14. Evaluation Report 

The course had an inbuilt evaluation system, where both participants and faculty members were asked to fill in evaluation forms relating to different aspects of the course. For each question the forms provided space for detailed comments. Ranabir Samaddar, Paula Banerjee and Sabyasachi Basu Ray Chaudhury held an evaluation session with the participants on 14 December 2007. Here, a number of issues were raised, most of which were also covered in the evaluation forms. Below is a summary of the points raised. 

Reading Material  

Most students received the reading material in time, and only one participant did not receive all the material. However, a few participants felt that – in order to make the most out of the distance education segment – the material should have arrived promptly in the beginning of September, when the course was meant to begin. Additional readings should be sent earlier as well, as now some material was sent at the time when participants were already in transit to Calcutta. It was suggested that a more concise package would be helpful, as it was difficult to have the time to read everything within such a short while. Also, it would be good to include a map on South Asia in the material package, especially for participants coming from other parts of the world. 
All participants felt the material to be useful in their professional lives and the readings will be used as a reference point in research, teaching, journalistic writing, designing human rights programmes, to give a few examples.

Assignments 

Almost all participants found the instructions for assignments clear, although there was some discrepancy between tutors’ instructions in terms of the choice of topics, with all students not having the leeway of writing about topics of their own expertise.
Also suggestions for the improvement of the assignment design were made. Participants found that there were too many assignments to complete during the workshop. Also, the topics for assignments should have been sent earlier, as it was difficult to meet the deadlines with short notice. It was felt that a longer time provided for the completion of all assignments would also increase their quality. A suggested bibliography would be helpful in the completion of the assignments, as well as a possibility to communicate with tutors directly all through the distance education segment. The work of Winter Course helpdesk was highly appreciated by all.
While participants noted that the workload throughout the course was quite heavy, some alternative kinds of assignments were suggested. These included a review on a book that participants would like to share with others; a compilation of video clips or links to useful online resources; suggestions of films; a group assignment to people coming from the same region, or country; biographical assignment relating to the lived experiences of refugees or displacees; and photography animations. 
Creative assignments were highly praised by the participants, and more time was requested for their presentation and discussion. It was also suggested that the creative assignments could alternatively be completed in groups while in Calcutta. Some participants emphasised that, in order to ensure the creativity of the work, topics should be designed by the students themselves.