Moving beyond methods training: Key directions for decolonizing evaluation education in the global south

Abstract

While effective in imparting skills and competencies required for donor‐centric evaluations, the present system of evaluation education in the Global South adds little to the development of Indigenous evaluation theory and practice. As education is the primary tool for building evaluators’ capacity to construct knowledge situated in local epistemologies and culture, deconstructing the colonial character of education is the first step toward the decolonization of evaluation practice. The chapter first discusses the importance of disrupting the colonial episteme as a core feature of the decolonization process. Next, it explores the coloniality of the present education system in Global South evaluation and its implication for the evaluation field. The chapter then proposes five key strategic directions for decolonizing evaluation education and reinstating the voice and agency of Global South communities in the evaluation process: (1) transforming evaluation education to prioritize the learning needs of field‐based organizations, (2) strengthening access to evaluation education for grassroots communities, (3) acknowledging the primacy of local languages in building transformative knowledge, (4) reimagining evaluation educators, and (5) recognizing internal colonialism and social justice in the evaluation curriculum.