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Table of Contents
1.Introduction…………………………………………….2
2.Theories of Change……………………………………..3
3.The Baseline study and Indicators……………………...6
4.Terms of Reference (TOR)……………………………..8
5.Putting together a team………………………………..11
6.Methodologies………………………………………...11
7.Analyzing the results………………………………….13
8.Distributing the results………………………………..14
9.External Resources……………………………………14
10. References…………………………………………….15
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INTRODUCTION
Monitoring and Evaluation has become an increasingly important tool in the design, execution, and
management of a social development project/program/organization. Given the global financial situation,
stakeholders are demanding that results be produced to show how the project has impacted the community it is
serving. In recent years aid workers, peacebuilders, and other NGO workers have started to ask the question,
“Are our efforts making a difference?”
In any project it is important to examine and critically assess the activities used and the outcomes
produced. Learning is an important aspect of any project for it increases its sustainability (Lederach, Neufeldt,
& Culberston, 2007). Learning also helps those who plan projects look out for the most common pitfalls and
mistakes so that they can be avoided. That is the goal of this guide, it is to allow project managers a point of
reference when planning their own monitoring and evaluations as well as be a resource for the evaluators
themselves. In some cases it is not the end result but the process involved in getting there. Hence why it is
important to be able to take a reflective look at methods and practices employed in order to become more
effective practitioners (USAID, 2010).
Monitoring and Evaluation should be considered all along the way in a project and should be adequately
budgeted for. This document is for projects that are just beginning to be developed for community outreach and
projects that are reaching their middle or end point. In this guide are examples, templates, and methodologies.
The goal is to increase project capacity and integrate M&E so that it becomes an essential part of DRF
organization behavior. For the purpose of this guide, a hypothetical project is used to illustrate concepts
discussed. However the concepts in this guide can be applicable to other areas, especially the four divisions of
DRF.
This guide should be considered ONLY as a supplement to other works by John Paul Lederach and
Cheyanne Church and is only for use of the Dispute Resolution Foundation. The content also draws from the
Collaborative Learning Projects in Boston, Massachusetts. While certain templates and frameworks are inspired
by the above they are made based on assessing the needs of the DRF and the format of their current projects. It
is the goal of this document to strengthen certain aspects of project design and implementation for current and
future DRF projects.
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THEORIES OF CHANGE (TOC)
In any community development project designed to create tools for others in handling disputes, it is
important to understand how your objectives/activities/actions will affect the community you are trying to
reach. In the conflict management/development world this is known as ‘Theory of Change’ or ‘Development
Hypothesis’ (USAID, 2010). In basic terms your Theory of Change (TOC) should help you determine what
kinds of actions need to be included in the project. A few examples of a TOC are (Rodgers & Church, 2006):
- Individual behavior change theory
- Political change theory
- Decrease economic dependency theory
- To Reduce Violence theory
- Social Sustainability theory
- {create your own}
(For more Theories of change please consult Cheyanne Church and Mark Rogers book “Designing for Results”)
Before you can decide what actions to take, you have to know what it is you want to change in the
community. Is it a perception, attitude, system, or what? Once you know what you want to change your TOC
should be present throughout the project. Every action you do will go back to whether or not it is in line with
the TOC. An Example:
Once you have determined your TOC(s) the next plan of action is to decide how the change will happen.
What practices you will put in place to reflect the theory of change you and your team wish to see (Rodgers &
Church, 2006). One way to organize your thoughts is to create a chain-reaction chart that includes the activity,
TOC, and the predicted results. Upon first glance chain reaction charts are can be simple to start but should
build to more complex as brainstorming continues. For example a simple chain reaction may look like this
(Lederach, Neufeldt, & Culberston, 2007):
Underserved
communities
youth football
team
Activity
•Individual
Behavior
Change
•Social
Attitude
Change
Theory
(ies) of
change
•Reduction of
community
violence
•Increased
trust of
between
youths from
different
under-served
communities
Expected
results
Objective: Increase communication and coexistence between youths of different Under-served communities
in Kingston.
Theory of change: 1. Individual behavior Change 2. Social attitude change
Activities: Underserved communities youth football team
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Eventually, the chain reaction model will become more complex and better illustrate your projects TOC(s)
range. Part of that requires the project to understand how your project and its activities affect the four
dimensions of conflict (Lederach, Neufeldt, Culbertson, pg. 18).
Understanding these four dimensions of conflict and how they are linked can help to determine the type
of activity that will take place. By working these four dimensions into the project it can help address the deeper
root causes of the conflict. These dimensions should, like your TOC, serve as a background guide for your
project actions. Based on the chain reaction you and your team have assembled, the next step is to determine
how your activities will affect each of the above dimensions.
Objective: Increase communication and coexistence between youths of different under-served communities in
Kingston
Theory(ies) of change: Individual behavior change and Social attitude change
Activity: Develop an Underserved communities youth football team
As you plan how your change will occur, think about the deeper effects. Does it address the root causes of the
conflict? It is good to create a small map or diagram showing how the change occurs and is interrelated can help
to direct how the activity is executed. It also shows how each dimension is interlinked and by placing these in a
visual map can help orient others to the goals of your project. Mapping also helps to visualize the project in
such a way that is easy to understand and bring clarity that is often lost in the report. See Example on the next
page. (Lederach, Neufeldt, & Culberston, 2007)
Personal
How the violence affectspeople
individually, emotionally or
spiritually.
Relational
Who are the people inthe immediate
conflict noting their: communication
patterns, stereotyping of others and
trust inclinations changing
Structural
How the conflict impacts systems
and structures- the relationships
formed and who has access to
power- from family and grassroots
to communitiesandpolitical/social
structures.
Cultural
How does the culture change
from the activities? Have the
norms and (youth, men, women,
etc…) been altered?
Courtesy of “ReflectivePeacebuilding:A Planning,MonitoringandLearning
Toolkit”
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Here we have the Activity in the center with arrows pointing at the four dimensions of change. Each
dimension has an explanation as to how the activity will affect the change. Note the circle that connects all the
dimensions change in one will relate to change in another area. The visual should be accented by a detailed
project outline (Lederach, Neufeldt, & Culberston, 2007). There are no correct ways to do a mapping exercise,
the only requirement of these maps is that they must be easily understood by people outside of the project.
Activity:
Underserved
communities
youthfootball
team
Personal: Have one on
one dialoguingbetween
youths of different
under-served
communities. This will
allowyouths to
understand one
another.
Relational: Youths will
be members of a team
which will build better
working relations with
each other.
Cultural: The lines that
divideunder-served
communities become
less clear.Allows
people to cross them in
a more peaceful way.
Structural: Through
participation ,youths
will beresponsiblefor
the well-beingof their
team. This will increase
leadership skillsand
opportunities.
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BASELINE STUDY
One of the most crucial aspects of a good evaluation is that of a good baseline study. A baseline study is
about measuring the current status of the situation. This is not just a simple statistics exercise, the baseline is
used for the sole purpose of measuring change. For example if your goal is to increase cooperation between
youths of different under-served communities it would be important determine what the relations are at the start
of the project. Your baseline is the start by which you will measure the effectiveness of your program. After
lining up your TOC’s the baseline will answer the question “what are we trying to learn?” Therefore the
questions asked in the study must relate to the objective at hand. It would be unnecessary to ask “What do you
know about ADR?” if you are trying to understand the relationship between youths of different under-served
communities. Questions to be asked should be part of a team effort and developed from your TOC’s (Rodgers
& Church, 2006). Typically the baseline will be conducted PRIOR to the implementation of the project however
it can be conducted at any time. So long as it has been finished by the time of the evaluation it will provide good
details for the team. No one person should be responsible for creating the questionnaire and the project team
should allocate some time to create it.
One of the ways in which a baseline may be conducted is to hire an outside consulting firm (Our
Publications, 2011). An outside firm will have the resources and manpower to conduct a thorough study. The
ability to hire an outside firm is that it can often lend more credibility to your projects research. To illustrate the
projects multitude of interdisciplinary approaches to the problem as well as help to keep project bias to a
minimum. Yet when hiring a company be sure to establish strong guidelines by which both parties can agree on.
Creating a contract or Terms of Reference will be covered in the next section. Hiring an outside team also
means that you or your team are not on hand to steer questions in the direction needed. Thus it is important to
establish a good working relationship with your consultant.
However should there be budget (time and money) constraints there are a few ways in which you and
your team may do a baseline study. Baselines can be implemented in all areas of the DRF and not just project
design.
1. Create anonymous mail in surveys that allow people to return them at their own leisure.
2. Establish a partnership with another organization involved in the project already and
designate their role to be doing the baseline study. Pulling resources together.
3. Work with youth volunteers and interns to complete the study.
By working with volunteers and interns you are able to teach as well as build a team at a lower cost. However
be aware that the quality of the baseline may not be of the highest standards. Building a team will be discussed
later in the document.
A baseline study should take a minimum of 6 weeks to complete but no longer than 3 months. There are
many reasons for a 3 month baseline study to be implemented, first it gives time for the team to conduct a
thorough study and it allows time for a proper report to be written. However, it is often the case that 6 weeks is
all you may have in that case an evaluation can still be done but it NOT mean you cut corners.
Indicators
Developing indicators for your project has increasingly become an important aspect of project building,
implementation, and final evaluation. Indicators are the means by which you EXPECT to see change and should
relate to your theories of change. They should be specific and be tailored to your project and the more indicators
you have the greater your chances are of program/project success. Indicators are not just statistical numbers but
rather measurements of ideas and concepts that are more abstract. Experts offer differing views on when these
should be created. According to Rodgers and Church, indicators should be developed at the very beginning of
the project design (pgs.43-60), while Lederach, Neufeldt, Culbertson feel that following a baseline study
indicators should start to be developed along side with your theories of change which will help with the
development of questions to ask for the projects baseline study. Others claim that indicators can be developed
later. In truth indicators should be developed in the beginning and added to through out the project.
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Despite the timing of indicator creation, they must be developed prior to final evaluation. These
indicators will help you visualize your goals and projected outcomes as well as match your theories of change.
However once you develop indicators that will not mean you stop asking questions. Questions keep the
creativity flowing and allow for evaluators to develop more and better indicators of change.
For example:
Activity: Inter underserved communities youth football league
Theories of Change: Individual Behavior Change and Social Attitude Change
Indicators of Change: 1. Number of ‘at risk youth participating. 2. Academic improvement. 3. Ability for
youths to cross divides. 4. Socializing during team break times. 5. Reduction in school violence. 6. Increased
joint participation in outside events. 7. Invitations to parties, church, events, or other sporting games. 8. Joining
other social justice activities. 9. Promote peaceful resolution to others in the community.
QUESTIONS: Will this increase trust? How do we measure what happens outside the field? Can we be sure
that school violence is reduced in part because of our participants are in our program? Etc…
For more ways to develop indicators see Reflective Peacebuilding (Lederach, Neufeldt, & Culberston, 2007).
If an one of your indicators is not illustrated in your results it does not meant that it didn’t happen, rather
it could mean that it is taking longer to visualize. Some indicators will take more time to develop and come into
realization. One of the indicators mentioned above on reduction in school violence can not be measured in three
months, rather it is as indicator that needs to be measured over a longer period to see if violence is actually
diminishing and at what rate. That is a greater measurement of success than just a look at three months later.
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Terms of Reference (TOR)
Creating your terms of reference can be a tedious job for all involved however once you have a basic
template by which you can modify, a TOR will not take much time. Each project will have a different TOR
based on the needs and objectives of the project at hand.
It is important to understand that a TOR is not necessarily the same as a legal contract. Rather it is a
document attached to a formal contract outlining the activities and outputs. The TOR is subject to revision by
both the project management team and the evaluation team. Below is a sample TOR created for the 2011 ‘We
Want Justice Program” created by intern Kristine Crassweller, and edited by Abdi Jarik and Vivinne DaCosta.
THIS IS ONLY AND EXAMPLE! PLEASE CREATE ONE THAT FITS YOUR PROGRAM. (Our
Publications, 2011)
‘We Want Justice’
Evaluation Program
I. Introduction
This document is an outlined plan for designing and implementing an evaluation program on the Dispute
Resolution Foundation’s ‘We Want Justice’ project in Jamaica. This evaluation is to be implemented by selected
consultant(s) and DRF staff. This arrangement may be refined and discussed. The evaluation should take no more
than three weeks to complete and will be in-line with the goals and values of the DRF.
II. Background
This project was established to strengthen the capacity of communities and civil society organizations in Jamaica
by putting structures in place for improved justice administration and increasing the promotion of rights and
democratic governance through alternative dispute resolution options. This is in direct response based on a
preliminary baseline study conducted by the Market Research Limited group in April 2011. It concluded that
despite their best efforts only 15-22% of those surveyed knew about alternative dispute resolution (ADR) tactics
at their disposal. Within this overall goal, project coordinators aimed to achieve these goals by: (a) distributing
informational materials (b) the development of training workshops, (c) strengthen the visibility of the DRF.
The project will further provide a panel of neutrals, advisors and experts for community-based processes,
providing capacity building training and accreditation, equipping organizations with the necessary tools for
lobbying and negotiations. Upon the acquisition of these skills it is the position of the organization that these
communities will be better equipped to handle local disputes. This will equally alleviate the congestion of the
court systems by increasing the referrals to ADR programs.
III. Goals and Uses of the Evaluation
The DRF wishes to use this evaluation to measure the projects outcomes whether short- term, medium term, or
long-term. It also aims to evaluate the viability and sustainability of the project over the long term.
Certain goals in the evaluation are:
1. Determine to what extent the project was able to meet the needs of the DRF by increasing awareness
of organization.
2. Determine if the training programs, Town Hall and Community meetings fulfilled the needs and goals
of participating communities and community-based organizations.
3. To examine whether the training materials will transform the existing structures of dispute resolution
at the grass roots level.
4. To analyze how far the 10 communities concerned and selected community-based organizations
benefitted from the project.
5. To identify the direct and indirect beneficiaries of the project for the short-term, medium- term, and
long-term.
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The results of the evaluation will be presented to different stakeholders, and their feedback reflected in the final
document.
DRF: This evaluation can be useful to determine:
1. What worked and What did not work in the project. Both in perception and actuality.
2. Guide future projects geared towards community outreach and ADR.
3. Share lessons learned with other organizations in the area for institutional learning purposes.
Future field projects: As new members enter the DRF this evaluation can be used as a tool for teaching new
methods and be a source for other projects. It could help set guidelines for other projects to develop their own
methods.
Donors: the evaluation can help inform potential next steps for donors to consider as well as provide new donors
the necessary information about the types of projects the organization is involved in.
Justice System:local court systems would be able to better understand the DRF project intervention and refer
more cases to DRF for mediation. This instance is twofold as it would also increase public visibility.
IV. Approach to Evaluation
Methodology
The consultant and DRF team will work together to determine the most appropriate methods to attain the
most accurate results. However,the range of methods must be varied and yield credible results.
Interviews
Interviews will be conducted at least two different forms: quantitative and qualitative indicators. This means that
the while stressing the importance of using surveys and questionnaires are indeed necessary,they cannot be the
sole means of information. Interviews must include a qualitative aspect to gain a holistic view. Evaluators will
strive to not only talk with community leaders and officials but they must endeavor to interview a variety of
community members; CSO members and staff of allied State Agencies. These members will be a wide selection
with varying economic, gender, and social backgrounds. It is part of the project’s rationale that all directly and
indirectly involved can provide beneficial information that can be used for the purpose of meaningful evaluation
of the project.
Base Line assessment
No baseline data has been developed for the project. It would, therefore,be part of the consultant’s purview to
undertake this task within the framework of the evaluation. It will include data on conflict resolution mentioned
below; data on crime; and number of the mediators in each of the participating communities and CSOs prior to
commencement of the project.
Document Review
Evaluators will have access to all relevant project materials and must be well versed in their information. These
documents include:
- Project concept.
- All interim reports
- Donor documents
- Relevant analyses.
DRF Staff will be responsible for assisting the visiting consultant with finding outside material. The purpose is to
gain a greater understanding of the issues the DRF is looking to address.
Conflict Analysis
Upon arrival of consultant in the field, a conflict analysis of each target area where the project is being
implemented will be done. This exercise is to ensure that all members have a basic working knowledge upon
which they may conduct their field work. This is also to be used in conjunction with the baseline study to be
conducted for the purpose of measuring the effectiveness and perception of the activities. The analysis is different
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from the baseline in that it is based on a wide range of sources including: Newspaper findings, statistics, history of
the areas,police reports, and court documents. These will identify the underlying sources of continued conflict in
the target areas. Having outside sources will give greater weight to assessing the project’s impact, The DRF will
assist in the acquisition of necessary sources so that the evaluation team can complete the evaluation in a timely
manner.
Data Analysis on Preliminary findings
After all data is collected the evaluators will meet as a team to examine patterns and lessons learned from the
experience. Before this meeting can happen all other components must be in in place to make complete analysis.
This is also the point in which the evaluation team will determine the structure of the report as well as discuss the
recommendations they want to present.
V. Project Assumptions
This project assumes that the time allotted will be sufficient to complete the evaluation however only the team
will be able to assess whether the time is sufficient. Therefore should more time be needed approval will need to
be sought by the project managers.
VI. Preliminary Draft
A preliminary draft is necessary for review and consideration to be shared with the project management team. The
report will be structured as follows (however can be amended):
1. Introduction
a. Basic outline of the project, project team and its goals.
b. Introduce the evaluation team.
c. List of organization acronyms
d. Summary of preliminary findings
2. Background
a. Explanation of the rationale behind the ‘We Want Justice’ program
3. Conflict Analysis
4. Methodology
a. Describe the methods used.
b. List the interview/question/survey tools used.
5. Data Analysis
6. Lessons Learned
a. Relevance and Appropriateness: Was the training program tailored to meet local needs?
b. Effectiveness and Efficiency: Did the activities match the expected outcomes outlined?
c. Timeliness: Were the activities applied at the correct time? Were they applied in a timely
manner?
d. Sustainability: Will the structure of the project continue after funding ends? Is there more
demand for these services after project completion?
e. Conclusions and Recommendation
f. Appendices including the logical Framework Analysis of the project.
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Putting together a team
An evaluation team must be assembled carefully and thoughtfully. Typically it would involve an outside
consulting group to be involved, again, with budget constraints this may not always work in the project’s favor.
However no matter the budget an evaluation is a team effort and it is with their collaboration that an evaluation
can take place. A team does not have to be large, it can be anywhere from 3 to 15 people depending on what it
is that is required (Rodgers & Church, 2006). If the method of collection requires interviews and survey’s it
would be more prudent to have more people to cover an area. If it is more about focus groups and observations
a smaller team is needed to conduct the collection.
The next question is “who should be involved in the team?” a million dollar question to be honest. One
of the benefits of an evaluation team is that they are usually more removed from a project or program so they
are able to take an objective look. They are not clouded by biases and emotions that are often running high for
those who are involved. Thus as a rule, project managers, directors, and such are not good people to have on an
evaluation team (Rodgers & Church, 2006). Often when a report comes back about how well (or not well) the
quarter/session/project went, it is in the leaders nature to rationalize and try to explain away why things did or
did not happen. As such it should the evaluation need to be done with members of the project/program team, it
should be those who are the furthest from the heart of the operation. (Lederach, Neufeldt, & Culberston, 2007)
Should you wish to make things easier it is possible to speak to those who are affiliates of the DRF to
come in and conduct an evaluation. These affiliates will also have an invested interest in evaluation if only to
strengthen partnerships and communication.
Methodologies
Upon selecting a team for conducting an evaluation the team must determine the type of methods they
will use to collect data. The data itself should be quantitative and qualitative, these will then be used during the
analysis which will either prove or disprove the project indicators. There are a wide variety of methods used to
collect data for baselines, assessments, field studies and evaluations. According to Carter McNamara it is
important to understand the various advantages and disadvantages in the most common forms of data collection
(McNamara, 2002). It is important to brainstorm what methods will be useful for your particular project. Not all
collection methods will be utilized and some can be used at the same time. Below is an example of a
brainstorming list for the hypothetical “Underserved communities youth football team”
Methods Advantages Challenges
Questionnaires,
surveys,
checklists
- Able to obtain information from people
not involved directly in the project.
- Costs less to implement and Youths,
people, and leaders feel safer giving
information.
- Youths might not understand
questions.
- Students and parents may not take the
survey that seriously.
Interviews
- Gives important insight to peoples
thoughts and views.
- Can build a trusting relationship with
those being interviewed.
- Extremely time consuming.
- People may not be inclined to talk
- Youth can be known to embellish
their stories.
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Documentation
Review
- Brings organization to the project.
- Helps an evaluation team understand the
timeline of events.
- Records necessary activity output
- Doesn’t give personal accounts of
the project.
- Can offer a more biased view of the
achievements of the project.
Observation
- Allows for an uninhibited view of
youths in their community.
- Offers a chance to play a ‘fly on the
wall’ role to see relationships develop
over time.
- Observations are often affected by
the observers culture.
- The time required to do an
observation is just as long as a case
study.
Focus Groups
- Offers a controlled setting in which
facilitators can work with youths one on
one.
- Offers the ability to see what can happen
on the small scale.
- Are able to measure attitude changes of
the youth over time.
- For this project it would mean that
only a select few would be
interviewed and these students
would have to be outside the team.
- Can be difficult to get students
involved in participation. It would
take away from their free time.
Case Studies
- Allow for in depth study of youth’s
experiences in the program.
- Can illustrate the program to outsiders
who are curious.
- The time required to conduct a case
study is long.
- It does not always give an accurate
picture of the populations.
By brainstorming what the advantages and challenges are, you are able to choose which methods are not
only going to give you the information you need but also afford it in the time that you have. This above chart is
by no means exhaustive however it can be a good starting point when thinking about how you will go about
obtaining information. (McNamara, 2002)
Depending on the program, some methods will not be necessary from the outset; if you work in the
financial department it is probably unnecessary to conduct interviews with the outside public about better
budgeting practices. However what would be a prudent exercise is the focus group that can be developed
internally. This focus group would be able to give valuable insight into the everyday workings of the DRF.
These methods are all very ‘big picture’ and seemingly grandiose and time consuming. However there
are a few everyday/week/month activities that individuals can employ to make M&E part of your everyday
habits. (Lederach, Neufeldt, & Culberston, 2007)
1. Keep Journals: These can be valuable sources of information as you are recording events as they
happen in real time. Upon later study you can match these with some of your other findings and
improve overall team/project/program capacity.
2. Host 15-30 min brainstorming sessions: these sessions are intended to build greater team cooperation
and allow members to showcase their creativity. While at first it may seem simple and ineffective at
first, over time you begin to notice a change in team attitudes.
3. Try to log an observation each day: this can be as simple as finding a quote you feel is relevant to
your teams goals and objectives.
4. Spend time each quarter/month or year organizing files: this one is crucial. Organization in your
office space will help you organize your projects and life. It also makes an M&E easier to conduct. If
all files are organized a team can cull through them faster.
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Analyzing the results
Analyzing the results can be a painstaking and tedious job if the above mentioned areas of project
management and design are not properly put in place. However it can equally be rewarding as you start seeing
patterns and results of your efforts. Yet questions arise constantly about how to do an analysis of all the data
collected. Where do you start?
First it is important to determine what information goes where, is it quantitative or qualitative? Once you
move the data into those two categories it will be easier to start the analysis. For quantitative data it is easy
enough to develop a excel spread sheet, or access database; that is if you don’t have access to SPSS (Statistical
Package for Social Sciences) software (Rodgers & Church, 2006). Gathering the hard statistical evidence can
be important for backing up your qualitative data.
When trying to measure and quantify qualitative data, it is important to understand that you are looking
for patterns and not necessarily the amount of times a particular answer is given. You are looking at the manner
in which it is given. That is why it is so important to not only listen to the words that a person says but the
manner upon which they say it. Their body language can give clues to whether or not they are giving accurate
information. For example:
Interviewer: What does ‘violence’ mean to you?
Student: Miss it means killing, or hurting someone.
Interviewer: Have you ever experienced that kind of violence before?
Student: Yes Miss, I see it all the time.
Interviewer: Where do you see this violence? And What are you seeing?
Student: Miss, I see my neighbors…they fight many time, one day the man’s cousin comes and
chop ‘im up.
Interviewer: That sounds terrifying…
A transcript only gives you so many details. From here one can not see facial expressions, or hear the tone that
the student uses. Based on the above example one would conclude that A: the student is giving an honest
account, B: the student is so jaded by their experience that they don’t think twice about it. And many more
conclusions can be made.
Take that same conversation and put notes in the margins that look like this:
- Student was chuckling the entire time
- Was sitting slouched
- Spent much of their time distracted
- Wouldn’t make eye contact
- Kept fidgeting in their seat
All of these small notes are tells and can affect the qualitative data. They are important because they convey
attitude, meaning, and interest in ways that questionnaires and surveys do not. This is part of how you analyze
results. When a field observer notes things that aren’t readily known to those who are reading the report it can
give more insight to other possible conclusions. With this new list one can When it comes to the documenting
of reports, the qualitative may take on a more essay format and will require strong writing skills.
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Distributing the results
Who gets the results? In short relevant stakeholders, DRF staff, project affiliates, donors, and the like.
These people are the ones who benefit and have a significant invested interest in the
project/program/organization (USAID, 2010). Distribution should also be granted to those outside of a project.
To all DRF service centers, by sharing with the service centers you are increasing lines of communication and
strategy. Communication is key to the leadership and function of any organization, through evaluation and the
distribution of reports you increase this level of cooperation within and outside the project/program.
The format of the distributed results will be determined by the donors and stakeholders (Lederach,
Neufeldt, & Culberston, 2007). The European Union will have a different set of rules to follow than USAID or
the Jamaica Ministry of Education. It is important that these guidelines are followed and that you stay on top of
the updates. However there are always some essential information that should be included in every report.
1. Always include the purpose of the activity. If you are trying to describe what happened during the
last quarter then you need to make a clear cut cause and effect analysis.
2. Be sure to not over load your report with unnecessary information. Simplicity is usually best. In
particular when you are talking about many different activities taking place in a period of time.
3. Create visuals to accompany what you are trying to say. Often it is necessary to create visuals so that
others who read your report can gain greater understanding. It is a good way to help complex ideas
gain ground.
4. Reports should always include clear language. Have others proof your documents, given that there
are different grammar rules (even in English) depending on where you are; there should be an effort
to use language and grammar that is understood by all (both English speaking and Non-english
speaking).
External Resources
A project evaluation should not just use one method of evaluation. Different projects will call for
different monitoring and evaluation techniques. It would be prudent for projects to examine a wide array of
M&E practices and toolkits.
Here are a list of a few places to find M&E resources.
1. The World Bank Monitoring and Evaluation: Some Tools Methods and Approaches
http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/EXTOED/EXTEVACAPDEV/0,,contentMDK:22293257~menuPK:458
5748~pagePK:64829573~piPK:64829550~theSitePK:4585673,00.html
2. Measuring Progress in Conflict Environments a Metrics Framework
http://www.usip.org/publications/measuring-progress-in-conflict-environments-mpice-0
3. MAPA Project:A Practical Guide to integratedprojectplanningandevaluation
http://www.osi.hu/iep/mapa/resources/IEP%20book.pdf
4. UNDP HandbookonPlanning,MonitoringandEvaluationforDevelopmentResults
http://www.undp.org/evaluation/handbook/
5. UtilizationFocused EvaluationChecklist
http://web.idrc.ca/uploads/user-S/10905198311Utilization_Focused_Evaluation.pdf
6. USAID ConflictManagementandMitigationPublications
http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/cross-cutting_programs/conflict/publications/toolkits.html
7. Social ImpactMonitoring,LearningandEvaluationforFragile StatesandPeacebuildingPrograms
http://www.socialimpact.com/resource-center/downloads/fragilestates.pdf
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References
OurPublications.(2011). RetrievedOctober1,2011, from CDA Collaborative LearningProjects:
http://www.cdainc.com/cdawww/publication.php
Lederach,J.P.,Neufeldt,R.,& Culberston,H.(2007). Relfective Peacebuilding:A Planning,Monitoring and Learning
ToolKit. Mindanao,Philippines:Universityof Notre Dame andCatholicRelief Services.
McNamara, C. (2002). Overview of DataCollectionMethods. BasicGuideto ProgramEvaluation.AuthenticityConsulting.
Rodgers,M., & Church,C. (2006). Designing forResluts: Integrating Monitoring and Evaluation in Conflict
Transformation Programs. Washington,DC:Searchfora CommonGround.
Satorius,R.,& Carver,C. (n.d.). Monitoring,Evaluation and Learning:FragileStatesand Peacebuilding Programs.
ArlingtonVI:Social ImpactandUSAID.
USAID.(2010, June). Theoriesof Changeand Indicator. RetrievedSeptember23,2011, fromUSAID- Conflict
ManagementandMitigation:http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNADS460.pdf
