Modelling in evaluating a working life project in higher education Anneli Sarja a, *, Sirpa Janhonen b , Pirjo Havukainen c , Anne Vesterinen c a Finnish Institute for Educational Research, University of Jyva ¨skyla ¨, Finland b Institute of Health Sciences, University of Oulu, Finland c Laurea University of Applied Sciences, Finland Introduction The purpose of this article is to describe the work-related learning process of higher education stakeholders in a joint research and development (R&D) project. In this project, called CaringTV 1 higher education students were given the task of designing, implementing and evaluating interactive TV pro- grammes as a service concept for the elderly. The programmes aimed to promote the health and well-being of elderly people by interactional involvement in the on-screen activities. The theoretical framework chosen for this study was develop- mental evaluation based on activity theory (Engestro ¨m, 2001). In the organisational learning context, activity theory extends the unit of analysis beyond the individual learner. The present generation of activity theory focuses in particular on the challenges and possibilities present by inter-organisational learning. Moreover, the adoption of object-oriented and tool-mediated activity is one of the main contributions of activity theory (Engestro ¨m & Kerosuo, 2007). Developmental evaluation is based on an interventionist approach developed from the basic ideas of activity theory. It is an approach to the study of transformations and learning in work and organisations where the conceptual models and tools of activity theory are donated to the participants in order to help them work on a problem of practice (Engestro ¨m, 2001, 2005, 2007). Earlier research has indicated that the advantages of this approach include the development of the participants’ personal awareness and understanding of each other’s ways of thinking and acting, creating a shared understanding, and establishing natural collaboration between the participants (Edwards, Daniels, Galla- gher, Leadbetter, & Warmington, 2009; Saari & Kallio, 2011). A weakness identified in most development projects has to do with the difficulty of changing participants’ ways of thinking and acting, which for some participants has proved too difficult (Engestro ¨ m, 2005). In the CaringTV project we wanted to test whether the method of modelling would elicit the desired developmental patterns in the various players’ ways of thinking and acting in the different stages of the project. It was expected that the models produced by the analyses in the different stages would lighten the burden on the participants. While revealing problems in their collaboration, the modelling would conceal the limitations of the participants’ personal approaches. In particular, it was hoped that the models would encourage participants to engage in an open joint dialogue in their project meetings. In this article, first, we present the context of the study, i.e., a collaborative R&D project conducted by vocational higher educa- tion students and a partnering working life organisation as part of a larger CaringTV scheme. Second, we compare the similarities and differences between program theory-driven evaluation (Donald- son & Gooler, 2003; Donaldson, 2007), complexity-sensitive developmental evaluation (Patton, 2008, 2011), and developmen- tal evaluation based on activity theory (Engestro ¨ m, 2001, 2004). Studies in Educational Evaluation 38 (2012) 55–64 A R T I C L E I N F O Article history: Received 11 July 2011 Received in revised form 5 June 2012 Accepted 6 June 2012 Available online 3 July 2012 Keywords: Program evaluation Evaluation methods Evaluation utilisation Systems approach Work-related learning A B S T R A C T This article describes an evaluation method based on collaboration between the higher education, a care home and university, in a R&D project. The aim of the project was to elaborate modelling as a tool of developmental evaluation for innovation and competence in project cooperation. The approach was based on activity theory. Modelling enabled a development of the curriculum and encouraged stakeholders to participate in the evaluation process. The results verified the features of the method: (1) the contradictions of the joint practice are a central source of evaluation; (2) comprehensive data collection methods are needed; (3) shared tools can be developed in interactive forums in ongoing evaluation, and (4) modelling makes professional expertise visible and brakes boundaries between different professions. ß 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author at: Finnish Institute for Educational Research, P.O. Box 35, FI-40014 University of Jyva ¨ skyla ¨, Finland. Tel.: +358 40 4827496; fax: +358 14 617418. E-mail addresses: anneli.sarja@jyu.fi (A. Sarja), sirpa.janhonen@oulu.fi (S. Janhonen), pirjo.havukainen@laurea.fi (P. Havukainen), anne.vesterinen@laurea.fi (A. Vesterinen). Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect Studies in Educational Evaluation jo ur n al ho mep ag e: www .elsevier .c om /st u ed u c 0191-491X/$ – see front matter ß 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.stueduc.2012.06.001