Introduction
In order to identify what changes, if any, are necessary in a particular case, it is critical to evaluate the current state of affairs. For a social worker, evaluation means assessing the relevance of any interventions that have taken place in the situation under the review, judging by their outcomes (Smith, 2018). It gains a special importance in cases where the actual results of those interventions do not correspond to the expected ones, for instance, reveal the apparent insufficiency of the measures taken. Sandra Malone’s case is doubtlessly one of such, as the social, educational, and health care programs her family is enrolled in are not enough to assist her in solving her problems.
Why to Measure
As said above, outcomes are a major criterion for assessing how relevant a certain action or initiative is. Thus, in the case under the review, one of Sandra’s children, Molly, participates in an educational program, but her academic performance remains poor. Another child, the eldest son Sean, also has difficulties with studies; in addition, he continues to show aggressive behaviors, notwithstanding his permanent stay in a correctional institution. As for the youngest daughter Caitlin, she presumably has disturbed sleep, which may be connected or not to her periodic attendance of a home daycare. The abnormalities determine the need for assessment, so that it becomes apparent whether all of the children find themselves in appropriate conditions and receive all forms of aid they need.
What to Measure
Meaningfulness
This concept is also possible to label as significance or valuableness and stands for the degree to which a certain intervention is actually necessary. Measuring this criterion needs to be based on the problems a particular child has. For instance, aggression management is meaningful for Sean but would be meaningless for Patrick who is not reported to exhibit any negative behaviors on a regular basis.
Practicality
One of the most important measures to evaluate any kind of work is practicality, simply put, a variable that shows how applicable some theoretical knowledge is in practice. Smith (2018) with a reference to Cook & Morton highlights that “understanding what a programme does, how it works and the difference it makes to outcomes is […] fundamental […]” (p. 5). In other words, it is critical to be aware of what problems an intervention covers and how it may be useful in solving them. For instance, in case of Sean, it would be relevant to check whether Sussex Correctional Institution, where he is incarcerated, works with aggression in adolescents, and how exactly. As for Molly, the question is whether the supervisors consider her individual peculiarities in the process of studies.
Credibility
Credibility is another essential variable, notably, a one to describe how trusted something is, for instance, relying upon the amount of participants, their reviews, experts’ opinions, and other aspects. In the given case, both Head Start, in which Molly is enrolled, and Sussex Correctional Institution are well-known governmental initiatives, which presupposes considerable trustworthiness. However, it may still be necessary to check the backgrounds and reputations of the personnel who work with the two children in order to eliminate any concerning factors.
When to Measure
The situation Sandra and her family have found themselves in doubtlessly requires an intervention as soon as possible. The main reason is that her children may develop worsening of the symptoms they show unless their mental well-being is controlled by specialists. It is also worth noting that there is currently no one other than social workers to help Sandra, as her parents report not having enough energy because of their age.
Efficiency and Effectiveness
The concepts of effectiveness and efficiency are not identical, although equally helpful in assessing outcomes. Effectiveness is a more transparent measure that actually shows whether or not specific intermediate results, which are also frequently referred to as objectives, have been achieved (“Evaluation Guidelines”, n.d.).
Thus, in the case of Molly, the regular Head Start program is apparently not effective enough since she does not gain new knowledge and skills in the scope in which she would normally do. The same is applicable to Sean whose insufficient motivation roots at poor academic performance that, in turn, results from the difficulties he faces understanding the course work. Therefore, it is possible to proclaim that the educational programs the siblings are enrolled in do not have a sufficient effectiveness to satisfy their needs that are probably special.
As for efficiency, this measure reflects the relationship between inputs, which stands for the resources a particular initiative uses, and outputs, or results. It is essential to consider both quantitative and qualitative components because the least costly resource among all available is not necessarily the most appropriate in terms of outputs. Hence, it is not enough to look simply for the cheapest intervention. Measuring efficiency should allow for finding or designing a bunch of programs that have suitable quality and then choosing the most economical one from among them (“Evaluation Guidelines,” n.d.). For instance, Molly apparently needs psychological consultation, in which intervention the competence of a specialist in a qualitative benchmark, and their fee represents the quantitative factor.
Impediments to Look for
One of the questions to answer through the evaluation is why Sandra’s children, notably, Sean and Molly, are slow at their studies. Molly may have some developmental delay, in which case a regular Head Start curriculum may be unsuitable for her.
In Sean, unreasoned aggression is another symptom of a possible mental disorder, in which case he actually needs an individual approach. Meanwhile, it looks currently as if the personnel of Sussex Correctional Institution do not pay enough attention to Sean, and he does not trust them. This is assumable from the fact that he only told social worker about the root of his problems. Therefore, low competence or involvement of the specialists is also in the list of impediments to look for. This may also be present in the case of Caitlin, whose sleep disturbance is possibly derivable from the lack of proper care.
Tools to Use
It would apparently be most reasonable to use qualitative methods in evaluation in the given case. Those are, in particular, the ones that enable assessing psychological and psychical development of children of various ages as well as the competence of educationalists. Quantitative measurement is also possible, particularly, when it comes to efficiency; however, the outcomes can only be used as supplementary evidence to illustrate those of qualitative assessment.
Conclusion
Notwithstanding participating in several programs, the family of Malones are unable to have a better quality of life, which determines the need for evaluating those programs. Essential variables to measure are meaningfulness, or significance, practicality, which describes the way some theory works in practice, and credibility also possible to refer to as trustworthiness. The main question is why two of Sandra’s children are unable to perform academically at an acceptable level, and the probable answer is cognitive impairments in them along with insufficient competence of their supervisors.
References
Evaluation guidelines. (n.d.). Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. Web.
Smith, L. (2018). ESSS outline: Capturing social work impact. The Institute for Research and Innovation in Social Services.