NARRATIVE EVALUATION ACTION RESEARCH

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NARRATIVE EVALUATION ACTION RESEARCH

• WORKSHOP 1.
• Keryn McNaught

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Overview

• Background
• Objectives
• Narrative evaluation defined
• You as the writer
• Principles and practice - writing your story
• To do/not to do toolbox
• Testing your narrative with your audience
• Support structure for writing your narrative

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Background

• DHS Reporting requirementsquantitative and
  richer qualitative narrative evaluation.
• ISIS PC Western Region pilot agencies
• Adj Prof Yoland Wadsworth, Swinburne University
  of Technology
• Gai Wilson, Latrobe University
• Dr. Ani Wierenga, University of Melbourne
• The DHS Karen Goltz
• ISIS PC Management support

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Objectives

• To complete a narrative for a defined project,
  which will be submitted with the July 30, 2005
  DHS Health Promotion Reports.
• For participants to use their narrative writing
  skills in other work undertaken at ISIS PC (where
  appropriate).

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What is Narrative Evaluation?

• Narrative is a story a spoken or written account
  of connected events in order of their happening.
  Provides rich comprehensive data. Meshes well
  with action research model.
• Evaluation how are we going?, how did we
  go?, how do we want to go, how do we think
  this will go?.
• Action Research continuous cycles of stop,
  think, reflect, question, have second thoughts
  deeper level of understanding rather than just
  hurtling ahead what worked last time.

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Richer more comprehensive data

• After extensive research the decision was made to
  consult with the local elderly Vietnamese
  community to establish their health needs.
• We chose the Vietnamese community for this
  project due to the high population numbers and
  the low numbers accessing our services. We
  wanted to know answers to so many questions? How
  could we make our services more relevant to their
  needs? But the sheer number of Vietnamese people
  in our neighborhood was daunting, so we chose a
  smaller group to begin with. We began by talking
  to the local elderly Vietnamese community

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From acronymic dot points -to richer detail

• IPC tours 19 participants
• Nineteen Vietnamese community members have had
  tours of our centres in the Vietnamese language.
  Now they know where we are and what will happen
  when they walk in the door.

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You as the writer

• Oh Im not a story writer!
• Your prior knowledge about research and
  evaluation

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Warm-up exercises

• Exercise 1 What makes a good narrative?
• Exercise 2 Focusing on health promotion and
  who its all for

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Warm-up exercises cont..

• Exercise 3 - Evaluation (The Mug evaluation)

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Warm-up exercises cont..

• Exercise 4 Action Research (Strategic
  questions)

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Planning for writing your story

• What is the story? Choose what type of story to
  write is it a health promotion mystery? A
  thriller? A comedy? Encapsulate the basic story
  in an inviting title.
• Who are you telling the story to?
• Whos telling the story? Whose story is it? Is
  it your personal voice? A warm collegial voice?
  Is it I, or We of them or a combination?
• Give the story a basic structure
  Highpoints/features that are connected.

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Continued

• At the beginning capture the readers attention
  state the problem even dramatise. Who are the
  players? The characters?
• The setting - what is in the background? Can we
  smell feel the stage, the backdrop or
  environment?
• A middle -Identify progress or lack of it. Were
  there stops starts. Events, highlights,
  barriers?
• An end - provisional or never ending. Needs to
  include a take home message

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Toolbox for successful narrative writing

• Everyone has their own writing style find it and
  practice it.
• You need a story to tell
• Time
• Peers to review your story (writing, reading
  drafts and discussing what worked).
• Need to be expressive in your writing (invoke
  curiosity, what happened next?).
• Honesty accuracy
• Willingness to receive feedback
• Ability to ask the questions Why, Who, How,
  When.
• Keeping a Journal

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To do/not to do. Toolbox tricks

• Use direct quotes or statements (and provide
  context for quotes)
• Use simple language (use instead of utilise).
• Definitely no jargon
• Colorful informative headings. Provides context
  for the paragraph/s.
• If using quotes/other peoples stories, ensure
  that it is true and accurate (check with them).
• A story not dot points.
• Writing alone or writing together
• It is your story
• Writing in bits/or in its entirety

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Continued

• Raw writing can actually be the most powerful
  and you can lose that by over editing.
• Letting go of some of the smaller story lines
• Having to condense and refine what is being said.
• Debrief, blame then ask the questions why, how,
  when?
• Value in thinking twice, reflecting, muse for a
  couple of weeks to think about any extra
  information.
• Enjoy

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Testing if the narratives are valuable (community)

• What did I learn from writing or reading this?
• Did I see my experience reflected in
  the/this/that story?
• Is this my story/ the story of our group?

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Health Promotion Workers

• What did I learn from writing/reading this?
• Did I learn how to create change towards health
  promotion?
• Do I see my professional experience reflected in
  the/this/that story?
• Is this my story or that of our
  program/service/centre?

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Funders/policy makers

• What did I learn from reading this?
• Did I learn how the funded service works towards
  its achieving change towards health promotion?
• How does this relate to our departmental
  professional experience?
• How might this relate to the directions DHS is
  trying to move in?

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About the narrative

• Approximately 1500 words or 4 typed pages.
• Commence drafting narratives January February
• Workshop 2 Discussing draft narratives March
  2005
• Further drafting/crafting/individual support-
  April/May/June
• Completion of Narrative July 1, 2004

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Support Assistance

• Support from HPOs at each of the LGAs
• Support from one another
• Support persons will ask questions rather than
  offer advice
• Support persons will hold back on
  correcting/giving directional feedback