Discuss your findings with different stakeholders

Your evaluation findings help stakeholders understand the REAL story. Did you do what you said you would do? Did you do it well? Did it make a difference for the students in the magnet program? Learn techniques for sharing your data with different stakeholders. Provide useful information that’s tailored for a specific group and shared in an accessible format.

Resources

TOOL How Do I Communicate My Results to Various Audiences? (.doc 177 KB)

Identify communication strategies that make your results accessible and useful to a variety of stakeholders.

SAMPLE MATERIAL Making Evaluation Meaningful to All Education Stakeholders (.pdf 258.9 KB)

Assess the “customer base” of various stakeholders who have an interest in your evaluation to identify the best ways to format and disseminate the results.

SAMPLE MATERIAL Formats Used to Display Data Results (.pdf 313.8 KB)

Learn about ways to display data to highlight different types of evaluation findings and make the data accessible.

SAMPLE MATERIAL Report for a Target Audience (.pdf 628.8 KB)

Review an example of how to tailor a report to the specific needs of an audience.

Extra Resources for MSAP Rigorous Evaluation

There may be a mismatch between what a district wants and needs for an evaluation report and what the evaluator is required to do. Districts need to discuss for whom and how the report will be tailored, and build that part of the reporting process into budgets and timelines.

TIP

Adjust the format and form of the report to fit your audience. An evaluation may have several audiences, each requiring different information or a customized presentation.

PITFALL

“ Report impartially. Communicate the evaluation findings and not your feelings, opinions, or biases. ”

—Quick Tips: Ways to Improve the Quality of Your Program Evaluations, University of Wisconsin-Extension

PITFALL

Evaluation is not something that just happens “at the end.” Don’t wait for a report to begin communications with stakeholders about results. Engage stakeholders during earlier phases of the evaluation to help ensure the utility of the results.