Using Site Evaluations with Students

[1] Background and Purpose:

Reviewing Site Evaluations with students is a critical practice throughout the course of a Bonner student’s experience. The Site Evaluation process allows for site managers to provide constructive feedback about a student’s service performance and also allows a student to share feedback with the site manager and program staff about the service placement. Discussing site evaluations with students not only provides an opportunity both to address the site supervisor’s assessment of the student’s service work, but can be a launching board for discovering more about the student’s approach, work style, sense of direction, and level of responsibility and challenge. While this practice also falls into the Community Partnership area, because staff respond to the feedback from partners, the use of site evaluations within the context of one-to-one meetings and small group meetings should not be overlooked. The site relationship is also a key part of the student developmental process, as it is the place where the student is being called on to fulfill professional roles and responsibilities that impact others with the agency and community.

[2] Benchmarks:

CRITICAL CONTENT FOR SITE EVALUATIONS:

The Bonner Foundation has provided a Site Evaluation Form that ties in with the Community Learning Agreement (CLA). Some campuses have elected to modify this form or use their own. Regardless of what form is used, forms must be user-friendly and critical content includes:

• For the Site Supervisor: an opportunity to evaluate the student’s performance regarding:
  • clearly defined expectations for professionalism
  • expectations of the specific service placement
  • areas for growth and learning
  • relationships within the agency and with clients served

• For the Program Staff Member: an opportunity to evaluate the student’s performance regarding:
  • clearly defined expectations for professionalism/performance
  • expectations of the Bonner Program (participation)
  • areas for growth and learning
  • relationships within the Bonner community, with staff and other students

• For the Student Him/Herself: an opportunity to evaluate his/her own performance and also the site in terms of:
  • clearly defined expectations for professionalism/performance (both how s/he is doing and how the site management has been)
  • participation in and meeting expectations of the Bonner Program
  • progress on learning, skill development, and competencies; areas for growth and learning
  • relationships with site staff and clients, within the Bonner community, and with staff and other students

• The Bonner Foundation stipulates that Site Evaluations be completed by both site managers and students (at least) once per semester. The process of distributing and collecting such evaluations varies; some campuses request that evaluations be mailed directly to Bonner staff while others have students collect them and hand them over.
  

• In order to prepare, review the Site Evaluation. Make some notes about questions you have or topics for discussion. Try to think about the following:
  • Be intentional about asking questions that are both open-ended and close-ended. Open-ended questions provide the student with a chance to share more information, to reflect, or to make connections (such as about perceptions of the experience, the balance of support and challenge, personal growth). Close-ended questions may be helpful to get specific, accurate responses to important questions (such as about professionalism, actions of the supervisor, etc.)
  • Be intentional in asking about results (what has been done or accomplished), process (how the work has been done, what the work environment and processes are like) and relationships (how the student is relating to supervisors, peers, and those involved with the agency). It’s important to seek information in all of these areas and to help students achieve balance and effectiveness in them.

[3] Examples of Excellence and Innovation:

Review the Site Supervisor’s Recommendations for Areas of Growth

• The Site Supervisor’s Review can be used as a springboard for reflection and discussion with the student. You may want to consider having the student think about his or her own areas for growth, and you may want to do the same. A good conversation point may be to share these various recommendations (the student’s, yours, and the supervisor’s) and why they may be similar and/or different.