Presented at the 2017 Canadien Evaluation Socienty Conference.

Description: Developmental evaluation (DE) supports innovative and adaptive development in complex dynamic environments. For evaluators working in complex situations, where there is high uncertainty and low agreement about what ought to be done, DE offers a critical and pragmatic alternative to traditional evaluation approaches. There is no prescribed set of methods, tools, or techniques for DE; there is no recipe, formula, or standardized procedures. Rather, DE is a way of approaching the challenge of evaluating social innovation through guiding principles. The fidelity and integrity of DE is defined by a suite of principles of practice, rather than a set of standards or rules. Principles-based DE offers a fresh approach that is situational, contextual, culturally responsive, and ethical. Participants will learn about the unique niche of principles-based DE and the thinking and practice that informs the approach, including systems thinking and complexity, indigenous philosophies and methodologies, resilience and critical race theories, decolonization and discourses, and a transformative paradigm. This workshop builds on the beginner level workshop presented at the 2016 CES conference in St. John’s.

You will learn:

• the theory and practice of developmental evaluation as well as the niche, strengths, and limitations of principles-based developmental evaluations
• the key factors in deciding whether to undertake a principles-based developmental evaluation
• the practice of principles-based developmental evaluation including some of the pitfalls, tensions, and barriers
• tools and tips for conducting principles-based developmental evaluation
• strategies to strengthen evaluators’ abilities