Post-Conference Review
Roundtable Discussion: Program Assessment / Impact Evaluation

Fourteen attendees participated in a facilitated roundtable discussion on the subject of program assessment and impact evaluation. Handouts illustrating elements of needs assessment, the planning cycle, and levels of evaluation framed the discussion of challenges faced by judicial educators in an era of accountability. Specifically, the group noted difficulty balancing “forward thinking” training committees with “responsive” planning, and difficulty balancing what a needs assessment indicates about training versus what the Administrative Office of the Courts wants to do (or can do). Much of the remaining discussion focused on core competencies and on evaluation of courses.

The group noted a general dissatisfaction with existing evaluations and expressed frustration with emerging requirements to assess behavior change and results after training, particularly with limited resources. One participant noted that the ABA and NCJFCJ have been working on a standardized training evaluation that might assist in addressing these challenges, and indicated he would forward more information to NASJE when the document was finished. The discussion concluded with thoughts on using online surveys to assess learning and the types of participant feedback planners share with faculty.

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