Chapter 8 focuses on the evaluation process in curriculum design, highlighting its importance in assessing course effectiveness and identifying areas for improvement. It outlines the necessary steps for conducting evaluations, including planning, data collection, and stakeholder involvement, while differentiating between formative and summative evaluations. The document also emphasizes the need for ethical considerations in presenting evaluation results and encourages the involvement of curriculum designers and teachers in the evaluation process for professional development.

1. Chapter 8:
Evaluation
 Lecturer: MR. VATH VARY
 Phone: 017 471 117
 Email: varyvath@gmail.com

2. A model of the
parts of the
curriculum design
process.
The aim of this part of the curriculum design process is to
decide how to check if the course is successful and where it
needs to be improved.
MR. VATH VARY

3. Introduc
tion
Evaluation
looks at all aspects of curriculum design
to see if the course is the best possible
(this is why the outer circle of the model
includes all the parts of the curriculum design
process).
Carrying out an evaluation is like
carrying out research.
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VARY
Evaluation
Planning the
course
Implementing
the course
Result of the
course

4. Evaluation
has to
answer as
follows:
Is the teaching on the
course of a suitably high
standard?
Is the course preparing the
learners properly for their
use of English at the end of
the course (e.g. to pass the TOEFL
test, to study in an English-medium
university, to work as a tour guide)?
Are the learners satisfied
with the course?
Is the course cost effective?
MR. VATH
VARY

5. Steps
in
Evaluation
Who wants evaluation?
For what purpose is an
evaluation being conducted?
How much does it cost (time and
money)?
What data are to be gathered?
How are data collected?
Are the stakeholders on board?
(people involved in the evaluation)
How will the data be
presented?
MR. VATH
VARY

6. Purpose and
Audience of
the
Evaluation
Kiely and Rea-Dickens (2005:
225-271) make a useful three-
way scope distinction:
large-scale evaluations which “tend
to focus on major educational
innovations with significant
financial backing with an
underlying agenda”,
teacher-led evaluations, and
management-led evaluations.
MR. VATH
VARY

7. Purpose
and
Audience
of the
Evaluation
Who Wants Evaluation?
 Finding out who the evaluation is for and
what kind of information they value are
important for several reasons:
 help determine the degree of confidentiality of
the evaluation. Will the report of the
evaluation be available to all involved or will it
only go to the person or group commissioning
the evaluation?
 help determine what kind of information
should be gathered and what kind of
information should not be gathered.
 know who the evaluation is for is useful in
determining whether the data to be gathered
will be provided willingly or reluctantly.
MR. VATH

8. Purpose
and
Audience
of the
Evaluation
Is evaluation being done to improve
the course or to guide a decision on
whether to maintain or get rid of the
course?
 At the end of this preparatory stage of the
evaluation, the evaluator should be able to
tell the person commissioning the evaluation
 Whether the evaluation is worth doing.
 Whether the evaluation is possible.
 How long it might take.
 How much it might cost.
 Whether the evaluator is willing to do it.
 What kind of evidence the evaluation will
gather.
MR. VATH

9. The Type and Focus of the
Evaluation
Formative
vs.
summative
Long-term
vs.
short-term
Process
vs.
product
cognitive,
affective
and
resource
factors
MR. VATH
VARY

10. The Type
and Focus
of the
Evaluation
 Formative evaluation has the purpose of forming or
shaping the course to improve it.
 Summative evaluation has the purpose of making a
summary or judgment on the quality or adequacy of
the course so that it can be compared with other
courses, compared with previous summative
evaluations, or judged as being up to a certain
criterion or not.
MR. VATH VARY

11. The Type
and Focus
of the
Evaluation
Process observations of learning
 look at how engaged learners are in their
tasks, the quality of the interaction
between themselves and between the
teacher and the learners, and the quantity
and quality of the language used.
Product observations of learning
look at what was learned and how much
was learned.
MR. VATH VARY

12. The Type
and Focus
of the
Evaluation
Cognitive factors
involve learning and teaching and
the gaining of knowledge, and the
application of that knowledge after
the course has ended.
Typical questions would be:
 How much has been taught?
 How much has been learned?
 Has the course improved learners’ work
or study performance?
MR. VATH VARY

13. The Type
and Focus of
the
Evaluation
Affective factors
involve feelings of satisfaction
attitudes.
Typical questions would be:
 Are the learners pleased with the
course?
 Do the staff work well together?
 Do the teachers feel the course is
effective?
MR. VATH
VARY

14. The Type
and Focus of
the
Evaluation
Resource factors
involve costs, profit, availability
and quality of teaching and
learning resources such as books,
classrooms, visual aids, tape
recorders, computers, library
facilities, social services and
administrative support.
Typical questions would be:
Is the library adequate for the needs of
the learners?
Are the classrooms large enough?
 Does the course make a financial
profit?
MR. VATH
VARY

15. Gaining
Support for
the
Evaluation
Are the stakeholders on board?
(people involved in the evaluation)
 A properly conducted evaluation can be an
empowering and motivating activity. The
assumptions behind an evaluation usually
are that:
this course is worth improving,
the people running and teaching the course
are capable of improving it,
the people involved in the course have the
freedom and flexibility to make changes to
the course, and
the improvements will make it a better
course for all concerned.
MR. VATH
VARY

16. Gathering
the
Information
Table 8.2: Evaluation of
teaching and learning
involves …
looking at the performance of
teachers and learners, observing
lessons, and examining
achievement.
also looking at the environment
of the course, which may involve
looking at administrative
procedures, availability and
quality of resources, and how
outsiders view the course.
MR. VATH
VARY

17. Means of
Gathering
Information
Mr. VATH VARY
MR. VATH
VARY

18. Table 8.3
Evaluating the
course
environment
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VARY
Table 8.3 looks at a range of such focuses and
possible tools.

19. Gathering
the
Information
Interviews
 Structured (the interviewer has a procedure
and a set of questions to follow and generally
keeps to these) or
 Unstructured (the course of the interview
depends on the wishes of the interviewer and
interviewee and is largely unpredictable)
Self-report scales
 Questionnaires are of many different types and so
it is useful to distinguish those that involve open-
ended questions from those that are largely asking
respondents to rate an aspect of the course on a
predetermined scale.
MR. VATH
VARY

20. Gathering
the
Information
 Observation & checklists
 include analysing the course book, observing learning
in lessons, observing teaching, analysing the coverage
of curriculum design procedures, and observing the
performance of learners after the course.
 Observation can be:
 Unstructured observation: the observer or analyser
tries to see what is there without too many
preconceptions.
 Structured observation: where the observer or
analyser has a checklist of features to look for and
evaluate.
MR. VATH
VARY
The teaching
evaluation checklist in
Table 8.4 contains
eight items.

21. Presenting the Results
of an Evaluation
Involves ethical
issues,
particularly
those of
confidentiality
and
consideration for
the feelings of
others
Should evaluations be
criterion-referenced–
compared to certain
standards, or norm-
referenced –previous
or other courses or
programs?
written
mode, oral
mode, or
both
results
planning
of future
courses
The involvement of curriculum designers and
teachers in an evaluation can be an important
part of professional development.
MR. VATH
VARY

22. Task 1 Focus
of
Evaluation
 Why do so many people drop out of the course?
 Are the learners achieving the course goals?
 Does the course provide for slower learners?
 Are the learners satisfied with the course?
 Is this course putting accepted principles of
language learning into practice?
 Is the course book effective?
 Is the course preparing the learners for their use of
the language outside the classroom?
 Is the 4/3/2 technique an effective technique?
 Is the course making a profit?
MR. VATH VARY

23. Summary of
the Steps
 Discover the purpose and type of the
evaluation.
 Assess the time and money needed.
 Decide what kinds of information to
gather.
 Gain the support of the people involved.
 Gather the information.
 Present the findings.
 Apply what has been learned from the
evaluation.
 Do a follow-up evaluation.
MR. VATH VARY

24. MR. VATH
VARY