EDCUR 809 Assignment 2

The prenatal fitness program that was open to the city’s general population of pregnant Aboriginal woman was run from March 1995 to March 1997. Since there is no data to determine if this program continued after 1997 a summative review such as Scriven’s summative review to evaluate the end of the program and to see if it was effective or if it has met its original goals would work well here.

The first step in this process would be to define the program. In this case the program is an exercise program that is targeted toward pregnant Aboriginal woman in Saskatoon Saskatchewan with the intent of reducing the incidences of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and Type II diabetes. The goal of the program is to prevent this demographic of high-risk pregnant woman from developing diabetes during their pregnancy.

Now that the program has been defined it is important to create a succinct purpose for this review. For this I would look to determine whether the program was effective for the participants, if it reached a large enough portion of the target population to create a substantial difference in the incidence of gestational or type II diabetes, as well as whether this program should increase to a larger percentage of the target population or if the program should grow to include non Aboriginal pregnant woman. This purpose would give a clear direction to the data that is to be collected.

The data collection would be both qualitative and quantitative in nature. The first process in collecting data for this review would be to gather and synthesize all the existing quantitative data on the program. This would include information such as, how many people participated, how many potential participants were there? How much exercise they offered, what was the average attendance for participants at the once a week sessions, and is there any information existing to prove whether the participants had a lower incidence of the two types of diabetes than other Aboriginal woman who did not partake in this program or follow any exercise program of their own. After this data is collected and synthesized I would try to contact a selection of the participants to do a follow up study to see if they had any more pregnancies, took part in exercise during them and if they had either form of diabetes during those pregnancies.

I would also try to conduct a focus group session to gather qualitative data from the original exercise program personnel and the woman who took part in the program. This review would gather their opinions on subjective topics such as location and frequency of the sessions, type of exercise offered, what was the reason they joined the group, what kept them going every week, what would make the program better, and so on.

With both of these types of data collected the last step would be to analyze all the information and present the findings to the stakeholders involved. This would give them a good understanding of how effective the program was toward the initial goal of lowering the incidence of Aboriginal pregnant woman developing diabetes. With these results a recommendation for the future potential or direction of this program would be made.

and

Exchange Program Review

The review of this program has been completed for EDCUR 809 - Assignment 1.

809 Evaluation Review

The program review that I chose was a study of the Youth Exchange Program in the United States. . As their study states its purpose was to evaluate the impact of the Youth Exchange and Study Program (YES), and assess if it is reaching its goal of promoting mutual understanding and respect between the people in the United States and the participating partner countries.

This program was established post 9-11 to provide scholarships for secondary students age 15-17 specifically from countries with Muslim populations. This program places these students with families in cities and towns throughout the United States. Students stay with host families, attend high school, learn about the American society and values. In turn they help educate the Americans about their countries, cultures and customs. 

This study follows Scriven’s method of evaluation. The goal of the evaluation was to look at the outcomes of the program and to determine if they were achieving their targets. Their process they used included a summative and formative approach and included both qualitative and quantitative research. The main areas of study were focused on the participant’s satisfaction with the program, attitudinal changes, learning and understanding, and behavioral changes.

Data was taken before the students entered the program in a pre-survey questionnaire. This survey profiled students’ attitudes, opinions, knowledge, skills and behaviors prior to entering the program. The study then conducted a post-program questionnaire that measured attitudes, opinions, knowledge, and behaviors of the participants. Students in the Washington D.C. area were invited to attend focus groups to discuss their experience and its impacts on their attitudes, opinions, knowledge, skills and behaviors. All the participants were then given a follow-up survey one year after they left the program. This last survey aimed to explore changes still in effect, as well as attitudes, knowledge, skills and behaviors of the participants.

The results of this study concluded that the participants learned a great deal about U.S. society, values, and institutions, and view the U.S. more favorably as a result of the experience. The program strengthened participants’ beliefs in the importance of individual and civic rights. Participants gained confidence and leadership skills during the program, and feel empowered to make changes in their communities. The study also determined that the overall enthusiasm for the program and its benefits are very high.

The findings of this evaluation gave conclusive data that proved the goals of the exchange program were being met on all of the tested areas. This gave validation to the program, which at the time of the study had been running for six years. The data displaying the strong enthusiasm from the participants in the program also demonstrated that the program should continue as the value that the program has for all the stakeholders was  still meeting the need of the participants.