Assignment #2

ECUR 809 – Assignment #2

After taking another look at the prenatal exercise program to promote physical fitness as a way to prevent gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in urban First Nations women, I have decided that Stufflebeam’s CIPP model would be an appropriate method of evaluation for it.  The Scriven summative model did provide some tactics that would be beneficial to the study of the program, such as the questionnaire that participants filled out to provide their own feedback on the structure and implementation of the program, but I think that the CIPP model is a more structured method that would allow for goals and outcomes to be clarified from the start. 

The context evaluation in this program is the need for finding a feasible way to decrease the onset of type 2 diabetes in urban Aboriginal women.  By defining this goal clearly from the start, the decision makers in the program can use their resources to find different opportunities to make the outcome a reality.    

The input evaluation is the way to address the practical aspects of the program to determine how sustainable it would be in the long run.  Staffing and facility usage are two pieces that would need to be budgeted for to determine cost-effectiveness in the onset of the program.  I think that this is critical at the beginning stages of the program because in the previous evaluation that I read, the program did not continue due to lack of funds.  If funding was determined to prolong the program from the beginning, it would see greater success.

The process evaluation would be assessed as women participated in the structured program, and records were maintained by staff to study the effectiveness and success of different forms of physical activities.  Changes could be made to scheduling conflicts and more time could be allotted for preferred exercise.  The final product evaluation would be determined after a group of women participated in the program for a specific time.  This is where I think the questionnaire would still be beneficial.  Feedback from participants would help to determine what changes could be made for greater success in meeting the targeted goals. 

The CIPP model provides a structured approach to evaluating the physical fitness program that I think would be valuable since it clearly states goals, it helps to address cost-effectiveness, and it determines practical aspects of making the program feasible over the long term.  It also allows for changes to be made during the process, as well as reflection when studying the final outcome.