GDEV 6075

Program Evaluation for Community-Based Organizations

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2023-2024.

This course serves as an introduction to the principles and practice of collaborative program evaluation for community-based organizations. This is an applied research methods course in which students will learn how to develop frameworks and tools that help small and mid-sized organizations answer the question: Is our program working? and/or how can our program be improved? This course is part conceptual and part applied, teaching students critical thinking for evaluation and practical skills in M&E planning and evaluation design. During the semester students will work with a local community development organization in a consultancy project to design and present an evaluation plan for use in a real practice setting. ALL students will produce a rigorous non-experimental evaluation design for a local practice-partner organization or 'client.'

When Offered Spring.

Prerequisites/Corequisites Prerequisite: GDEV 2130/GDEV 5130 or permission of instructor.

Comments Additional info about pre-reqs: This is an applied research methods course. As such, Research Methods is a pre-requisite. Graduate students should have previously taken (at the undergraduate or graduate level) a research methods course (qual or quant), that covers major topics in design, methods, and sampling. Students with questions about their preparation for the course should reach out to the instructor.

• Describe different epistemological approaches to evaluation practice, and the practical applications of these approaches for organizational problem-solving.
• Distinguish between evaluation types, and identify the practical and methodological difference between experimental versus nonexperimental approaches to evaluation and when each are appropriate.
• Assess the strengths, limitations and rigor, of diverse non-experimental evaluation designs.
• Design a rigorous non-experimental evaluation and associated tools including: surveys, interview guides, sampling strategies, results frameworks, and theories of change.
• Develop professional communication and relationship management skills and tools for managing professional relationships.
• Demonstrate advanced translational communication skills.
• Apply evaluative thinking skills to solve complex organizational problems.

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