National Evaluation Guide for STEM Equity Programs

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"Program evaluation helps us know if we're being effective in creating change. The National Evaluation Guide is a simple step-by-step tool that helps you evaluate your equity program."
IsabelleKingsley
Isabelle Kingsley
Research Associate | Office of the Women in STEM Ambassador

Australia has hundreds of STEM equity programs that seek to address the underrepresentation of girls and women in STEM [1], but are they working? By evaluating programs, we can understand if our actions are effective to create positive change.

The Office of the Women in STEM Ambassador developed a National Evaluation Guide for STEM equity programs (the Guide). The Guide delivers on a key recommendation of the Women in STEM Decadal Plan. It is also an integral part of the Australian Government’s Advancing Women in STEM 2020 Action Plan.

The Guide is a simple evaluation tool that offers practical advice and breaks down program evaluation into 5 easy steps. It outlines how to create an evaluation plan, put it into action and share the findings.

We bundled the Guide with a set of complementary resources, available below.

View a short video of responses to frequently asked questions (FAQs) about the Guide. 

To build on this work, the Office has received additional funding from the Australian Government to design a STEM Equity Evaluation Portal (the Portal)—an evaluation planning and reporting tool, and a repository of program evaluations. The Portal will be launched in 2022.

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Contains detailed ideas, advice, worksheets, templates and examples (68 pages).

Summarises the key ideas of the National Evaluation Guide (7 pages).

Illustrates the 5 steps of program evaluation (1 page).

Contains real examples of program evaluation plans and final reports.

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References:

  1. McKinnon M. (2020). The absence of evidence of the effectiveness of Australian gender equity in STEM initiatives. Australian Journal of Social Issues. Advanced online publication. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajs4.142

Learn more about our publications

The Office of the Women in STEM Ambassador supports publications about women's participation in STEM in Australia. Click to find out more.

Find more resources

Explore science communication programs for women in STEM, podcasts about STEM gender equity and other resources. Click to find out more.