Evaluation and Research in Education
Editor: Professor Keith Morrison, Inter-University Institute of Macau
Associate Editor: Professor Stephen Gorard, University of York
Statistical Adviser: Professor Colin Baker, University of Wales Bangor
Reviews Editor: Dr. Emma Smith, University of York
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Volume: 21 Number: 1 Page: 4–17
doi:10.2167/eri417.0
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Applying a Mixed Method Design to Evaluate Training Seminars Within an Early Childhood Education Project
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Vasilis Grammatikopoulos1, Evridiki Zachopoulou2, Niki Tsangaridou3, Jarmo Liukkonen4 and Ian Pickup5
1Department of Physical Education & Sport Science, University of Thessaly, Karies-Trikala, Greece, 2Department of Early Childhood Care & Education, Alexandrio Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki, Greece, 3Department of Education, University of Cyprus, Cyprus, 4Department of Sport Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Finland and 5School of Education, Roehampton University, London UK
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The body of research relating to assessment in education suggests that professional developers and seminar administrators have generally paid little attention to evaluation procedures. Scholars have also been critical of evaluations which use a single data source and have favoured the use of a multiple method design to generate a complete picture of the effectiveness of procedures under evaluation. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate two training seminars using a mixed method design. The evaluation procedure was specifically designed to utilise triangulation of sources and to follow Killion's eight-step process. The seminars were part of the ‘Early Steps’ project, a European Union (EU) Comenius Programme, concerning the development and implementation of an alternative physical education curriculum for preschool pupils. Results of the study support the assertion that a mixed method design increases the validity of the evaluation procedure. It is suggested here that educational evaluation procedures, inherently difficult to measure directly, may successfully utilise multiple measures. Such measures should be various in nature, and combine qualitative and quantitative approaches and – when used appropriately – can also help to predict the likely impact of training on teachers’ behaviours and professional practice.
Keywords: mixed method evaluation, training evaluation, triangulation, preschool education
© 2008 V. Grammatikopoulos et al.
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