Program & Product Evaluation Course

Guidelines for Final Evaluation Plan – Week 9 (worth 30 points)

In general, your evaluation plan should:

  • adhere to fundamental evaluation principles, as described in the course materials, especially the texts.
  • be viable given the purpose and scope of your evaluation project and the scope and timeline of this course.

This rubric will be used to provide feedback and to grade the assignment, it should therefore help you produce an evaluation plan that meets course expectations.

Evaluation Plan Feedback Rubric
Evaluation Plan Component / Points Possible / Suggestions to Improve this Component
Rationale / 4
  • Does the rationale present a clear and convincing argument for the evaluation? (Do the potential benefits of going forward with the evaluation outweigh any potential deficits?)

Purpose / 4
  • Does the evaluation’s purpose statement provide a succinct description of what is being evaluated and how the evaluation results will be used?

  • Does the purpose statement indicate the type of evaluation to be done (developmental, formative, summative)?

Guiding/Key Questions / 5
  • Does the list of key questions establish a clear scope for the evaluation (what questions will be answered and, by omission, what questions will not be answered)?

  • Are the key questions broad enough so as not to be confused for questionnaire or interview questions?

  • Can the key questions be organized by theme and/or prioritized by importance for greater clarity?

  • Are all key questions “need-to-know?” Have any “nice-to-know” questions been eliminated or targeted for subsequent evaluations?

Stakeholders / 3
  • Have all persons holding a vested interest in the evaluand been identified by name and position/title as stakeholders and have these stakeholders been categorized, minimally, as primary or secondary?

Sample/Sampling Strategy / 3
  • Is it clear how the sample for the evaluation will be obtained? (Has the sampling strategy been communicated clearly?)

  • Does the sample size seem reasonable in size and make-up given the evaluation’s purpose/key questions, the evaluation’s constraints (time, money, etc.), and the population of interest’s size and variability?

Data Collection Methods and Instrumentation / 5
  • Are the intended data collection methods specified clearly by key question?

  • Are the intended data collection instruments (questionnaires, interview protocols, observation/artifact checklists, etc.) described clearly?

  • Are actual instruments (whether pre-existing or under development by the evaluator) included in appendices?

  • Have permissions been obtained for use of any protected, pre-existing instrumentation?

  • Do the intended data collection methods and instrumentation appear reasonable and appropriate given the evaluation’s stated purpose and key questions? (Will the methods/instruments answer the key questions?)

  • Will the methods/instruments yield valid, reliable, and usable data?

Logistics and Timeline / 3
  • Are the major tasks necessary to complete the evaluation project identified?

  • Does each major task have the responsible person(s) and the target completion date associated with it?

  • Does the timeline appear reasonable given the nature of the evaluation project and the suggested due dates for course completion?

Budget / 2
  • Are all significant expenses necessary to complete the evaluation project identified?

  • Does each expense have a funding source(s) associated with it?

  • Does the budget appear reasonable and complete?

Other / 1
  • Are citations/references used for any non-original information included in the plan and are these citations/references in APA 5.0 format?

  • Are appendices used appropriately and correctly?

  • Is the plan demonstrating adherence to the guidelines and assessment criteria specified for Assignment #1?

Total Points Possible / 30 / Comments:

Program & Product Evaluation CoursePage 1 of 3

Final Evaluation Plan – Rubric rev. 1/2008