Tips on Completing the Summative Formal Evaluation

Owned by Karen Goebel
Last updated: Aug 12, 2024 by Tracy Walker
3 min read

 

Tips on Completing the Summative Formal Evaluation

Field Instructors are responsible for completing a formal, written evaluation of students at the completion of each semester.  The following guidelines will assist you in providing a positive and rewarding evaluation experience.

  1. Be aware the formal evaluation process can cause significant stress among students.

·         Remember many students have not had the experience of receiving a social work related evaluation.

·         Students may need coaching in how to manage receiving constructive or negative feedback.

  1. Spend a good amount of time completing the evaluation.

·         Take time to think about the student and what they have done and how they have grown. 

·         The evaluation is of considerable importance to students in their ongoing professional development.  A thoughtful, well written, objective summative evaluation can be an extremely rewarding experience for both you and the student.

·         You have a significant role in the student’s growth and development and they value your comments and feedback.

·         Students know when you have not put time our thought into their evaluation and as a result can feel devalued and disappointed.

·         Students truly value the individualized comments that are made under each section of the evaluation.  It is a way for you to support the ratings you have chosen and for the student to have specific detailed feedback.

  1. Base the final evaluation on clear guidelines that were set at the beginning of the field placement.

·         Review the School of Social Work field evaluation with the student early in the semester so that they know what they will be evaluated on.

·         You can use the practice behaviors that are set out in the Program Competencies sheet as the main guideline for what you expect the student to be able to do.   This is also what the SU School of Social Work and CSWE expects the student to be able to do when they graduate from the program.

·         Be clear and direct about what you expect from the student.

  1. Evaluate your student objectively and honestly.

·          An effective evaluation should focus on the work performance of the student, rather than on personal issues.  If there are personal issues that need to be addressed do so immediately don’t wait for the evaluation.

·         Gather data from several sources (yourself, administrative staff, other social work staff, if possible find out what clients think of the intern).

  1. The evaluation should review strengths as well as areas for growth

·         Be specific about the student’s strengths so they can build confidence. 

·         Be honest about what areas the student needs to grow in.  Don’t avoid this.  We recommend you take the time to think about what the right words are to explain their areas for growth.  Be prepared to discuss this in detail with specifics in how to get better.

  1. Remember the summative evaluation is a review

·         If you are practicing ongoing, constructive feedback, the evaluation should simply be a formal review of everything that has already been addressed orally throughout the semester.

·         It is not fair to the student to put in the evaluation an area for growth that has not been addressed verbally prior to the evaluation.  They will be surprised and feel like they were not given an opportunity to correct the behavior.  It also sends a message that you were possibly avoiding the discussion.  If something occurs where you feel it needs to be addressed in the evaluation but has not been discussed, you should first have a discussion with the student about this and explain why it needs to be in the evaluation.

  1. When giving the evaluation to the student to read you should provide an opportunity for discussion and clarification in a supervisory session face to face following the student’s read through.

·         Be prepared that some students may be defensive about negative feedback written in the evaluation.  Receiving feedback that is constructive or negative in nature can be difficult for any of us.  Don’t avoid the opportunity to discuss this with the student.   Just as they are learning key social work practice skills they are also learning about themselves and how to receive difficult feedback.

·         Also be prepared that some students may have a difficult time receiving positive feedback.  Again, this is an opportunity for them to learn about themselves.