Program evaluation

In this chapter, evaluation was defined as a decision-making process that leads to suggestions for action to maintain and/or improve effectiveness and efficiency of programs and participants. Purposes for evaluating nursing programs in education and service were explained. The principles that govern evaluation in nursing, which are the same as those that govern the evaluation of any programmatic endeavor, were presented. The unique and specific character of nursing and its settings, which must be taken into account when strategies and techniques for implementing these principles are designed and/or selected, were discussed. Of major concern was the selection of an approach to evaluating nursing programs. Models for evaluating programs that have served as prototypes for evaluation in a variety of settings and fields were presented. More specifically, the views addressed included: Tyler's Objective-Based Evaluation, Accreditation/Certification Evaluation, Stake's Client-Centered Evaluation, Stufflebeam's Decision-Oriented Evaluation, Taba's Experimental-Research Evaluation, and Scriven's Consumer-Oriented Evaluation. Also discussed was the Utilization-Focused Approach to Evaluation. However, while all prototypes contribute in some manner to the conditions necessary for conducting a comprehensive evaluation of nursing programs, none are complete or sufficient in this regard. An eclectic approach to evaluating nursing programs developed by Waltz in an attempt to incorporate the strengths of existing models, minimize limitations, and expand thinking to include additional components and concerns with particular relevance to nursing was discussed. Attention was given to definition of terms, purposes for the evaluation, what the focus of the evaluation is, how the evaluation should proceed, when evaluation should occur, and major audiences. Specific considerations that increase the likelihood that an evaluation will be comprehensive but cost-efficient were elaborated.