Validation versus evaluation – what's the crucial difference?

TrainingZone

Validation versus evaluation – what’s the crucial difference?

By TrainingZone

Come and join EvaluationZone's next online workshop:

Thursday 11 April 2002
4:00 PM UK time (16:00 hrs BST)

So, does your training, development, learning intervention work? What evidence could you provide to answer this question?

Some trainers will say the delegates loved the experience – OK that validates it at a very low level. Some will say that the trainees got good scores on their tests – OK, that's validation too. Some will even go to the trouble of observing trainees back in their workplace, even visiting them up to 6 months later – well that's validation as well.

Have you noticed what is missing in all of these examples? They do not tell us what impact any of these learning events had on the business. This is the key question that validation always fail to answer. Only evaluation measures will tells us that. Evaluation always has a £ or $ sign attached. If you cannot attach a £ sign benefit to your training you cannot evaluate it.

Join our next EvaluationZone workshop at 16:00 (BST/GMT+1) on Thursday 11th April and learn how to speak the real language of evaluation that means something to your Managing Director.

Most trainers who are asked whether they evaluate their training genuinely believe that happy sheets qualify as an 'evaluation'. The real difference though between validation and evaluation is that trainers who only validate are setting a very low standard for their training. This might make their lives easier but it does nothing for their credibility or contribution to business performance.

Trainers who have had problems understanding the difference between validation and evaluation can join the discussion live and online with their professional colleagues and get some better answers.

Here are some of the questions we will be dealing with during the workshop: -

Why Level 4 is the only level of evaluation.

Does internal and external validation just confuse the issue?

How important is validation if it does not tell us anything very useful?

Why evaluation always refers to added value with a £ sign

How evaluation ensures line managers will take ownership for training

How evaluation raises the standards of your training efforts.

Evaluation uses the language of the business to prove that training works

Only evaluation links training directly to strategic business objectives

Why the IiP standard has always acceptedthe lower standard of validation rather than evaluation

After this workshop you will never confuse these two key words again and you will start to raise your game above your professional colleagues who are kidding themselves that validation is good enough for them.

If you haven't already done so, Subscribe now to EvaluationZone and join us online on Thursday 11th April at 16:00 hours (BST/GMT+1)