Stage 8: Evaluation, Assessment and Follow-up Projects
You've made it to the final stage! Wave your hands in the air as if you just don't care. Photo by Svenja Klemp
Well, that was fun, wasn’t it? You got tired, had some sleepless nights, maybe got soaked in the rain, maybe got cold in the middle of the summer. You met great people, you tested your own competences, problem-solving skills. If your activity was during the festival itself, maybe you managed to catch a concert. Or two :) Now it is over. Mission accomplished. You did it.
No.
The activity may be over, but a project is never complete without proper evaluation and assessment. Your next project starts with the evaluation of this one. You need to see how much you achieved, whether you met the aims and objectives you set up in the beginning. You need to see if all that time, energy and money spent were worth it. You need to know if you would do it again, and if yes, what you would do different. It is a cycle. And as in every cycle, there is no beginning or end.
If you only start thinking about an evaluation and assessment strategy at the end of the project, you are too late. Evaluation should be an integral part of your entire plan and design. You need to conduct interim evaluation so that you can identify if something is not right and intervene before it is over.
Do not leave this part until the end; keep coming back to it. This is where you have questions that will help you identify what worked and what needs to be improved. That will prepare you for the next project. And the next one after that…
No.
The activity may be over, but a project is never complete without proper evaluation and assessment. Your next project starts with the evaluation of this one. You need to see how much you achieved, whether you met the aims and objectives you set up in the beginning. You need to see if all that time, energy and money spent were worth it. You need to know if you would do it again, and if yes, what you would do different. It is a cycle. And as in every cycle, there is no beginning or end.
If you only start thinking about an evaluation and assessment strategy at the end of the project, you are too late. Evaluation should be an integral part of your entire plan and design. You need to conduct interim evaluation so that you can identify if something is not right and intervene before it is over.
Do not leave this part until the end; keep coming back to it. This is where you have questions that will help you identify what worked and what needs to be improved. That will prepare you for the next project. And the next one after that…
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