The “evaluative footprints” of science education projects involving cooperation: literature review (2000-2022)

Abstract

The international development agendas have set several goals over the past two decades, including “quality education” and the establishment of partnerships that enhance the achievement of this goal. Although scientific education is an integral part of quality education, the impact of projects in these areas remains under-researched; therefore, it is essential to consider evaluation as a scientific field capable of promoting methodological practices aimed at contributing to the improvement of processes and the effective attainment of objectives. This study aimed to define the “evaluative footprint” of science education projects (SEPs) that involved cooperative processes. The relevant literature was identified through a literature review based on ‘clustering’ across five micro-clusters: three pertaining to theoretical axes (evaluation, cooperation, and science education) and two related to context (level and type of education). A final corpus of nine articles was obtained. In line with the research objective, the identification of the “evaluative footprint” is based on the analysis of the following aspects: (i) evaluation objectives of each SEP, (ii) identification of an evaluation model/approach (including methodological choices), and (iii) the respective roles of different actors (people/organizations). Based on this characterization, the evaluation processes of the SEPs are framed within three paradigms (positivist, constructivist, and socioconstructivist). Aside from a scarcity of studies at the intersection of the areas of interest, the emerging panorama identifies “footprints” (by study and analysis point) predominantly within a positivist perspective. Furthermore, a lack of theoretical grounding is evident. These findings suggest an underutilization of evaluation as a relevant scientific field, compromising the process of achieving project goals.