Doing participatory action research in community projects

 

Action research and evaluation

 

Stronger Families Learning Exchange resources

Haviland, M., Turner, C. and Garrow, A.
Evaluating Community Programs from a Strengths Perspective: Lessons, Challenges and Opportunities, Online (80K)
http://www.aifs.gov.au/sf/resources/nuggets.pdf
This overview of a May 2003 seminar run by the Family Action Centre, University of Newcastle includes principles for evaluating community programs.

Lienert, T
Doing an action research evaluation.
Stronger Families Learning Exchange Bulletin no.1 Autumn 2002: 16-20 and Online (299K)
http://www.aifs.gov.au/sf/pubs/bull1/tl2.pdf

There are many different ways of doing action research evaluations. This article outlines how action research evaluations will be used by projects in the Stronger Families Fund. It is intended to serve as an introduction for Stronger Families Fund projects, but also to be of interest to others working in the field of early intervention and prevention.

Lienert, T
Why use action research?
Stronger Families Learning Exchange Bulletin no.1 Autumn 2002: 4-5, and Online (103K)
http://www.aifs.gov.au/sf/pubs/bull1/tl.pdf

The author provides an overview of what action research is, and the use of an action research approach to evaluate programs.

What the Australian literature has to say:

Colin, T; Garrow, A
Thinking, listening, looking, understanding and acting as you go along: steps to evaluating Indigenous health promotion projects.
Alice Springs, NT: Council of Remote Area Nurses of Australia (CRANA), 2nd ed., 1998, 69p, illus.

This guide is based on experience in remote Indigenous communities in Central Australia, and is aimed at anyone interested in evaluation. It includes practical ways of developing relevant health promotion project evaluation. This guide takes a participatory approach, with the focus on including participants views and doing the evaluation for the benefit of the participants. It is action oriented - oriented toward achieving action which will improve the health promotion project that is being evaluated. The guide is divided into the following sections: evaluation - what is it?; steps to planning evaluation; and worksheets to use in planning the evaluation of projects.

Curtis, S
Action speaks louder than words in the third sector: measures of effective practice that really count.
In: Evaluation: equipping communities and government: conference proceedings. Curtin, ACT: Australasian Evaluation Society, 1997, pp197-202, tables, figures

A framework and a tool for strengthening the argument that third sector (nongovernment organisations) accountability measures should be related to the building of social capital. The building of community is described basing its argument on social action and the basic principles of action research which involves participatory action with a focus on learning in action.

MacNaughton, G; Smith, K
Action research, ethics and the risks of practicing freedom for early childhood professionals.
Australian Journal of Early Childhood v.26 no.4 Dec 2001: 32-38

'Fourth generation' action research, as envisaged by Kemmis and McTaggert (1986) embodies educational transformation and emancipation through using critical reflection and social critique as key research processes. In this article the author argues that reconceptualist action research offers a space in which early childhood practitioners can practice reflection as an ethico-political act, and in doing so work with more effect for equity in early childhood. Central to this possibility is the capacity and desire of early childhood professionals to consciously reflect to 'free' themselves from knowledge and practices that fix a true and certain way to think, act and be as an early childhood professional. Learning how to risk traditional knowledges and traditional practices supports the pursuit of freedom and thus allows ethical practice to be genuinely transformative. (Journal abstract)

Performance Indicators in Community Health Project Working Group (South Australia)
Performance indicators in community health: development of a process March 2000-October 2001: final project report.
Adelaide, SA: South Australian Community Health Research Unit, 2002, Working Group, 49p, Online (PDF 296K)
http://www.sachru.sa.gov.au/pi/pireport.pdf

Community health includes curative, preventive, social support and health promotion activities for, and with, people in a community setting. This final report outlines the findings of the Performance Indicators in Community Health Project undertaken in 2000-2001 which was concerned with process requirements for the development of meaningful and 'robust' performance indicators in the community health sector. The project adopted an action research methodology, details of which are provided in the report. The project was a joint initiative of the South Australian Department of Human Services and the community health sector, recognising the changing and complex nature of the landscape of health promotion and early intervention, as well as the futility of rigidly applying a 'one size fits all' set of performance indicators to the community health sector.

Wadsworth, Y
Everyday evaluation on the run.
Melbourne, Vic: Action Research Issues Association, 1991, 89p, ill.

Evaluation continues to be increasingly used as a reporting and accountability strategem by funders and other authorities. Yet their purposes of providing value for money are not served well if the evaluation does not 'get at' either the qualitative nature of people's experience, or if it counts the wrong things or at the wrong times, or if it is done for the wrong reasons. This book attempts to outline ways of evaluating that provide meaningful and useful accounts of situations. The book defines evaluation, and presents a conceptual framework, two approaches to evaluation, and models and techniques of evaluation processes.

Wadsworth, Y
Everyday evaluation on the run.
St. Leonards, NSW: Allen and Unwin, 2nd ed., 1997, 115p, tables, figures, illus.

Aimed at people working in the human services field, this introduction to program evaluation outlines a range of strategies that can be used by non-speciality evaluators and shows how evaluation can be built into everyday practice. The fully updated second edition includes: a conceptual framework, including the evaluative research cycle; approaches to evaluation including open inquiry and audit review; developing a culture of evaluation; the evaluation industry's models and techniques; and examples of evaluations. A diagram of the Action Evaluation Research Process is provided.

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