Evaluation

In Writing in Education No. 46 we published the full chapter on Evaluation from Our thoughts are bees, the book by Mandy Coe and Jean Sprackland. Here is Mandy Coes's introduction to the chapter, which members can also read in full in the NAWE Magazine section.

Good evaluation is the dinner-date we dream of: it’s interested in what we do, our aims, hopes and successes. So what puts us off? The very word ‘evaluation’ makes many of us yawn and shift in our chairs, picturing a flip-chart covered in acronyms like SARNIES and STUMPS. This is where red and blue marker pens are needed.

There isn’t space here to describe every method of evaluation, but we are aware that people reading this might be first-time or reluctant evaluators, and we want to argue that proper evaluation can be a positive experience rather than an obligatory chore. A human-friendly, well-designed evaluation form should make you close your eyes and really remember. It will nudge you to recall how well you did and what you might do next time to make it even better.

Read the full article: Evaluating Writers in Schools Work.