Youth Participatory Evaluation: Strategies for Engaging Young People

Abstract

251 Children, Youth and Environments Vol. 17 No. 3 (2007) ISSN: 1546-2250 Youth Participatory Evaluation: Strategies for Engaging Young People Sabo-Flores, Kim (2007). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass; 164 pages. $45. ISBN 0787983926. Meaningful youth evaluation is necessary to maintain the legitimacy of the programs through which youth are served. This principle is especially relevant in light of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), adopted in part to promote the self-reliance of the world's children by furthering their development, education and community participation. Writing in a language accessible to everyone interested in young people's participation, evaluation expert Kim Sabo-Flores offers a timely yet reliable handbook on the “whys and hows” of youth participatory evaluation (YPE). Divided into two parts, the book first provides a survey of the surprisingly limited history of YPE and its underlying principles before detailing its practical applications. Each chapter provides a handily outlined introduction to its concepts, contents and intentions, and includes practical personal anecdotes. The theoretical framework for Youth Participatory Evaluationis rooted in Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development, in that the value of an activity is more than just the individual action, but the interaction with other people throughout the process of engagement as well. By interacting with others who are more competent, a person raises his or her own level of development: a process of learning, leading and development that is essential throughout the life cycle, not just in the phases of youth.Sabo-Flores examines the concept of the ZPD further in Chapter Two when she connects YPE and the role of performance. She explores this relationship throughout the rest of the guide, with an emphasis on both the responsibility of the performance director and the collective practices of character role-playing. Traditional evaluation often seems irrelevant or of little use to program stakeholders. YPE, however, encourages explorative play among all participants, 252 recognizing that neither problems nor solutions are known in advance, all the while fostering a genuinely participatory environment. A strategic component to program success, youth participatory evaluation strengthens relationships while supporting youth empowerment and civic engagement. Youth participants experience increased social, civic and personal competencies, while adult participants witness an enhanced sense of community and greater awareness of youth needs and concerns. One caution with regard to the adult personal growth and transformation that Sabo-Flores credits to YPE is that the willing adult participants of youth evaluations may be more open to new experiences than other adults who are not involved in these projects—a risk similar to the validity threat posed by self-selection in study designs. While SaboFlores offers remedies for the dilemma of self-selection among youth participants, she does not address this issue where adult stakeholders are concerned. The second part of the book offers a practical application of YPE, from starting a YPE project to selecting a team and assembling a plan. Sabo-Flores does note, however, that rather than presenting the process as a whole, she has chosen to offer arange of activities from which to choose in conducting a YPE initiative. Each of the constructive activities includes intentions, steps and guidelines to facilitate the YPE process. Universal in scope and application, many of the role-playing endeavors could just as easily be applied during community engagement projects or organizational capacity building, with or without youth. The activities are initially presented as unconnected suggestions that help facilitate an evaluative process, though they seem to be cumulative and interdependent. Youth Participatory Evaluation creates agents of social change, empowering youth to manifest qualities that they and others around them may not have previously recognized. The strongest and most successful YPE projects are those with stakeholders—youth included—engaged in every stage of the evaluation process. Based on many of her own experiences, Sabo-Flores is able to provide the optimal conditions for YPE, which include a supportive, stable 253 organization committed to meaningful youth input and evaluation. At the end of the book, the author offers the disclaimer that it is easy to speak only of program achievements and that her experiences detailed throughout the book might imply that she has witnessed nothing but success...