Designing evaluation and research into educational initiatives: the Global Perspectives Program

We describe the planning for evaluation research using a curriculum initiative project as a case study. The project was to design a generic Global Perspectives (GP) learning program to embed in first year units of study offered by the Faculty of Health Science. The pilot phase of the GP program delivery was used to explore and define an educational evaluation research (EER) plan that addresses, 1) the GP program design; 2) its implementation and ongoing refinement and, 3) the management of the project. The GP program is presented from an e-learning design perspective and its EER plan is based on the design framework in (Phillips, McNaught et al. 2012). The paper provides a high level view of the EER plan for the GP program over each stage of the design life cycle and for the evaluation of project management. The paper discusses the rationale for an EER plan, the book as a guide for research and practice in evaluating e-learning and the relationship of the GP program to learning, teaching and leading for the future.