work better? What lessons can we learn from the way in which the project is unfolding? 28

Evaluation questions related to outputs: Is the project reaching the intended number of participants? Is the project providing the planned services? Are the activities leading to the expected products? Are there any unexpected products? 29

Questions related to outcomes/impacts: Did the participants experience any changes in their skills, knowledge, attitudes or behaviours? What changes were expected? What are the effects of the project on my organization? Did the project meet the needs that led to this project? Are there any other related needs that have arisen that the project did not address? Did we experience any changes as a result of the project? What could be the long-term impacts of this work? 30

Evaluation questions related to alternatives and lessons learned: What could have been done differently to complete the project more effectively? What key changes should be made to the project to enhance achievement of objectives? What are the lessons learned for the future? What outcomes should be considered if an organization wants to repeat this or conduct a similar project? 31

Project evaluation and project management are interrelated. Evaluation can help you complete a project successfully, provide evidence of successes or failures, suggest ways for improvements and inform decisions about the future of current and planned projects. 32

By evaluating a project, you monitor the process to ensure that appropriate procedures are in place for completing the project on time and you identify and measure the outcomes to ensure the effectiveness and achievements of the project. All these efforts make your organization capable of reporting, answering all inquiries and being accountable for its plans. 33

Evaluation Budgets Evaluation Budgets We should plan our budget in a way that makes our evaluation realistic, manageable, efficient and productive. In some cases, projects have a fixed budget and evaluators need to adjust their activities to that budget. In other cases, evaluators need to develop a budget. 34

In the project Include as many perspectives as possible and appropriate. For example a school partnership should be evaluated by pupils as well as staff. You should evaluate the partnership itself, as well as the project work undertaken. 35

During the project Each partner organization should form a steering committee to develop a monitoring plan and write a monitoring report. 36

MONITORING PLAN A monitoring plan will be developed by the committees in each partner institutions. The monitoring plan will include the phases of the activities and the progress of the whole project, evaluation of the final results, transnational meetings and dissemination activities and the feedback from the local community. 37

Tools for monitoring and evaluation will include check lists, initial tests and final tests, questionnaires, surveys, statistical analysis and lesson observations. The development of the products will be monitored by the coordinating partner. 38

The evaluation of the activities will be done 2 times during the project lifecycle: the interim versions and the final versions will be assessed by the staff of the participating partners. The feedback of the evaluation will be discussed by all the partners of the project. 39

Evaluation of quality of results: Peer review of results and final review by Steering Committee will provide direction and guidance to the project and even a supreme board. 40

Concerning qualitative indicators, some experts from each project partners will provide regular evaluations in different moments of the project. 41

Questionnaires will be prepared by all partners and will be shared on the project web site. After each activity, every participant will fill an evaluation questionnaire to analyze the project progress. 42

43 The project is financed from the European Union funds within the framework of Erasmus+, Key Action 2: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices.