Development? Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Precedence: bulk Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Dear GKD Members, During last week's discussion we heard from members working in Peru, Uganda, Macedonia, Nigeria, Pakistan and the Philippines regarding the "right" resources to foster ICT-enhanced professional development. Many GKD members have raised the issue of evaluation and cost/benefit analysis. Some emphasize the importance and value of thorough evaluation, cost-benefit analyses, and quantitative measures of impact. As one member noted, "Cost benefit analysis would help program planners to choose the most convenient path." Others argue that it is not appropriate to apply a quantitative measure to improved professional skills, better understanding, wider professional networks. Return-on-investment, they hold, is fine for businesses but has no place in education and training. Still others argue that evaluation must be done, but is rarely done well. For example one member stated, "Statistics are not desegregated to show what the situation is in rural communities." Furthermore, they say, no one pays any attention to "lessons learned" so why bother? This week we would like to focus on evaluation -- the best approach for trying to determine the value ICT-enhanced professional development provides. KEY QUESTIONS: 1. Can we effectively measure the costs, benefits, and educational impact of ICT-enhanced professional development initiatives? If so, what is the best approach -- are there concrete examples? 2. Can we measure return on investment (ROI) for these initiatives? If so, how? 3. Are there methodologies for evaluating the "soft side" of training activities, e.g., the cultural, technological, or social "appropriateness" of different approaches? 4. Are there methodologies for measuring the cost of effectively bringing particular models to scale? 5. What is the best way to disseminate and promote the use of "lessons learned"? ------------ This DOT-COM Discussion is funded by the dot-ORG USAID Cooperative Agreement, and hosted by GKD. http://www.dot-com-alliance.org provides more information. To post a message, send it to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd For the GKD database, with past messages: http://www.GKDknowledge.org
