Planning an Effective Program Evaluation: A Short Course for Project Directors: Short Course FAQ's

Do you have a question about the online or CD short course that is not listed below? Send it to education@the-aps.org. Be sure to indicate that your question refers to the Planning An Effective Program Evaluation short course and whether your question refers to the web or CD course.

Using the Web Course

Q: What do I need to know about the Short Course?

A: The Short Course can be used in two ways: Survey the Course/”Read Only” and Full Short Course/”Create an Evaluation Planning Document.” The “Read Only” modes allows you to read through all of the articles, materials, and resources. You can select those items that you want to read and access them in any order. However, you will not create an evaluation planning document in this mode. The “Create an Evaluation Planning Document” mode allows you to access reading, review questions, and resources provided by the course, as well as, create a planning document that can be used in developing your final evaluation plan. Through a series of questions, you will enter information about your program such as title, participants, activities, program budget, goals, measurable objectives and evaluation questions. When you have completed the short course, you will save your Planning Document file as a Rich Text Format (rtf) file. You can open this file into a word processing program such as Microsoft Word or Wordperfect.

Q: If I save my information at the APS web site, how long can I expect it will be there?

A: The information you input for your planning document will be held at the site until you finish the course or for 60 days, whichever comes first. If you finish the course within 60 days of starting it, you will be able to save the information you entered for your planning document as a Rich Text File (rtf) that you can open in you word processing program. After 60 days, all information you entered will be deleted, whether or not you have finished the course.

Q: The course asks me to enter my email address. How will that address be used?

A: Your email address will only be used to send the Rich Text File to you at the end of the course and to contact you for your feedback on the course. It will not be used for a listserv or distributed to other organizations. It is important to use your correct email since the Rich Text File will be sent to this email address.

Q: Do I have to finish the course in one sitting? Do I lose the information I have entered into the planning document if I exit the course?

A: No, you can enter and leave the course as often as you like. When you login with your email address, the names of the previous database file(s) you were working on appear on the login page. You can open that file or create a new one as you wish. The course will take you back to the lesson where you exited. Only information that has been submitted and reviewed will be saved. Remember that your data will only be saved for 60 days.

Q: Can I use a “false” email to log in?

A: Yes, you can. However, if you complete the course, the Rich Text File will be sent to that email address. The APS staff cannot change your email in the database.

Q: The video and audio files at the beginning of each lesson take a long time to load. Why?

A: First, be sure you are running the short course on Windows 98 or Mac. Second, check the speed of your Internet connection. A slow connection leads to slow loading time. If your connection speed is slow, consider running the course at a time when the Internet is less busy (early morning or later in the evening. Avoid Sunday evenings since they are usually very busy). If the problem continues, consider ordering the CD version of the course .

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Using the CD-ROM

Question: Does the CD-ROM work with Windows 95?

Answer: The CD-ROM was developed to work best in Windows 98 and above. That said, the program can be accessed using Windows 95 but there will be sound breaks and you might experience “freezing”

Q: What happens to the data I enter into the short course lessons on the CD?

A: It is saved on your computer in the directory that you designate. The file remains on your computer until you remove it. Your file is not sent to the APS website.

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		Short Course Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Using the Web Course Using the CD-Rom Do you have a question about the online or CD short course that is not listed below? Send it to education@the-aps.org. Be sure to indicate that your question refers to the Planning An Effective Program Evaluation short course and whether your question refers to the web or CD course. Using the Web Course Q: What do I need to know about the Short Course? A: The Short Course can be used in two ways: Survey the Course/”Read Only” and Full Short Course/”Create an Evaluation Planning Document.” The “Read Only” modes allows you to read through all of the articles, materials, and resources. You can select those items that you want to read and access them in any order. However, you will not create an evaluation planning document in this mode. The “Create an Evaluation Planning Document” mode allows you to access reading, review questions, and resources provided by the course, as well as, create a planning document that can be used in developing your final evaluation plan. Through a series of questions, you will enter information about your program such as title, participants, activities, program budget, goals, measurable objectives and evaluation questions. When you have completed the short course, you will save your Planning Document file as a Rich Text Format (rtf) file. You can open this file into a word processing program such as Microsoft Word or Wordperfect. Q: If I save my information at the APS web site, how long can I expect it will be there? A: The information you input for your planning document will be held at the site until you finish the course or for 60 days, whichever comes first. If you finish the course within 60 days of starting it, you will be able to save the information you entered for your planning document as a Rich Text File (rtf) that you can open in you word processing program. After 60 days, all information you entered will be deleted, whether or not you have finished the course. Q: The course asks me to enter my email address. How will that address be used? A: Your email address will only be used to send the Rich Text File to you at the end of the course and to contact you for your feedback on the course. It will not be used for a listserv or distributed to other organizations. It is important to use your correct email since the Rich Text File will be sent to this email address. Q: Do I have to finish the course in one sitting? Do I lose the information I have entered into the planning document if I exit the course? A: No, you can enter and leave the course as often as you like. When you login with your email address, the names of the previous database file(s) you were working on appear on the login page. You can open that file or create a new one as you wish. The course will take you back to the lesson where you exited. Only information that has been submitted and reviewed will be saved. Remember that your data will only be saved for 60 days. Q: Can I use a “false” email to log in? A: Yes, you can. However, if you complete the course, the Rich Text File will be sent to that email address. The APS staff cannot change your email in the database. Q: The video and audio files at the beginning of each lesson take a long time to load. Why? A: First, be sure you are running the short course on Windows 98 or Mac. Second, check the speed of your Internet connection. A slow connection leads to slow loading time. If your connection speed is slow, consider running the course at a time when the Internet is less busy (early morning or later in the evening. Avoid Sunday evenings since they are usually very busy). If the problem continues, consider ordering the CD version of the course . (Top of page) Using the CD-ROM Question: Does the CD-ROM work with Windows 95? Answer: The CD-ROM was developed to work best in Windows 98 and above. That said, the program can be accessed using Windows 95 but there will be sound breaks and you might experience “freezing” Q: What happens to the data I enter into the short course lessons on the CD? A: It is saved on your computer in the directory that you designate. The file remains on your computer until you remove it. Your file is not sent to the APS website. Do you have a question about the online or CD short course that is not listed below? Send it to education@the-aps.org. Be sure to indicate that your question refers to the Planning An Effective Program Evaluation short course and whether your question refers to the web or CD course. (Top of page)