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Peace Education and Culturally Responsive Evaluation: Emerging Theory and Practice
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| Presenter(s):
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| Helga Stokes, Duquesne University, stokesh@duq.edu
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| Abstract:
Peace education programs address conflicts that are rooted in a perception of otherness. Historical and ongoing injustices and inequities have led to mistrust and contention. Culture, ethnicity and diversity have become a source of conflict instead of an enrichment of societal life. Cultural responsiveness in the evaluation of such programs is therefore unquestionably a necessity. The debate is not about the need for cultural responsiveness in the evaluation of peace education programs, but rather about best practices and capacity building among evaluators. The presentation will discuss the complex nature of evaluating peace education programs, specifically programs serving populations who lived through conflict situations and strive to recover. The need for evaluators skilled in conducting such evaluations is highlighted and a pipeline program designed to increase the availability and training of culturally competent evaluators will be described. Practice examples in evaluation settings are given.
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Democratization and Corruption: An Evaluation of Anticorruption Strategies in Romania
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| Presenter(s):
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| Mihaiela Ristei, Western Michigan University, m2ristei@wmich.edu
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| Abstract:
Once a rarely discussed issue, corruption has become one of the most debated problems in the last fifteen years, particularly in the context of democratization. For post-communist countries, corruption has represented a particular challenge, undermining their process of democratic consolidation and transition to a market economy. The literature on corruption suggests that the strategies to contain corruption should be multi-pronged and include a variety of methods that focus on de-monopolizing decision making, limiting discretion, and strengthening accountability. As a candidate country to the European Union (EU), Romania had to demonstrate that it had the political will and the capability of effectively fighting corruption. This paper will evaluate the anticorruption strategies adopted in Romania prior to the EU accession and their effectiveness in achieving the desired effects. Additionally, the paper will make policy recommendations that would strengthen the existing anticorruption strategies and suggest new avenues to fight corruption.
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Evaluation in Spain: Practice and Institutionalization
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| Presenter(s):
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| Maria Bustelo, Complutense University at Madrid, mbustelo@cps.ucm.es
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| Jody Fitzpatrick, University of Colorado Denver, jody.fitzpatrick@ucdenver.edu
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| Abstract:
How is evaluation culture evolving in a relatively new democratic country in Europe, such as Spain? Which kind of evaluation practice is taking place in that new scenario? How are institutions reacting, and is there an evaluation policy taking place? Which lessons might be learned from contrasting other national realities and contexts?
Based on an analysis of the most recent developments in evaluation practice and institutionalization in Spain, as well as in interviews and a survey targeted to Spanish evaluation practitioners and commissioners, this paper intends to draw a picture of the evaluation field in that country.
A link with the recent democratic development of the country will be established in order to explain recent developments in evaluation practice, evaluation institutions, and professional and academic development. Policy domains, governmental level, size and types of evaluations, commissioners and stakeholders; purposes, approaches, questions and methods used; and evaluation utilization will be analyzed.
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