YOUTH VOICES (guide) 18

REFLECT ANDRESEARCHREFLECT ANDRESEARCH

Aim: to reflect and evaluate the action project and the youth group, through all phases.

At each phase, the group should ReflectReflect upon the process and how the project is progressing regarding the goals and objectives.

During the Project

Organizational levelDecide at the beginning of the project what the purpose of the ResearchResearch is. Is it for improving the youth group? Is it to evaluate how well the organization supports youth driven initiatives? Is it to collect feedback for funding proposals and reports?

Individual levelAt the beginning of the project, youth also should develop both personal and group goals/indicators of success. These can be framed as things the youth want to get out of the group or see happen in the group. They can also be thought of as outcomes that would make the group a positive experi-ence.

The group goals/indicators of success should be revisited and refined at each new phase of the project to see if they are still relevant or if they need to be changed or added to.

Group levelHow do you know that you are achieving what you want to achieve? Setting group indicators of success is one way for the youth to measure the success of the group. These are all of the little successes of the group and the things they achieve at each phase. They are not supposed to be a complex list of indicators, or be the proposed outcomes for the project, but rather a ‘small steps’ approach to the successes of the group. Draw up an initial list of indicators of success and build on these at every phase.

For example: Just the fact that the group met and committed to coming back again, is a success.

Someone should keep track of these over the course of the project as they will be revised and added to as the group progresses. This may be you as the facilitator, or perhaps a task for one of the participants.

Refer to the PlanPlan phase for ideas on how to incorporate this into your project.

tip: Research evaluation is simply assessing what you have learnt and achieved.

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End of ProjectLevels of Reflection and Research- there are four main levels of reflection and research that the groups should consider:

INDIVIDUAL: Outcomes for youth group members Things they learned about themselves and about working in a group e.g. skills they learnt or refined, beliefs about group action, etc. Outcomes for facilitators and other staff Assess how effective they were in supporting authentic youth involvement GROUP: Outcomes of the Youth Group as a whole These include things the youth wanted to get out of the group or see happen in the group (processes and successes). They can include what made the group a positive experience and a challenging one. ACTION: Effectiveness of the Action Project The youth need to evaluate the effectiveness of their action project against the project objectives they set in the planning phase. This requires reflecting back on the objective and measuring changes e.g. feedback survey from audience/community COMMUNITY: Impact on the organization and Impact on the wider community The facilitators and organization need to reflect and evaluate the project e.g. if the group achieved what it had set out to do, how it has impacted on the organization and community, and how effective the organization was in supporting youth action projects. The group should assess the impact their project had on community, province and nation.

Please refer to REFLECT/REsearch Appendix for activity ideas, references to excellent youth-driven evaluation and research methods.

tip: Document the project throughout by taking pictures or video. Great for keepsakes, gifts for youth, reflection, presentations, reports, etc.

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Checklist of things to accomplish during the Reflect Phase:

Create individual and group indicators of success/evaluation for the project at the beginning of the work Revisit the goals/indicators of success at each new phase of the Youth Voices process Take stock of whether the goals/indicators of success were achieved at the end of each Youth Voices cycle Evaluate the action against the objectives the group set during the Plan phase Decide what kind of research the group and project need

Reflect/Research Appendix:

Successes Activity Knowledge and Skills Learnt Activity Reflect/Research/Ending ActivityResearch/Evaluation ReferencesGroup Recognition Exercise

EndingsEven though the project and process was an achievement; to end, whether it is the group or the project, can bring up certain issues that the facilitator and participants must acknowledge and work on. Ending can mean loss for some participants and each will respond differently to ending e.g. anger, detachment, self-esteem issues. This is a great opportunity to demonstrate and foster a positive and healthy ending. Acknowledging that endings can be intense, and doing exercises that honor and celebrate the individual, the group and the work that has been done are important. For Activity please refer to Appendix Reflect/Research/Ending exercise

“Thanks. This helped me get towards my dreams”

Youth Voices participant

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