About the Tasks & Deliverables
This section contains descriptions of course tasks. Materials will be posted on a weekly basis. Please note that these pages populate information about course related tasks on the left hand side when they are assigned. Due dates are given with the description of each task.
Logistics
Keeping Up
There are a lot of moving parts to this class. Students who gain the most out of the course generally follow these general guidelines:
- Engaging with the readings and materials;
- Putting in a good faith effort but also asking for help when needed;
- Keeping a respectful, open, and honest line of communication with me and your peers if possible.
Complementary Materials
Resources such as presentations, videos, visualizations, walkthroughs, etc. take a lot of time to construct so please take some time to go through them. Do the materials have top notch production value? No because I’m not a famous director from Hollywood will millions of dollars. However they should be good enough…even decent! Given that, I am always open to suggestions so if you have any, please send them along.
Evaluation Teams
You will need to form 2 - 4 member support and project teams. There will be a channel in Slack where you can discuss available times in your schedules1.
Weekly Postings
Channels on Slack will be created for a variety of purposes including discussing general course questions / logistics, getting to know each other, creating teams, discussing tasks and deliverables, etc. You will need to participate actively on each board and your postings should be meaningful and incorporate depth. Responses without any additional information and/or justifications will be considered to be incomplete and will reflect on your final earned point value. For further information, please take a look at the description below.
Writing on Slack
Remember this is a graduate level class and your writing should reflect that. Moreover, these postings should be in APA 7th Edition formatting unless otherwise noted. The following general idea will be used when assessing your postings and responses (where applicable), but please note that this is not a rubric.
| Marker | Point Value | Criteria |
|---|---|---|
| 11.5 | Posts are well defined that fully address and develop all aspects of the prompt such that they advance the discussion, | |
| 10 | Posts are mostly well defined that tend to address all aspects of the prompt such that they generally advance the discussion, | |
| 5 | Posts are undertsandable but are not cohesive such that they do lack clarity or | |
| 0 | Posts are generally incoherant or superficial such that they are repeated or | |
| 0 | Posts are nonexistent or lack merit |
Postings that answered multiple questions can be written as a single coherent narrative that flows well or addressed individually where each item and its corresponding response are clearly defined.
Responding on Slack
To keep track of what responses go to which post and to receive credit for your responses, use the option pictured below: 
For further information, please read over
Reply in thread.
Assessing Posts
Online postings are evaluated quarterly (approximately every three to four weeks). However if you would prefer your postings using a shorter time frame, please send me a direct message on Slack.
Synchronous Meetings
There are two types of meetings in this class: ongoing and check-in. Please see the details below for an explanation of each.
Ongoing
Your team should meet weekly to discuss your understanding, questions, and challenges with the readings, upcoming assignments, etc. Basically all group members should be on the same page during the check-ins (please see below).
Check-ins
We will need to meet at least six (6) times over the course of term. the primary purpose of this is not just to get to know you, but also to answer any questions you may have and to get an idea of what areas need to be addressed. My job is to serve as a mentor during your evaluation but that requires you to ask questions and be up to date on the course material. We will be using terminology that has been covered and without a frame of reference, the conversation may be difficult.
Deliverables
There are five primary deliverables in the course. Included below are basic descriptions of each but a full set of criteria for each task will be posted to the left as we progress through the term. Most submissions are required to be submitted as a .docx while others should be rendered as a .pdf where noted.
Evaluation Prospectus
A general list and brief descriptions of possible programs to evaluate
Needs Assessment
After identifying a program, your group will be tasked to conduct at least one interview and/or focus group using an approved medium of the primary stakeholder(s) and/or sponsor(s)
Evaluation Proposal
A full proposal of the anticipated evaluation framework including a discussion of the program, its needs, and intended approach/methods
Final Report
A stakeholder or sponsor oriented report of the full evaluation process written to be accessible and appropriate for the intended audience.
Depending on the program you evaluate and on how you end up conceptualizing your evaluation study, these assignments may be modified in order to make them more meaningful and applicable to your needs and interests. Further details may be found the individual task documents. Never hesitate to discuss any issues you have relative to the assignments with me. More about these task will be posted in the upcoming weeks
Presentation of Results
This task will involve your group presenting on your evaluation. This will be your way of teaching the class about the program your group chose to evaluate and what you learned from conducting your evaluation project
Please note all deliverables must be written in Microsoft Word (.docx), 12-point Times New Roman font, double spaced, and adherence to APA 7th edition guidelines barring a running header
Academic Calendar and Availibility
You can view the weeks of instruction on the WVU Office of the Provost site. I will also be conducting an evaluation outside of the country for approximately ten days. Exact dates will be provided as soon as possible.
Need Help?
While I am happy to meet face-to-face, it is just as easy to schedule a Zoom session using the calendar or by notifying me on Slack by adding @Dr. Abhik Roy to your message.
beginning week 2 ↩︎