Appendix 4: Guidelines for Evaluating Continuing Education Programs

Feedback from participants, peers, reviewers, and instructors is essential to assess the quality and relevance of individual courses and programs of continuing education courses.

Use the course evaluation forms that follow or construct your own to assist in collecting feedback from students after they take a course. Lengthy evaluation forms typically defeat the purpose as participants are eager to leave – one sheet of paper with questions on both sides appears to yield the greatest results for face-to-face instruction. In an online learning format, an online survey or form can be emailed to participants during or immediately following a webcast or live training with a deadline for submitting responses. Include succinct questions and request answers based on a scale of one to five as well as open-ended questions encouraging more detailed responses. For online instruction in particular, consider sending multiple reminders asking students to take the course evaluation survey, both immediately after the course concludes and in the days following.

Ask participants about the complete education experience, including:

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Communication skills of presenter

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Organization of the course

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How well did the course meet the stated learning outcomes

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Clarity of course content

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Student’s confidence level in topic after completing course

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Relevance of training

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How difficult the course was

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How well the course fit the advertised description

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Supplemental materials, including any pre-course assignments

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What was missing

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Accessibility (both online and in-person). For example, were there any technological barriers to participation online, or physical barriers while attending in-person?

Evaluations allow instructors and education providers to identify areas for improvement in course content, presentation, and materials. Both instructors and education providers should review course evaluation feedback carefully, and incorporate feedback from evaluations into the design of the course. Pay particular attention to negative comments, even if there are few. Assess their legitimacy and attempt to address the concerns they raise even while keeping positive comments in mind.

Course assessment and evaluation does not have to be limited to a survey immediately following the course. Consider other ways in which the effectiveness of a course can be measured as well, such as using course auditors who can provide feedback on instruction and materials, or incorporating course feedback throughout, particularly for longer courses. This could include short quizzes or asking students for feedback on what they have learned at the end of content sections.