Abstract Undersøgelse af mulighed for brug af innovativ evaluering i elfaggruppen på Aarhus Maskinmesterskole Study of the possible use of innovative evaluation in the electrical research group at Aarhus School of Marine and Technical Engineering Education: Master in learning processes Educational institution: University of Aalborg Semester: 4th semester 2015 Type of report: Master Thesis Supervisor: Lone Krogh Students: Christian Moesgaard Background Aarhus School of Marine and Technical Engineering has been through a intuitions accreditation process that did not result in an accreditation. There was particular criticism of the research work. The management is responding by initiated a reform of the intuition quality assurance system and a development project in the electrical research group. The project objectives are to develop practices in the research work and to ensure quality of the knowledge base in the electrical research group. The project is led by the coordinator of the electrical research group. Purpose The purpose of this report is to study innovative evaluation theoretical foundations and test the methodology in innovative evaluation. The report addresses the following topics: Systemic thinking, realistic evaluation, analysis of interest, program theory and evaluation capacity. This is achieved with practices of members of the electrical research group at Aarhus School of Marine and Technical Engineering. It is essential to examine whether the method provides both developments in practices and documents results for monitoring. The meanings of terms in research work are defined too. The problem How it is appropriate to use the methods in innovative evaluation for development and documentation of research work at Aarhus School of Marine and Technical Engineering when Aarhus School of Marine and Technical Engineering wants a appreciative and practice oriented approach, but is in a stressful situation where both research work and quality assurance system is being developed? Method As a member of the electrical research group, I am affected by the project, and am participating in meetings and work were I will affect the examination area of this report. That is why, I use action research where I observe the everyday life at Aarhus School of Marine and Technical Engineering and use methodologies from innovative evaluation with members of the electrical research group. Some conversations are guided by the question types by Karl Tomm. Basis for the study is the lecturers' approach. This method is appropriate because the study thereby used tools from innovate evaluation. My collected empiri are compared with written sources from the quality assurance system, the report of accreditation and reports on University Colleges knowledge base from Danmarks Evalueringsinstitut. Theory Theoretical basis for the report is Innovative Evaluation of Malene Skov Dinesen & Camilla Kølsen De Wit Conclusion As Dinesen & De Wit points out the report can confirm that evaluation by innovative evaluation is no "quick fix". But if one uses the methodology one will get a careful evaluation were practices are engaged. Then development will take place in practice while one gets a solid monitoring. However, the processes take time and skilled employees. This applies particularly to the process with program theories. Therefore, it may be difficult to convince a stressful management of the sense in spending so much preparatory work before the actual monitoring. If Aarhus School of Marine and Technical Engineering had used innovative evaluation before the process of accreditation or the evaluations in the autumn it could have experienced a better result. Accreditation was either not happened because one knew that one were not ready for it, or the preparation for the process of accreditation had been better. The evaluations in the autumn were characterized by a lack of understanding of the evaluation by the lecturers, which could have been avoided by more appreciative approach to their practices through processes of innovative evaluation.