The Challenges of Small-Scale Evaluation in a Foreign Country: Reflections on Practice

Autor/in	Saunders, Lesley
Titel	The Challenges of Small-Scale Evaluation in a Foreign Country: Reflections on Practice
Quelle	In: Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 22 (2010) 3, S.199-213 (15 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1874-8597
DOI	10.1007/s11092-010-9101-3
Schlagwörter	Stellungnahme; Municipalities; Educational Needs; Evaluators; Inclusive Schools; Disabilities; Program Effectiveness; Foreign Countries; Educational Environment; War; Nongovernmental Organizations; Multicultural Education; Bilingual Education; Young Children; Special Needs Students; Mainstreaming; Elementary School Students; Minority Groups; Pilot Projects; Politics of Education; Evaluation Problems; Program Evaluation; Kosovo + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Magistrat; Educational need; Bildungsbedarf; Inclusive school; Integrative Schule; Handicap; Behinderung; Ausland; Lernumgebung; Pädagogische Umwelt; Schulumwelt; Krieg; Multikulturelle Erziehung; Bilingual teaching; Bilingualer Unterricht; Frühe Kindheit; Sonderpädagogischer Förderbedarf; Ethnische Minderheit; Pilot project; Modellversuch; Pilotprojekt; Educational policy; Bildungspolitik; Programme evaluation; Programmevaluation
Abstract	This paper is a reflection on practice. It begins by briefly describing an evaluation of an externally-funded education programme in Kosovo (a new country in south-east Europe). The programme was managed by Save the Children in Kosovo and aimed to develop and promote models of inclusive education through three strands of activity. The first of these provided a bi-lingual multicultural learning environment for children of 3-5 years; the second was designed to integrate children with special educational needs and disabilities into mainstream education; and the third was concerned to support the inclusion of Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian children in primary schooling. The three strands of the programme were piloted in selected schools in different municipalities throughout the country for between 1 year and 3 years. The client (Save the Children in Kosovo) commissioned an independent evaluation to assist with decision-making at a time of transition for the programme. The author (who was the evaluator) discusses how she attempted to address the methodological challenges often typical of this kind of work: a small budget, a compressed time-frame, a complex and volatile socio-political climate and, last but not least, a contractual requirement to produce authoritative recommendations for action. She goes on to reflect on how and why various unplanned events and encounters that occurred outwith the parameters of the evaluation made a significant contribution to its outcomes. The author invites comments from other evaluators about their experiences in similar situations. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10