Introduction
Evaluation of the performance of an institution, organization or even individuals is a very important exercise that ensures that optimum performance is maintained to achieve the highest and most productive goal. In so doing, there is a myriad of evaluation models which can be used to appraise the performance of any given entity. The key determining factor in the choice of an evaluation model is the type and nature of the parameter to be evaluated. These models can assist the evaluating team to know which methodologies to use when conducting a particular type of evaluation. It is therefore pertinent for any kind of evaluation to choose an appropriate kind of model to use to produce the most reliable results (Power, 1997). This paper explores the evaluation strategy which was used to conduct youth work with vulnerable young people. The outline of the evaluation carried out on this project is candidly discussed and critically examined in relevance to available evaluation theories and principles.
The Outline and Evaluation Models used in “Evaluating Youth Work with Vulnerable Young People” Project
For this evaluation to be deemed workable there is a need to assess its usefulness. This is one of the evaluation criteria models necessary when evaluating projects. Additionally, the evaluation will have to be independent to avoid any chances of bias in reporting. For instance, the project took one and half years before the final report could be produced for interpretation and application purposes. It had been sponsored by the Scottish Office Education and Industry Department. The project mainly aimed at investigating how effectiveness of the various tasks carried out by youth with special interest to the young generation. (Furlong et al, 1997). In carrying out this project, six unique regions were put into consideration. Each study categorically examined young people and how those who provide important services to them are affected by the vulnerability of the young people.
Any evaluation carried out should avoid any kind subjection but rather pursue an objective approach of reporting. This calls for credibility as a desired evaluation model. In order to achieve this, it was imperative to underscore some of the changes which usually influence the tasks carried by the youth. Before carrying out the evaluation, it was noted that the situations surrounding young generation have greatly transformed over the recent past. Not all is the same bearing in mind the dynamic nature of the society. Therefore, whatever model of evaluation chosen, it is supposed to underpin these emerging changes (Mertens, 2005). It was much easier to predict the scope of youth work immediately after the war era, a situation that has completely changed in present times. This implies that most of the models which have been in constant use were duly developed at a time when insignificant transitions had taken place on the youth work. In making the recent models, it is important to note that one area of concern regarding youth work is the level of effectiveness towards the type of work being offered to the youth. One such area of concern is how attractive the given work will bring the young generation closer in addition to meeting the needs of the youth. If a particular work cannot effectively address the needs of all age groups, then it ceases to be vital as far as the end user, who in this case is the youth is concerned.
Moreover, transparency will also harmonize the usefulness and credibility of the research project. The project started off by gathering enough evidence in a transparent manner which could then but put into a standard model for analysis. Both the qualitative and quantitative methods were applied. Young people who stay in both urban and rural areas were included in this evaluation because they were all considered to be vulnerable in one way or the other (Furlong et al, 1997). From the statistics collected, it was found that there was overrepresentation of young people who especially come poor backgrounds with marginal income as compared to those whose wage earning level were promising. In this case, family patterns were analysed in terms of parenting styles. For instance, those who come from single parent households are more at risk of missing out on schooling with most of them being the target of police harassment. About one thousand two hundred respondents were used in the survey. Also incorporated in this research were the small discussion groups which were found to be very vital tools in exploring deeper and underlying details of the youth work. Alongside school outreach programs were the individual respondents who were conducted for immediate feedback. Through these set of questions and immediate feedbacks, the researchers were able to quantitatively evaluate the existing youth work and whether they were helpful to the most disadvantaged groups who were also considered to be vulnerable. Additionally, the potential outcomes of these youth work were also looked at if they could help reduce the level of risk. This kind of evaluation took a diverse approach. However, according to Patton (2002), a good model should be capable of directing researchers on the right procedures to follow. Indeed, this was evident when researchers in this youth work study prepared some special type of questionnaires which could guide them on each and every step they made (Weiss, 1990). Therefore, the use of a set of questions was an important preliminary procedure of coming up with a standard evaluation which would be void of bias even as the data is being picked from the field. Nonetheless, the preparation of questionnaires in the case of interviews to be performed should be done in mind with the nature of the project to be evaluated. Each project may require a unique model to evaluate. In fact, this research study ensured that the youth work and
vulnerability level among young people survey was carried out among the right target group. It was also evident that the manner young people spend their time can be a very important factor in determining how vulnerable they will be. The free time which young people may be having at their disposal is a powerful ingredient in shaping their overall lifestyles. Moreover, this leisure time can be molded by quite a number of factors in consideration. For example, the social backgrounds as well as gender have been found to be powerful influencing factors which affect how leisure time will eventually appear to be (Stecher &Davis, 1998). In order to capture how leisure time among the youth affects their vulnerability to youth work, the study sought to examine quite a number of avenues. Young people who are rarely idle but rather participates in group activities exhibit different properties compared to those who do not spend their leisure time in a quality manner. Against this background, the studies revealed that about fifty per cent of girls and sixty per cent of boys were active participants in some sort of club activities during their free time. This showed that more young people are usually engaged in some kind of activity during their leisure time as compared to the lower percentage that may be idle. However, the study does not clearly elaborate which model was used to come up with these conclusions. It would be imperative to use some of the most current models of evaluating leisure time usage by the youth. Moreover, it is also evident that the less active youth groups especially during the free time are more likely to be vulnerable than those who are fully engaged in some kind of club activities. Taxonomy of different types of evaluation has already been developed and which can sometimes be applied especially to more static parameters which do not easily change with time.
These taxonomy models are differentiated by the type of audience being addressed. For instance, the manner in which an older generation would spend their leisure time is completely different from the way young people would.
When a question was posed to the young people about their thinking on youth work, different responses were put across (Furlong et al, 1997). Most of them had a positive evaluation concerning the work done by youth. One of the most important values which these young people had strong attachment was the social groupings where they could meet and advance friendship and other relationship ties. Nevertheless, there was a general concern over those who belonged to particular clubs against their age groups. They were considered by the youth to be real trouble makers. The relevance of the diverse youth organizations was also underscored by most respondents in this research study. It was found out that most youth highly valued the role played by youth organizations which were very instrumental in creating new opportunities for the youth. Most of the vulnerable young people would acquire necessary skills and competencies through these youth organizations. In addition, the youth organizations were seen as important vehicles which would be used to deliver young people from higher risk of being vulnerable (Patton 2003). The study also concluded that those young people who are more vulnerable are more likely not to participate in youth activities. Besides, those who have had to go through difficulty at one time or the other tend to alleviate themselves from active youth participation. The model used here was that purely concerned with decision making pattern of those young individuals who thought that it was not worthy enough for them to engage in organized youth activities having undergone through the most trying times. The study also brings out the evaluation model which attempts to establish the behavioral pattern of the vulnerable youth who eventually resort to alienate themselves and pursue more of private than public life. Nevertheless, the model is not goal-free because there is a particular element under study that is the youth work and how young people might find themselves vulnerable. This in particular is a good approach due to the fact it keeps the audience informed of the flow of study by continuously updating themselves to the core objectives of the study. Furthermore, at some point in the research study, there comes the need to make pertinent decisions regarding the interpretation of the analysis made from the filed (King et al, 1987). This in particular is an excellent approach contained in the report because it describes and incisively explains to the audience the fine details of the research project.
Goals and objectives alone should not form the basis of any model of evaluation. In some cases, an evaluation can be carried out without any goal in mind. This is an evaluation model which has not been achieved by this research study. The project mainly relied on the set goals which were the only parameters to be discussed. This goal-oriented evaluation might at times be myopic and not thorough enough therefore closing any room for adjustment especially in regard to innovation and venturing into other fields. Additionally, the goal-free evaluation is also exhaustive and tends to approach the subject matter from a diverse perspective or different point of view (Patton, 2003)
In evaluating the youth clubs, it was found out that these clubs do not meet frequently and so the remaining days when such clubs were not in operation, young people tend to hang and possibly idle around. If this was anything to go by, then it would
imply that youth clubs form a very formidable unit to the young people who are particularly vulnerable and have no work to do. Better still, a negligible number of young people admitted of having indulged themselves in illegal activities which could otherwise jeopardize their lives (Pawson &Tilley, 1997). It should be noted that those who confessed of being safe from criminal activities were those who mainly engaged themselves in a myriad of youth activities. It is therefore conclusive to say that young people who did not utilize their leisure time on some positive engaging activity were more likely to enroll themselves in other activities other than those expected to be good. The study used a multivariate analysis so that a deeper analysis of the youth work and indulgence could be established. This was particularly called for bearing in mind that issues surrounding the youthful population are diverse and unless they are quantitatively analysed, it may not be possible to come out with a proper concubinary remark which is equally representative of the situation and reality on the ground. This evaluation model assisted in bringing out all the elements of youth vulnerability especially with respect to those who eventually drop out of schools or engage in drug and substance abuse. Such vices are considered to be gateways towards joining criminal gangs and operating alongside with them. Although attending a youth oriented activity could not completely eliminate the possibility of some young people engaging in crime, a multivariate analysis found out that such activities substantially reduced the exposure time to criminal activities thereby substantially lowering the chances of engaging in criminal activities.
Although this analysis tends to bring out the most details concerning how leisure time affects the vulnerability level of young people, the Eolithic evaluation would have
not only gave a quantitative description of and youth leisure time but also the process through which they grow and eventually resort to acts of crime (Ward & Finkelhor, 2000). Instead of the research only targeting the fulfillment of the set goals, the Eolithic evaluation ensures the process which will eventually deliver the product (Morris et al, 1987). This type of evaluation model can be of great help especially when stepwise progression of the young to either criminal activities or substance abuse is required. This type of evaluation enables a researcher to have an insight of what really exists in the natural environment and then attempts to achieve the desired results from the available means.
This evaluation could take both the formative and summative approach models. in the former case, information is readily made available to those who are mandated to planning and implantation process while the latter attempts to address the general quality of a program being implemented. In evaluating youth work, the data gathered from those who provide pertinent services showed that although there were well structured allocations for the youth, it was not possible to establish the specific amount of work which was available for the young people within a given area. The evaluation
model used found out that there existed a lot of missing links in terms of funding for youth work. In addition, youth work at the local level was not readily available and even for the few cases where some jobs existed; poor coordination marred the intended benefit to the young people (Nutley et al, 2000). Due to a myriad of challenges which were being experienced at the community level, some mitigation measures had been put in place. For instance, educating the community on the relevance of involving the young people on productive work was in place. Nevertheless, some neighborhoods had little or no outreach program at all which were basically meant to reach out for the young people who were most vulnerable in the community. The study took place when there was significant transition taking place in Scotland. Therefore, there must have been some underlying factor which might have affected the outcome of the research study especially in regards to youth work and vulnerability levels. Since the study was goal oriented, it would not have possible to unearth other submerged factors which were equally crucial in the development stages of youth work in Scotland. Therefore, a case whereby an illuminative evaluation model could be used would have given out more coherent picture because such a model is highly customized to meet the needs of a smaller community which is being affected by localized challenges. Since Scotland was undergoing through some form of transition and dynamism, the use of an illuminative evaluation model would have given the best if not realistic outcomes. This model has an advantage of remaining all the other research methods requirements like the statistical packages while at the same time addressing the needs of a micro environment (Herman et al. 1987, and Racino, 1999). In addition, the illuminative model is more subjective in a dressing the subject matter. In other words, it critically presents all the required data in a more inherent style that can be understood and consumed easily by the readership and other interested groups As part of the research study, it was found that it would be necessary to work closely with the youth in order to measure the degree of success in the project. From the research findings, it was evident that involving the youth who were considered to be highly vulnerable and therefore at high risk was relatively cumbersome for the providers (Shadish et al, 1991). There were claims of intolerance and negative attitude from the young people at risk. Contrary to the more productive youth workers, it was much easier to work with them as they showed a lot of appreciation, support and overall sense of happiness in their work. From these field findings, most providers felt that it was better to work with young people whose attitudes were positive and therefore receptive (Rossi et al, 2004). Such category of young people was associated with good habits creating a more comfortable environment for the providers to work in. Even as behavioral patterns among the youth contributed significantly to their resourcefulness, providers found themselves at dilemma since they were unable to devise other evaluation models which would be made use of in the training and service provision to the youth In order to provide the most needed services for the young people, it was important that a viable resource base be established to sustain the program (Clarke, 2001). This element of resource provision was also a subject of research in this project. About one hundred and sixty pounds per year would have sufficed the entire annual budget including sustaining a permanent staff alongside other periodical workers. The evaluation model here was more direct and did not require too much of external references. All the same, the financial data obtained allowed the evaluation to the next level and this in itself is a model on its own.
Conclusion
The youth work research project carried out on the Scottish Inspectorate office satisfied quite a number of evaluation models in bringing out the performance criteria of the youth work and vulnerability of the young people. In the entire study, it was explicit that young people are provided with several opportunities ranging from youth organizations to work vacancies in order to make them productive. A behavioral evaluation model has been used throughout the research study to depict how attitude affected the working relationship between service providers and the youth. For instance, those who come from single parent households are more at risk of missing out on
schooling with most of them being the target of police harassment. About one thousand two hundred respondents were used in the survey.
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