We All are Europe - AESAEC

Module 6 – The Art of Successful Project Proposal Writing I: the Technical Part
Unit 6.3.
Unit in a nutshell
Achievements
The evaluation plan
Understanding the function and necessity of evaluation
Introduction of best practice instruments and methods
Discussion of key criteria for good project evaluation
Understanding levels, perspectives and stakeholders of evaluation
After this unit you will be able to:
understand the purposes of evaluation
distinguish between internal and external evaluation
distinguish between quantitative and qualitative indicators
develop an effective evaluation strategy for your project.
In God we trust. All others must bring data. (Robert Hayden)
Warming up:
Our life is determined by evaluation processes and instruments much more
than we think. Sometimes they are more standardised and official, e.g.
exams at schools, taking a driving test, or applying for a passport etc., and
sometimes they are based more on very personal factors and have unofficial
character, such as when we evaluate a person as being more or less loveable,
when we choose our holiday destination or meals in restaurants etc.
Can you think of some more examples of evaluation in daily life Is evaluation
necessary to give us a clear picture of the world – and is it able to do
so
6.3.1. Character and purposes of evaluation
Listen / Read / Research / Discuss
For most project coordinators the process of evaluating a European project begins as they construct
their application for funding and make their bid to the European Commission. However, for many
projects the real implementation of an evaluation strategy will begin with the first project meeting.
Measuring the impact of a project is not easy; it is much more straightforward to measure the outputs,
such as publications, courses, websites etc.
Work already carried out on the evaluation of projects indicates that the most productive form of
evaluation is one which involves all the project partners, begins with the project itself and is a result
of debate and agreement within the partnership. Above all, evaluation is a process that must
not be left to the final stages of the project! Nevertheless one must understand that successful project
evaluation requires a lot of experience, know-how, skills and, last but not least, hard work. As
a start to this topic please try to define and clarify the following key elements dealing with evaluation:
What kind of methods and instruments of
evaluation do you know
Do you have experiences with them Do you
know about their advantages and disadvantages
What kind of quantitative and qualitative
indicators in connection with project
evaluation can you think of
Internal and external evaluation – what
could these be and how do they differ from
each other
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