aes18 International Evaluation Conference

Amy Gullickson (University of Melbourne Centre for Program Evaluation)

Formal evaluation education has followed a pathway primarily dictated by the discipline in which it is taught (e.g., public administration, community psychology, education, health) and generally the focus has been on good practice in research methods (LaVelle, 2014). Informal training and professional development has been more focused on evaluation-specific skills, dictated by market demands. The AES Evaluators’ Professional Learning Competencies (AES Professional Learning Committee, 2013) cover both research and evaluation-specific ground and have been an important first step to understanding what is required to do the tasks of evaluation. However, competency sets tend to ignore the tasks inherent in doing the work (Brannick, Levine, & Morgeson, 2007).  To create effective educational processes, we need to analyse the tasks inherent in the work of evaluation, identify the skills, knowledge or other abilities required, and the type of learning necessary to develop them (e.g., basic, complex). Once that is complete we can then assess required the levels of performance on those skills and tasks (e.g., novice, expert). These steps are essential if we are to meet the needs of our diverse cadre of practicing evaluators and provide clear pathways for learning and professional recognition. In this session the presenter will report an initial task analysis on the logic of evaluation, the processes and results, and lessons learned to springboard a discussion on implications for educating people to conduct evaluation for both professional development and formal education.