ON THE IMPACT OF EVALUATION. APPLIED RESEARCH ON ARTS EDUCATION PROGRAMMES AS A TOOL FOR DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

In the last decade, quality standards for the practice of arts education have rightly risen. At the same time, it becomes more important for arts education projects to prove their success to funding bodies. This development has created an increasing need to assess the impact of arts education projects, often making it a self-referential action. This article takes one step back and raises the question more generally: what impact can an evaluation have on a project and how can it be done in order to create an added-value for the practice of arts education? By analysing the examples of the German-wide programme Arts and Games of the Robert Bosch Foundation and the Foundation Brandenburger Tor as well as the project Foyer Public of the Theatre Basel, both evaluated by the independent research institute EDUCULT in Vienna, possible impacts of evaluation on the projects themselves are presented. Results of this analysis shed light on lessons learned through these projects on a practical level. From research experience, to how assumptions are made about prerequisites, to how evaluations can be relevant to the practice and how it is possible to generate an impact. One option for achieving these goals is the implementation of a co-creative research design which is examined more in detail on a theoretical level, defining advantages and challenges of this approach.