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First published in Polish by Beata Ciężka

Motto: "When a project draws to an end, we have an ex-post evaluation to commend"

(Source: The Non-existent Great Book of Fictional Sayings about Evaluation)

What is the ex-post evaluation?

The ex-post evaluation is carried out upon the completion of a project and is often referred to as the final evaluation. It aims to summarise the results of a project. It can be carried out in the last months of the project, immediately after its completion, or sometime (even several years) after the end of the project, in which case you call it a delayed evaluation. Due to the specific nature of Erasmus+ Adult Education projects, ex-post evaluation can be carried out at the following times:

• in the final months of the project so that the evaluation work can, for example, contribute to the verification of the quality and usefulness of the final outcomes developed and to the collection of reliable data for the description of the project outcomes in the final report;

• immediately after completing the project activities so that the evaluation results help to make the best use of the project outcomes;

• after a certain period, e.g. six months or a year, to check whether the project carried out has brought the expected results, changes in the education offer, improvements in the quality of activities, proper use of the acquired competencies of the staff, and changes in the quality of life of the target groups who have benefited from the project activities.

^{Photo by UX Indonesia on Unsplash}

Why should you carry out the ex-post evaluation of Erasmus+ Adult Education projects?

• Ex-post evaluation can be used to determine the effectiveness of a project, i.e. the extent to which the project's objectives and outcomes have been achieved.

• An evaluation of a project can not only focus on its effectiveness. Still, it can also include a broader view of the project through the prism of various criteria: efficiency (i.e. assessing whether the organisational and financial solutions adopted were optimal), relevance (i.e. assessing whether the right substantive solutions and methods of action were chosen), usefulness (i.e. checking what the addressees of the project activities actually benefited from), sustainability (i.e. indicating to what extent the solutions developed and implemented will continue to be used after the project has ended).

• The summary of the project's impact as part of the final evaluation may go beyond its direct impact only on the people who took part in it (staff and target groups of adult learners). A project impact evaluation can extend to the group(s) who have benefited indirectly from the project's outcomes or who will benefit from the project's outcomes in the future. 

•  The ex-post evaluation summarises the project that is about to end or has been completed. However, it is a valuable source of information that can be used in planning future projects. Such an evaluation can identify participants' needs that have not yet been met, that have changed over time or that have emerged due to the support provided so far, e.g. through the acquisition of new competencies, participants in learning mobilities see the need for further improvement. 

• In this way, such an evaluation can be a kind of ex-ante evaluation before the next project.

•  One of the main objectives of ex-post evaluation of adult education projects should be to examine the practical use of the results and the practical impact of the project on

  • the beneficiary organisation (e.g. new or improved/expanded adult learning provision, competence development of adult learning staff, increased international cooperation),

  • on adult learners who are the recipients of the beneficiary's education offer (e.g. better access to education offer that is better adapted to the needs of the recipients, improved key competencies of adult learners, their social activation or entering employment, better use of their potential)

  • on the subject matter of the project and other organisations with a similar profile, i.e. other potential users of the developed outcomes (e.g. implementation in the region/country of the developed solution, learning materials, model of educational work with a given group of recipients).

How to carry out the ex-post evaluation of Erasmus+ Adult Education projects?

As with any evaluation, drawing on a wide range of data collection methods and tools is useful. The triangulation approach, i.e. the multiplication of information sources and methods, is particularly valuable in the final evaluation. Such an approach aims to provide a reliable analysis of the project outcomes, to capture different points of view and to broaden the scope of project evaluation, not only based on the opinions of the direct participants (promoters and target groups of project activities) but also based on the opinions of potential users of the developed outcomes.

The following methods will prove useful in ex-post evaluation:

• Analysis of documents and data collected throughout the project: learning programmes, developed project outcomes, minutes and notes of meetings, ongoing/mid-term evaluation reports, promotional and information material and any other documentation collected throughout the project, including recordings and videos. If available, logbooks, participants' blogs, and other records of project participants' experiences may also be analysed.

• Surveying the direct participants in project activities, the project outcomes' actual and potential users, and the dissemination activities' addressees.

• Individual and/or group interviews were conducted with representatives of project partners, project participants and even actual and potential users of project outcomes from outside the group directly involved in the project.

• Observation of project outcomes (e.g., developed programmes, materials and educational models), if such use of project outcomes may already occur (depending on the evaluation timing).

How can you use the results of the ex-post evaluation of Erasmus+ Adult Education projects?

Ex-post evaluation allows for the collection of reliable data on project outcomes. It can also have a developmental and educational purpose. Thanks to the experience gathered and reflected upon; you can better plan subsequent projects regarding their content and management. 

The results of the evaluation carried out at the end of the project can be presented in the following sections of the final report on the Erasmus+ Adult Education project:

• Description of the evaluation that has been carried out and the measures taken to assess the project's success. This can include the ongoing/mid-term evaluation process and the final evaluation.

• Description of the difficulties encountered in managing the project (if any) and the measures taken to overcome them. Describing the risk management mechanisms of the project – here, you can refer to the evaluation processes and show how the evaluation has been useful in supporting the management of the project.

• Evaluation of the communication and cooperation with partners - identification of positive and negative elements in the cooperation process, formulation of recommendations for future projects based on the evaluation results.

• Justification (based on the data collected during the evaluation) for changes in the target group of the project activities (if any).

• Description of the project impact on participants, participating organisations, target groups and stakeholders. The results of the final evaluation carried out on these groups can be presented here.

• Description of how the project has contributed to achieving the most important priorities identified in the project description. The achievement of the priorities can be examined during the final evaluation.

• Presentation of results of feedback from the target group of the dissemination activities carried out within the partnership. This can be part of the final evaluation.

• Indicating the applicability of the project's approach to other projects on a larger scale and/or in a different field. This is where the final evaluation results are presented among the promoters, partners, and target group for the dissemination activities.

• This indicates the possibility of continuing or sustaining the activity and the project's outcomes after the end of EU funding. This is where you can present the results of the final evaluation carried out among the group of promoters and project partners, the current and potential users of the project outcomes, and the target group of the dissemination activities.

Beata Ciężka – evaluator, author and implementer of training courses in evaluation. She has extensive experience conducting research and evaluation projects for the European Commission and the Adult Education sector of the Erasmus+ programme. She specialises in educational programmes and projects. Co-founder of the Polish Evaluation Society. From 2017 to 2020 an EPALE Ambassador.

Further reading:

Start off your project with an ex-ante evaluation

Ongoing and mid-term project evaluation – why and how?