Consortium Member Involved:
Joan Feather
Prairie Region Health Promotion Research Centre, University of Saskatchewan
Abstract
This 18 page document (English) is a framework, intended to be used as a resource for groups to develop their own community development evaluation, for community groups who wish to do a self-evaluation and, for a community organizer introducing it to a community group.
This document discusses community development as both a process and a product. It is important to have a clear understanding of what we are trying to do in community development, why we are trying to do it, and how we think we are doing. Community development requires accountability for our actions. Evaluation is the means by which this happens.
The act of carrying out an evaluation is an exercise in education and personal learning for those involved. It is an opportunity to build awareness about the group and its work in the community at-large. It signals to funders and key institutional interests, that the group is taking responsibility for its actions and it is an opportunity to educate them about the values and goals of the group.
The focus of this document, is with the effectiveness of community development with a community group and the various partners and stakeholders with which it may be involved.
It is intended for community groups and organizers to develop their own self evaluation; can also be used internally by a community group for self-evaluation and may call upon external resource persons, such as a community worker, to assist with it. It can also be conducted in partnership between a community group and an external organization such as a funder, a sponsoring body, or an academic institution.
This document was first introduced by Michael Claque at the August, 1998 summer school of the Prairie Region Health Promotion Research Centre, University of Saskatchewan and was revised following receiving the contributions from the participants of that summer school. It includes principles and guidelines for designing, developing and implementing community development evaluation which are based on the principles of community development. It also provides suggested steps for getting started on evaluation, and a framework for planning and conducting evaluation in community development. This latter section is divided into four parts:
Distribution is limited to the Prairie Region Health Promotion Research Centre, University of Saskatchewan and is not yet publicly available. This document will be co-published by the Centre and Claque Consultants, and will be available for sale or through the Centre's website. The intended audiences are health promotion or community development practitioners and community groups.