Critical development? Using a critical theory lens to examine the current role of evaluation in the youth-development field
✍ Scribed by Sarah Zeller-Berkman
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 2010
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 69 KB
- Volume
- 2010
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 1097-6736
- DOI
- 10.1002/ev.337
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Abstract
A critical theory lens is used to explore the role of evaluation in youth development, a field aimed at recognizing youth as assets. A theory of change in the field is questioned for its emphasis on individual youth outcomes as programmatic outcome measures. A review of 209 evaluations of 131 programs in the Harvard Family Research Project's Out‐of‐School Time Program Research and Evaluation Database reveals an overemphasis on individual gains related to academic achievement or youth development and a lack of attention to community‐ or systems‐level outcomes. The author posits that a critical approach would press evaluators to be intentional about what they measure and how in order to challenge the status quo for young people. © Wiley Periodicals, Inc., and the American Evaluation Association.