1. Evaluation
What, How and Why Bother?

2. What?
Evaluation is a daily human activity, an essential step in the process of integrating learning and moving on to new discoveries. Evaluation supports the desire to understand more deeply, see the truth more clearly and act more effectively (Gerry Moriarty author of ‘Sharing Practice’, a guide to self-evaluation in the context of social inclusion, Arts Council England 2002).

3. Evaluation: a process. an unbiased objective judgement
about the value and quality of a project
based on the analysis of collected qualitative and quantitative data.
should take place at various stages in the project development.
uses Information gathered from what people say and feel
and what is observed or deduced 

4. Evaluation is central to decisions about
Audiences
Objectives
Theme
Interpretation methods
Activities
Orientation
Displays

5. Why evaluate?
To find out if your project is meeting its aims and objectives
To make ongoing improvements from the very beginning
To tell others and share lessons learned
To provide evidence of what participants have learned
To involve everyone and create a sense of ownership
To develop relationships with visitors and get to know visitors
To develop ideas and plan future projects
To provide financial, social and/or environmental evidence of the benefits of your project

6. If you don’t evaluate: Waste time Waste money
Produce something that you can’t change
Lose interest from your target audience
Lose a good opportunity to learn something useful
Lose an opportunity to tell people about the good work you are doing
Lose funding

7. Before the project – formative and front-end
Stages of Evaluation
Before the project – formative and front-end
During the project – formative
After the project - summative

8. Objectives and Outcomes
Objectives: stages in achieving your aim; project-related
Outcomes: what you want participants/visitors to achieve; people-related

9. are all the resources you put into the project to enable you to deliver your
Inputs may include time, money and premises.
Inputs / resources
are the number of products and services you deliver as part of your work and numbers of people involved etc
Outputs
result of your work. They can be wanted or unwanted, expected or unexpected.
Are the changes, benefits, learning or other effects that happen as a
Outcomes
Relate to the longer term effect after a range of outcomes have been achieved
Impacts

10. Qualitative:
uses Information gathered from what people say and feel and think and do
and what is observed or deduced
Quantitative:
What can be counted or measured
Statistical information

11. Good-quality services and development
The museum must do the following:
3.1.1 understand who its users and non-users are
3.1.2 evaluate and analyse information to assess users’ needs
3.1.3 devise plans to broaden its range of users
3.1.4 have a culture of customer care with arrangements in place to make sure all users are
treated with courtesy and care
3.1.5 take account of users’ needs, guided by a policy statement setting out a commitment
to give everyone access to collections and associated information
3.1.6 respond to tourism and local priorities where appropriate

12. User-focused experience
The museum must:
3.2.1 have adequate and accessible facilities to meet the needs of the expected number and
range of users or provide information about nearby facilities
3.2.2 have appropriate signs and directions inside and outside the building
3.2.3 communicate effectively with users and potential users through a range of accessible
marketing and promotional activities

13. Effective learning experiences
The museum must:
3.3.1 exhibit the collections using a variety of interpretative methods
3.3.2 provide access to the collections and associated information for research purposes and
other forms of engagement
3.3.3 provide effective and stimulating learning and discovery experiences focused on the
collections

14. Analyse by asking questions such as:
To what extent were the project aim and objectives achieved? How do you know? What evidence do you have?
What impact did the project have on the participants? How do you know? What evidence do you have?
Were there any unexpected outcomes? (you need to identify these and why they may have occurred)
What you would do differently next time?