Formative and Summative Evaluation

From EvaluationWiki

Summative evaluation aims to identify patterns of performance, judging these against general criteria such as effectiveness, value, or impact. A summative evaluation is commonly conducted after completion of the activity for the benefit of an external audience.

Formative evaluation focuses on the provision of information and analysis during the partnership-building process or during a partnership’s implementation. The idea is to help the evaluation subject to improve the project or the partnership. Formative evaluation begins with the assumption that an evaluation serves as a learning medium to help the evaluation subject improve its performance. It de-emphasizes final conclusive results and instead focuses on agendas for negotiation, mediation of conflicts, and interventions for improvement.