Evaluating transformation
I’m currently ensconced in report writing for an evaluation project. That is not an uncommon situation to be in, as I work as a program evaluator and consultant. But this project is different; it is more challenging than many, as it poses some big theoretical questions. I am evaluating Small Town Transformations; an initiative of […]
Read moreLessons from the regions
Having recently returned from a 10 day road trip around regional Victoria I am reflecting on the lessons that can be learned when consulting with communities in small towns. This is because the turn-out to my scheduled consultation meetings was lower than I had hoped. My road trip was a mid-point reading on the mood […]
Read moreSharjah – a successful cultural precinct
I’ve just returned from Sharjah, UAE. My first impression of Sharjah was that of a sprawling congested metropolis that felt like a satellite city of Dubai. But then I found the heritage and arts precinct and realised that this city had an identity of its own. Sharjah’s cultural precinct comprises a group of 16 museums […]
Read moreEvaluation on a shoestring
If you’ve ever wished you had more resources to conduct an evaluation, you’re not alone. But if you’ve ever felt you shouldn’t proceeded with commissioning an evaluation because of constraints on resources, think again. Renowned American evaluator Michael Bamberger has written extensively about how to conduct evaluations with limited resources. He calls it a Shoestring […]
Read moreMaking an impact
You’ve rolled out a government or community program with specific objectives in mind and ask yourself: “What was the impact of this initiative on the community? How can an evaluation answer this question?” Impact Evaluation goes beyond describing or measuring outputs of a program or initiative. An Impact Evaluation is unique in two ways: 1. […]
Read moreEvaluation in the regional arts sector – current thinking
In the last decade or so, regional arts programs have been designed to be powerful tools with which to engage communities in various levels of change. They have been delivered to address regional renewal, health outcomes, quality of life, sense of place, transformation, social development and marginalisation. Yet, the literature reveals deficiencies in the quality […]
Read moreTo measure or not to measure
We often feel we need to assign value to something, to be sure we know if it has merit or worth. The field of evaluation is embedded in processes of measurement, be that qualitative or quantitative, or a combination of both methods. Social research, too, is similarly participating in the debate about what can––or should––be […]
Read moreCommunity Panels: consistent consultation in small regional towns
Consulting with communities over the long-term in small regional towns in Australia presents similar challenges to consultation in cities. How do you target the right people for consultation? How do you keep people engaged for long-term projects? It is a myth that small towns folk have more time on their hands than their busy city […]
Read moreCause and effect. Is qualitative evidence legitimate?
The exploration of causal pathways is compelling in evaluation and sometimes central. Investigating cause and effect and can be the only way of providing evidence that a program or initiative can be directly attributable to a particular outcome. To understand causal pathways is useful in telling a story of a program and is essential in […]
Read moreTheory-based evaluation – addressing an evaluation deficit
Evaluations conducted in the field of arts and cultural initiatives in Australia are often critiqued for their methodologically weakness. Concerns amongst peers and academics have included their reliance on small sample sizes, anecdotal evidence, limited hypothesis testing and little attention to the examination of internal program mechanisms with the aim of looking for causal factors […]
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