I-PROBE Thematic Network

Conference in Sibiu, Romania 25-29 September 2002

EVALUATION REPORT

1 Background

1.1 As an important element of the I-PROBE thematic network’s activities, an international conference on school self-evaluation was held in Sibiu, Romania 25-29 September 2002. The conference offered keynote speeches, workshops, and examples of good practice. Complementary to this event was a Comenius 1 contact seminar, organised by the Romanian National Agency, which shared elements of the conference programme.

1.2 The main conference was evaluated by participants using the key areas and indicators in the evaluation tool, “How Good Is The Event?”. This report is based on evidence from observations of the I-PROBE team, participants’ comments (oral and in writing) throughout the seminar, and feedback from the evaluation workshop on the final day.

2 Quality of the transnational element

2.1 It was clear from the high number of participants (almost 200 across the two events, representing 20 countries) that there is great interest within Europe in the topic of school self-evaluation, and a need for more events of this nature. The range of countries at the conference was a major strength, with many participants commenting that they were very pleased to find so many Romanian delegates present at both the conference and the seminar. The mixture of teachers, headteachers , school inspectors and national agency representatives was felt to be a very positive feature of this event and, as one group noted, “helped to break down barriers”.

2.2 The working language of the conference was English, and the organisers were extremely impressed by the participants’ excellent command of the language. Of course, there were opportunities for other languages to be used eg. French was used in one of the Welcome addresses and in an evaluation workshop on the final day.

2.3 The Romanian organisers and participants were very eager to provide the foreign delegates with information about the culture and history of their country. Their enthusiasm was infectious and greatly contributed to a deeper understanding of Romanian life and, of course, the education system. One of the evaluation groups commented that the event had “challenged national assumptions”.

1 3 Structure, Content and Delivery

3.1 Participants were generally happy with the conference programme and commented favourably on the quality of the keynote speeches and the logical structure of the programme with its balance of formal presentations, workshops and practical examples. There was a feeling, however, that there was not a clear enough distinction between the content of the workshop sessions and that of the practical examples, and that these sessions were too short (one hour maximum) to allow for real and meaningful discussion. In total, 40 workshops and practical sessions were offered, and the organising team were extremely pleased by the very high level of interest in these – many sessions were full (20 was the maximum for each), and everyone seemed to find something of interest to attend.

3.2 One of the sessions in the programme required participants to go to a local school in Sibiu (2 establishments were used) in order to have computer access for looking at the I-PROBE website and the virtual learning environment . Although the pupils had finished for the day, it was interesting to see the school building, though the workshop was not particularly successful because of the extremely slow internet access when many machines were trying to connect to the same site. On the other hand, the social programme of the conference was extremely well-received, with delegates enjoying a visit to an open-air museum on the final day.

3.3 For future events, the I-PROBE team must certainly take account of this feedback by allowing more time both for discussion in the workshop sessions and for the formative and summative self-evaluation activity.

4 Materials, resources, equipment

4.1 In advance of the seminar, practical information was provided to participants via the I-PROBE website where an online registration facility was available. The opportunity was also there for participants to have assistance with travel arrangements to Sibiu from both the local airport and from Bucharest.

4.2 On arrival in Sibiu, all participants were provided with a conference folder containing information about the conference, together with fairly extensive documentation from keynote speakers and workshop leaders, and information about the town of Sibiu itself.. Further background documentation was issued for some of the the keynote speeches and workshops. Although there was a feeling that perhaps too much paper-based material was provided (and a suggestion that this could have been provided on a CD-ROM), the general feeling was that the information was useful. It is intended that the presentations etc. will be posted on the I-PROBE web space for ease of access and as a record of the conference.

4.3 Participant access to computers during the conference was not possible (except for the session introducing the I-PROBE website and virtual learning

2 environment), but this did not seem to be a problem for anyone.

5 Quality of the domestic arrangements

5.1 It is particularly important in residential events that the domestic arrangements are well thought-out so that delegates feel comfortable and secure. Two hotels were used (one for the conference participants and the other for those attending the contact seminar). These were centrally located and only a few minutes walk from the University, the main venue for both events. The accommodation and catering was perfectly satisfactory, and there was a high level of appreciation for the buffet event on the first evening when participants were arriving at different times.

6 Key strengths

6.1 In conclusion, it was clear that this was a highly successful seminar with a number of strengths identified by the participants:  The clarity of the aim of the conference together with the logical and balanced structure of the programme  The high quality and relevant contribution from the keynote speakers and workshop leaders  The communication, both formal and informal, and the opportunity to exchange ideas and learn from each other  The number of countries represented, and the different languages used  The I-PROBE partners worked as a team and were visible  The high level of participation by everyone and the variety of different backgrounds (teachers, headteachers, inspectors etc)  The volume of information provided (indicative of the complexity of the topic)

7 Areas for Action

7.1 Although successful overall, there were some areas where improvement could be made in future events:  A lighter programme, allowing more time for reflection and self- evaluation  Longer workshops, with fewer participants, to give more opportunity for discussion  More information about the content of the workshops so that participants can make more informed choices  An opportunity for participants to work together in small groups and then present their conclusions (especially in the afternoons instead of a keynote speech)

3 8 Conclusions

8.1 Although this report does not include an evaluation of the contact seminar, it was clear that it had been very successful to hold the two events together with common areas in the programme. This was an obvious demonstration of synergy between the I-PROBE thematic network activities (Comenius 3) and the Comenius 1 contact seminar. Informal feedback received from participants at the contact seminar suggested that they, too, were very pleased by the event.

8.2 For the I-PROBE team, the next step will be to learn from the experience in Sibiu, and take the feedback into consideration whilst planning for the next event. Some of the participants had also defined their own targets for action when they returned to their institutions: disseminating materials and informing colleagues; putting some of the ideas into practice; maintaining contact with each other etc.

8.3 A clear aim for the next I-PROBE conference (provisionally arranged for late September 2003 in Lincolnshire, England) would be to include in the programme a range of case study exemplars (eg. schools describing how they have put some of the evaluation ideas into practice). This would provide a logical progression from the overarching theory of the Sibiu event.

Rosetta McLeod Principal Officer Aberdeen City Education Department Summerhill Centre Stronsay Drive Aberdeen AB15 6JA Scotland

Tel: +44 1224 346079 Fax: +44 1224 346061 Email:[email protected]

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