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How do you measure the social impact of your experiential learning projects?

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Experiential learning is a powerful way to develop your skills, knowledge, and values by engaging in real-world projects that address social issues. But how do you know if your experiential learning projects are making a positive difference in the communities you serve? How do you measure the social impact of your experiential learning projects? In this article, we will explore some key concepts and methods that can help you answer these questions and improve your practice.

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Celia Evans

Experienced educator. Dedicated to high impact practices, STEM, student-centered learning, assessment, strategic…

1 What is social impact?

Social impact is the effect of an action or intervention on the well-being of individuals, groups, or society as a whole. Social impact can be positive or negative, intended or unintended, direct or indirect, short-term or long-term. Measuring social impact is not easy, as it involves assessing complex and dynamic changes that may not be observable or quantifiable. However, measuring social impact is important, as it can help you understand the value and relevance of your experiential learning projects, demonstrate your accountability and transparency to your stakeholders, and identify areas for improvement and learning.

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Julia Armet, PCC, ELI-MP

Founder @ Higher Playbook | Transformational Leadership Development | Workplace Facilitation | Global Speaker on Neurodiversity at Work
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In designing social learning experiences and special projects, I find a powerful first step is defining social impact within the specific context of the team or organization. The definition of social impact within a group in a reflection of their shared why: values, purposes, beliefs, and commitments. When there is an aligned understanding of what social impact means within the context of the culture, you can then more easily work together to identify the key impact indicators: the ideal outputs and outcomes.

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Laura Parker

Championing SME growth + Employee Retention & Career Coach and Podcast Creator
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At Be the Business we make the UK economy more productive by very specifically supporting small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). We have multiple ways of doing this but one of them is by connecting SMB owners/founders with an advisory board of leaders from larger organisation, creating an experiential leadership development experience. We're fundamentalists in terms of measuring outputs from both sides of that equation so we know our impact. The social value from this experiential learning is a critical part of why leaders from larger organisations fully engage. They see first-hand the impact they're having both at a personal level for the SMB owner, and at the macro level across the UK economy.

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2 What is a theory of change?

A theory of change is a tool that can help you plan, implement, and evaluate your experiential learning projects. A theory of change is a logical model that explains how your project activities will lead to the desired social impact. It usually includes the following elements: your project goal, your target population, your inputs and resources, your outputs and deliverables, your outcomes and benefits, and your assumptions and risks. A theory of change can help you clarify your project purpose and scope, align your project with the needs and expectations of your stakeholders, and establish your indicators and methods for measuring your social impact.

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3 What are indicators and methods?

Indicators are specific and measurable signs that show whether your project is achieving its intended outcomes and impact. Methods are the ways you collect, analyze, and report data on your indicators. Indicators and methods should be relevant, reliable, valid, feasible, and ethical. They should also be aligned with your theory of change and reflect the diversity and complexity of your project context and stakeholders. Some examples of indicators and methods for measuring social impact are: surveys, interviews, focus groups, observations, case studies, stories, testimonials, feedback forms, portfolios, reflections, and reports.

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Celia Evans

Experienced educator. Dedicated to high impact practices, STEM, student-centered learning, assessment, strategic planning and collaborations, peer ed. development, partnerships, and international education.
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Maybe it goes without saying, but our indicators, and our methods, should be absolutely driven by our goals and outcomes objectives, that we very specifically need to reach. The first step is to envision the outcomes, and work backwards from there. What do we need to know, and what methods do we need to use, to gather the information that will answer these questions or meet our objectives?

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4 How do you design and conduct your measurement?

To design and conduct your measurement of social impact, you need to follow some basic steps. First, you need to define your measurement purpose and scope. What are the main questions you want to answer? Who are the main users and audiences of your measurement results? How will you use the results to improve your project and communicate your impact? Second, you need to select your indicators and methods. What are the most appropriate and feasible indicators and methods for your project? How will you ensure the quality and credibility of your data? Third, you need to collect and analyze your data. How will you collect and store your data? How will you analyze and interpret your data? What are the main findings and implications of your data? Fourth, you need to report and use your results. How will you present and share your results? How will you incorporate feedback and learning into your project? How will you celebrate and acknowledge your achievements and challenges?

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Julia Armet, PCC, ELI-MP

Founder @ Higher Playbook | Transformational Leadership Development | Workplace Facilitation | Global Speaker on Neurodiversity at Work
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To promote impact transparency within a company culture, it's powerful to make an impact scorecard that features both the outputs and outcomes of the organization. This impact scorecard can be accessible to all shareholders and stakeholders, which promotes ongoing accountability. Additionally, releasing a quarterly impact report is a way to benchmark impact quarterly while embedding social impact into the strategic roadmap.

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5 What are some challenges and opportunities?

Measuring the social impact of your experiential learning projects can be challenging for several reasons. Some of the challenges are: lack of time, resources, skills, or support; difficulty in attributing impact to your project; diversity and variability of stakeholder perspectives and expectations; ethical and cultural issues in data collection and use; and uncertainty and unpredictability of social change processes. However, measuring the social impact of your experiential learning projects can also be an opportunity for several reasons. Some of the opportunities are: enhancing your project quality and effectiveness; increasing your project visibility and credibility; strengthening your stakeholder relationships and engagement; fostering your personal and professional growth and development; and contributing to social innovation and transformation.

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Julia Armet, PCC, ELI-MP

Founder @ Higher Playbook | Transformational Leadership Development | Workplace Facilitation | Global Speaker on Neurodiversity at Work
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While many companies today are having conversations about social impact, the true challenge that organizations face is embodying their missions of impact. The phenomenon known as "impact washing" happens when outward communications do not align with the everyday business practices and actions within the organization. In order for companies to thrive in the era of impact, leaders at the top have a responsibility to bridge this embodiment gap.

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6 What are some resources and tips?

If you want to learn more about how to measure the social impact of your experiential learning projects, here are some resources and tips that can help you. Some of the resources are: the Social Impact Toolkit by the Center for Social Impact Learning at Middlebury Institute of International Studies; the Impact Measurement Resource Centre by Social Value UK; the Measuring Outcomes Guidebook by the Innovation Network; and the Impact Evaluation Toolkit by the World Bank. Some of the tips are: start small and simple; involve your stakeholders in your measurement process; use a mix of quantitative and qualitative data; triangulate your data from different sources and methods; be transparent and honest about your limitations and assumptions; and reflect and learn from your measurement experience.

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7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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How do you measure the social impact of your experiential learning projects?

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1 What is social impact?

2 What is a theory of change?

3 What are indicators and methods?

4 How do you design and conduct your measurement?

5 What are some challenges and opportunities?

6 What are some resources and tips?

7 Here’s what else to consider

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