Program evaluation

Evaluation is a process used to determine the worth or value of something. By extension, program evaluation is the evaluation of projects or programs that were designed to change the world in some way. Program evaluation asks questions such as: Did the program achieve its goals? How can it be improved? Should it continue? Are the results worth what the program costs?

To answer these questions, program evaluators gather information about what programs are doing and what effect they are having.

Evaluations can serve many different purposes, but some common uses of evaluation are to:

Monitor how a program is progressing
Get feedback from participants of a program
Provide information for better decision-making
Report on past actions
Defend the importance of a program
Improve a program
Provide accountability by showing if funds were properly spent