Evaluators´ training in a context of changes in Latin America

MARTINIC V., SERGIO; RODRÍGUEZ BILELLA, PABLO

THE FUTURE OF EVALUATION Global Trends, New Challenges, Shared Perspectives

palgrave mcmillan

Año: 2016; p. 129 - 141

This article describes the context of public policies´ change in Latin America, and its effect on the object, method and professional training of evaluators. The working hypothesis is that the demand for evaluation has evolved both with the consolidation of democracy as well as with the different cycles or generations of public policy reforms . In this process, evaluation has had a conceptual and methodological development, and its place in society has changed. Three broad generations of reforms in Latin America that affected the demand and supply of evaluation training are identified. It is found that , despite these changes, there is still a gap between the demand for evaluation and the professional and institutional capacities to satisfy it. The evaluation supply in the region is diverse in terms of institutions and training skills . Most flagship programs are conducted by universities, which award mainly the master degree. There is also a wide range of courses and workshops on specific evaluation skills and techniques, designed mainly to civil servants. The article concludes with the need to develop training offers that can integrate solid theoretical and practical foundations that contribute to the new professional profile of the evaluator, with external accreditation and certification that ensure the required quality standards .