157

Evaluation

At the close of the Workshop, an evaluation was conducted to gauge whether or not the set objectives were achieved and to assess if the model used was suitable, useful and adaptable for other groups. An evaluation also gives a better picture of participants' experiences – e. g. of what is good or not good, what can be improved or changed – and this in turn can help provide a basis for planning for future like gatherings.

Following are excerpts of me participants' written evaluation of the whole Workshop.

Evaluation Guidelines

1. Write your experiences of Bible studies, storytelling, workshops, worship, the general atmosphere and dynamics of the whole Workshop, timetable, organising and logistics, etc.

2. Share your most striking experience from the whole Workshop.

* The use of symbols and symbolic actions in worship was a striking experience for me. When women are free to worship in their own way, we are creative, open to God and community.

* The best part of the Workshop was the storytelling session. I appreciate this technique which was an effective way of breaking the ice as well as getting the ideas and experiences of participants which I suppose are more valuable than any lecture.

* It is very important for me to read the Bible from a woman's perspective and especially to criticize its patriarchal background.

158

* Bible studies were informative, interesting and thought-provoking.

* The resource persons have been great thankful for their sharing and input well selected. I am very thankful for their sharing and input.

* I found the Bible studies very interesting and important. They helped me look at the Bible from a different angle. The session on "Reading the Bible from a Woman's Perspective" is very important to me as our national movement is in much need of information in this area. I was also very impressed by the new methods used for conducting the workshops. I believe we can make use of such methods when we go back to our own country.

* I think it would have been useful to include some basic skills building session – e.g. on how to facilitate a meeting, how to organise a local community for Bible study and action, conflict resolution skills, how to plan strategies for action such as building networks, how to lead a Bible study.

* I was happy for the chance to meet people from different cultures who have had so many different experiences from my own and therefore have a different understanding of theology. Although I already knew that theology could not be simply transplanted from one situation to another, I did not really understand the significance of this until I heard other people's understanding of the Bible.

* One of the most exciting things I learned from the Workshop was the idea of action being a part of the process of doing theology and the possibility of reflecting on the presence of God within that action so that theory and practice come together in theology with a focus on God as the centre of both action and theory.

* The exposure took me to a factory with little problem. It would have been better if we visited both the "good" and the "no good" factories.

159

* The workshops were good but often barely scraped the surface of the topics because of time constraints. Sometimes this was frustrating but I think this provided starting points for continued work at home.

* I liked the small size of the Workshop. It was easier to get to know people and I felt I was able to share what I felt and thought. The same was true for the small group discussions.

* I think this was a good Workshop and there was a good sense of community among participants. In future workshops I hope we will find ways of overcoming the language barriers more often in the processes we use – e.g. through non-verbal methods. Perhaps we need some confidence-building exercises early in the Workshop to help women break through the language barrier – e.g. learning a few words in a language they don't know.