Schools participating in the Low SES School Communities National Partnership are required to undertake an annual evaluation and report on the effectiveness of the strategies.
Evaluation is an agent of change based on evidence that has been systematically collected and interpreted. It can be used to plan, monitor and improve activities, make judgements about their impact and the allocation of resources. Evaluation is an integral and essential part of all education programs and supports a culture of continuous improvement and critical review.
The 2011 evaluation report will inform revisions to the school plan and ways in which schools will allocate National Partnership funds for the coming year.
The focus of the annual evaluation
The annual evaluation should focus on reporting progress and achievement on the key targets and strategies in the School plan, to inform decisions about future actions. This includes the revision of targets (where required), the continuation or cessation of current strategies, and whether new strategies need to be developed/implemented.
The annual evaluation should address the following questions:
- What did we say we would achieve?
- How well did we do it? How effective were our strategies?
- Where to next? Future directions?
Planning the annual evaluation
The annual evaluation should be led by the school principal and involve participation of and consultation with key stakeholders. Schools should allocate National Partnerships 2011 (PDF 239KB) resources to support the annual evaluation process and could include this as an accountability strategy (Reform 5) in their school plans.
What is the scope of the 2011 evaluation report?
The annual evaluation will build upon the extensive work already undertaken for the situational analysis, and focus on changes and progress over the last twelve months. It should contain information about:
- those aspects of the school context that have changed since the Situational Analysis was prepared (this section of the report only requires completion where the context has changed)
- a summary of the methodology used by the school to gather information
- evidence of progress towards targets and the effectiveness of Partnership strategies undertaken to achieve the targets
- revised targets (where appropriate) and future strategies
- changes in the school systems and practices as a result of participation in the Partnership.