Program Evaluation
External Evaluators (formerly RFP 464)
Milwaukee Public Schools may request services from external partners for program evaluations or research projects. If you are interested in being placed on a list of external partners to perform these functions, please complete this brief survey. You will be asked to provide background information of your organization, qualifications and training of staff, experience, and references.
Program Evaluation Summary
Stakeholders often want to know whether programs they are funding or utilizing are producing the intended effect. Program evaluation is the systematic assessment of the operations and/or the outcomes of a program or policy, compared to a set of explicit or implicit standards, with a purpose of contributing to the improvement of the program or policy, and/or informing decisions about the program or policy. (Weiss, 1998)
The three main types of program evaluation are planning, formative, and summative.
- Planning Evaluation: When the kitchen staff determines what type of meals, ingredients, etc. to make /use…
- Formative Evaluation: When the cook tastes the soup…. (Stake)
- Summative Evaluation: When the customer tastes the soup…. (Stake)
The table below outlines the key differences between them.
| Planning | Formative | Summative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purpose | To identify and specify the need to be addressed and intended change, the target population to serve, the program processes and elements to implement to reach intended results | To determine quality, value, or fidelity or program components, processes, activities | To determine merit, worth, or value of program in relation to specified and expected results |
| Focus | Context | Process | Impact |
| Use | To determine need and practices prior to implementation of programming | To improve program components, processes, activities | To make decisions about programming effectiveness and often about program future |
| Audience | Policy makers, program developers, consumers | Program Administrators and personnel | Program funding sources, consumers |
| Major Characteristics | Foundation for program development and implementation | Feedback for improvements in how to implement the program | Information for decisions about continuation or adoption |
| Design Constraints |
What does the research show? What do the community members think? What is the intended change? What works? |
What is the program design? What information is needed? When is the information needed? |
What are the expected results? What evidence is needed? How appropriate or feasible are the standards? |
| Purpose of Data Collection | Program Design and Development | Diagnostic | Judgmental |
| Frequency of Data Collection | Once or intermittently | Frequent and on-going | Less Frequent or Time-Specific |
| Sample Size | Large | Often small | Large |
| Research Questions Asked |
What is the level of need? What are the intended results? Who should be served? What are the best practices that should be implemented to reach intended outcomes? What is the intended change? What works? |
What is working? What needs to be improved? How can it be improved? |
What results occurred? With whom? Under what conditions? At what cost? |
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