Out of Their Heads and Into Yours…Getting Useful Evaluations – Train the Trainer

Audience: Corporate / business, teachers, camp staff, recreational, religious and youth organizations.  Great for Challenge Courses and Adventure Programs.  Activities are generally appropriate for adults and older youth.

Time Frame: 1 day

Workshop Description:

“It was great.  We had fun.  I learned a lot.  Let’s do this again.”

“This sucked.  Glad it’s over.  I don’t get it.  Waste of my time.”

How can we evaluate how people in our groups feel about time we spent together?  How can we get the information out of their heads (and hearts) and into ours?  Among other things, we often need to know what, how well the lessons were learned, whether we need improvements or changes, if there is application or transfer to work or life, if people felt safe and had a good time, if we should repeat our program AND if we’re good at what we do!  You will experience and learn a plethora of ways to elicit information experientially…through honest and open expression, thinking, and self-discovery.  No more checking off boxes before a hurried departure.  Be ready for some surprises and some fun.

Why?  Play leaders improve with honest, open, timely feedback from those who know best…the players themselves.  And players benefit from reflecting, as part of the experiential learning cycle.  Consequently, as leaders share their feedback with each other, the play movement advances toward excellence. 

Concepts?  Evaluation is an important tool for development.  The quality of evaluation depends on the method of retrieval.  Turning program assessment into a game, or an experiential exercise, attracts thoughtful feedback and engages full participation from the players themselves