File:POERUP D7.3 Final-Evaluation-Report v1.0.pdf

Introduction

This report corresponds to the final evaluation report (D7.3) as defined in the proposal:

This report gives the evaluator's view of the project at the end of the project. It must cover all results from the project including contributions from participants at events who are not project staff - and input from end-users. The report will address how the action plans drawn up during the project have been integrated into project activity to address any weakness that may have noted. It is expected that despite the summative nature of such a report for this project, it will offer some suggestions for similar projects in the future.

This report draws on the evaluation plan (D7.1) and covers the entire period of the project, with specific reference to the last six months - January-June 2014, providing a detailed account of evaluation activity and results. It concludes with a series of recommendations for other projects, based on the lessons learnt emerging from evaluation activities and from the evaluator's observation of the project.

Conclusion and recommendations

This final evaluation report thus provides an account of the implementation of the evaluation plan (D7.1) throughout the project. As has been seen, the main activities planned have been carried out, the deliverables are consistent with the work plan and any adjustments have been duly justified by the project team members.

POERUP was an ambitious project, in terms of its scope and the sometimes sensitive and frequently changing area of educational policy. The project faced a number of challenges, not least the different working cultures and expectations of partners in terms of leadership and internal communication. Further challenges on the management side included having to deal with the impact of bankruptcy of one partner, institutional restructuring within another and delays in resolving contractual and financial issues. The partnership was well aware of these difficulties and took steps to address them, although some, such as the attention to different working cultures and the integration of new partners, could have been dealt with more explicitly and from the outset. While the unforeseen activities did take up a great deal of time and effort, in particular from the coordinator, the project managed to stay on track and deliver highly satisfactory results.

Some of these actually go beyond what the initial work plan promised, such as the data visualisation of OER initiatives and policies around the world. The need to improve the attractiveness of the POERUP wiki front page was highlighted by partners during the first internal evaluation (September 2012), in order to make content easier to find. Reactions to the data visualisation map during its first public showing at the EDEN 2014 Annual Conference in Zagreb would suggest that this addition is more than cosmetic and could encourage further engagement with the question of OER policy and initiatives as stakeholders from outside the project come forward with their own contributions. This thus provides an opportunity for POERUP to continue exploiting results after the project lifetime, on condition that the wiki be suitably maintained for a sufficient period. It is the evaluator’s understanding that such mechanisms and commitment are in place.

In conclusion, it can be said that POERUP has achieved its aims, despite the numerous challenges the project had to overcome.