4th Wheel Social Impact (4WSI) is committed to strengthening social programs in India, to achieve large scale sustainable impact. The organization believes the integration of data, technology and partnerships will enable the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. With the objective of building on the already existing capacities of personnel in the development sector, specifically in the domain of bringing community voices into program evaluation, 4WSI hosted a workshop on ‘Story Telling for Evaluation’.

1. STORYTELLING
FOR
EVALUATION
EVENT | SOCIAL IMPACT
20 MAY, 2017
POWAI, MUMBAI

2. 4th Wheel Social Impact (4WSI) is
committed to strengthening social programs in India,
to achieve large scale sustainable impact. The organization believes
the integration of data, technology and partnerships will enable
the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
With the objective of building on the already existing capacities of personnel in the development
sector, specifically in the domain of bringing community voices into program evaluation,
4WSI hosted a workshop on ‘Story Telling for Evaluation’.
STRENGTHENING
SOCIAL
PROGRAMS

3. WHAT THE
WORKSHOP
AIMED TO
ACHIEVE!
Provide a practical introduction to community based, participatory
Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)
Present methods, tools and techniques to gather, analyse
and report data
Deliberate on ways to develop stories which drive social change
Solutions in the social space should be participatory, inclusive and
sustainable, to implement successful projects, which change the status quo
for the better. In recent years, storytelling has emerged as a popular and
important strategy for capturing and communicating the results of a
program or organizational impact to various audiences. Traditional
approaches to program evaluation which rely on structured questionnaires
and statistical data fail to give program participants the chance to tell their
stories in their words. Stories have the power to uncover the social nature of
a certain problem and can help formulate actions to solve those problems.
WHY?

4. S T O R I E S A R E
G O L D
THE DAY BEGAN WITH SETTING THE TONE
OF THE WORKSHOP AND SHARING A
‘WELCOME STORY’.
The story was of a village in Gujarat where communities could
afford to build seven temples but not one household had a toilet
in their house. It highlighted that even though quantitative and
statistical data derived from surveys is a valuable resource;
evaluation cannot be only survey-based, where respondents are
fed with information and they have to choose from the
preconceived notions of the researcher. Giving voice to people
brings to the forefront details we would never have thought of
since we are to a large extent removed from cultural realities of
the group or community being surveyed.

6. HOW WOULD YOU FEEL
IF SOMEONE YOU JUST MET
STARTS ASKING YOU
QUESTIONS
ABOUT YOUR LIFE?
Isn’t this what most of us do while
conducting surveys? Would you be
comfortable sharing details or
would you just close up?

7. This is the exact situation that our ice-breaker attempted to create. Participants had to share, in groups
of two, stories about how they achieved their life goals, their favourite author/book/poem, the most
proud moment of their lives etc. While this broke the ice and helped participants know each other better,
it also exposed them to how it can at times be slightly uncomfortable to share details of your life with
people you hardly know. It established that bringing out stories requires us to build a rapport with
communities, groups and individuals.
SHARING STORIES, BREAKING THE ICE !

8. The one hour interactive presentation focused on the integration of quantitative and
qualitative techniques, so that each draws on the strengths of the other.
This is both, the challenge and art of evaluation.
It began with sharing the basic purpose of evaluation, which is to enable learning and
accountability. Evaluation is meant to not only ‘prove’ that programs have worked but to
also ‘improve’ initiatives so as to achieve large-scale impact. Impact evaluation studies
usually examine processes, implementation and outcomes. It is important to determine
the aim and purpose of evaluations to streamline the research process.
MAKING EVALUATION INCLUSIVE AND PARTICIPATORY!

9. The presentation explored the concept of Participatory evaluation, which is defined as
a paradigm of evaluation that sets as one of its explicit goals the empowerment and skill development of
all constituents, through involvement in the evaluation process.
Popular education, community based participatory research and participatory action research,
forms the crux of this type of evaluation methodology. Participants were also taken through a
framework for conducting participatory community based research with actual examples of
4WSI’s work. Participants were encouraged to ask questions or share challenges they face, in
order to fuel cross learning and jointly find solutions to apply in their organizations.

11. Hypothetical budgeting
Card sorting
Priority ranking exercises
Community mapping
Visual archive
Temperature gauges
Storytelling
SOME PARTICIPATORY
EVALUATION TOOLS
WHICH WERE
DISCUSSED INCLUDED :

13. H U M A N S A R E H A R D - W I R E D T O D I G E S T
I N F O R M A T I O N V I S U A L L Y .
Stories provide your audience with contextualized, bite-sized information that they can easily
understand and empathize with. More importantly, stories give donors a sense of the micro-level of their
impact – one individual’s life – and when they can imagine that, they can imagine countless
others like that one person who they’ve helped.
Story is a way to listen as well. It’s not just about us telling stories, it’s about creating the spaces
for others to tell stories so we can all learn from them.
In terms of their practical application, stories help us to capture what is perceived as important
or effective in the individual experience of a participant. Listening carefully to individual stories
acknowledges personal engagement and fosters motivation, both of which are important
cornerstones in social enterprises and non-profits.
The presentation then dwelled into the art and science of Story Telling!
Story Telling is a process where program stakeholders – the organization, staff or participants - share personal
stories to illustrate impact, accomplishments and challenges. It is a highly effective and culturally appropriate
approach to grassroots program evaluation that gives voice to individual and collective experiences.

14. To give participants a practical understanding on participatory evaluation tools, a visual archive exercise was
conducted. Each participant was given fifteen minutes to draw their learning from the one hour interactive
presentation. Post that, they had to partake in a silent gallery stroll where all pictures were displayed.
After which they could specifically ask questions on pictures they liked or for clarifications on pictures
they did not understand. This helped them to understand how different views and perspectives
can be brought to light by such an exercise.
VISUAL ARCHIVE EXERCISE!

16. STORYTELLING
IN ACTION!
Four groups were each given a specific
photo story, outlining a program and a
relevant tool to develop an evaluation story.
In the context of capacity development
workshops, 4WSI firmly believes that for
balanced learning, theoretical inputs should be
supplemented with practical activities.
Participants were thus divided into groups
not only to build their own story using
different tools to highlight program
impact, but also present it in
a story circle.

18. METHODS EXPLORED…
STORY THEATRE
A performance-based method to evaluate the effectiveness of development programs.
As the name suggests, it entails dramatization of the process, challenges, accomplishments as well
as outcomes of the program. Performances are done by the members of the community where the
program is being implemented.
MOST SIGNIFICANT CHANGE (MSC) TECHNIQUE
A form of participatory monitoring and evaluation to collect data on hard-to-measure qualitative
indicators. Essentially, the process involves the collection of significant change stories emanating from
the field level, and the systematic selection of the most significant of these stories by panels of
designated stakeholders or staff.
PARTICIPATORY VIDEOS
An iterative process, whereby communities use video to document innovations and ideas or focus on
issues affecting their environment and community. Participatory videos can be used for effective
community-based evaluations.
PHOTO VOICE
A community-based research method designed to empower members of marginalized groups to work
together to identify, represent and enhance their community through a specific photograph technique.

19. The photo stories explored programs of four stakeholders – Government program on Skill
Development, Corporate Social Responsibility community development programs, NGO working on
malnutrition and a civic engagement program for waste management.
Group work was driven by seven questions, with the ultimate aim of deciphering the evaluation
question, using the defined tool and sharing a hypothetical evaluation story.
Deliberation questions for storytelling:
- What is the situation? (Context)
- Who are the stakeholders?
- Who are the story listeners? (Audience)
- Aim of the story (Aim and narrative)
- Who are the storytellers? (Individual, group)
- How will you prepare the story?
- Where will you share the story?

20. What is the situation? (Context)
- A women’s group from Bandra East in Mumbai,
have been part of a civic engagement drive to remove
a garbage dump from their locality
Who are the stakeholders?
- Women group
- Local residents
- Ward members
- BMC officials
- Waste pickers
Who are the story listeners? (Audience)
- Same as stakeholders
Aim of the story (Aim and narrative)
- To evaluate impact of the removal of the garbage dump, by
involving and getting perspectives of multiple stakeholders
affected by the garbage dump
Who are the storytellers? (Individual, group)
- Local residents
- Waste Pickers
How will you prepare the story?
- Story Theater used pre-post the intervention, and recorded
Where will you share the story?
- Theatre play on impact performed at other localities
of Mumbai
- Video made on the theatre plays over the
initiative’s life cycle
CASE STUDY OVERVIEW GROUP 1

21. What is the situation? (Context)
- A manufacturing company has been undertaking rural
projects, and aims to improve it’s community relations
Who are the stakeholders?
- Community members
- NGOs
- Company management and staff
Who are the story listeners? (Audience)
- Top management of the company
Aim of the story (Aim and narrative)
- Garner qualitative feedback on work and gather
community perception of the company
Who are the storytellers? (Individual, group)
- Community members
How will you prepare the story?
- The Most Significant Change technique employed
for this purpose, by encouraging different individuals and
groups to share stories on their idea of change,
since the company began its operations in the area.
Where will you share the story?
- Stories of change will be documented into a publication
and shared with the top management
- One main story incorporating all aspects of main
changes will be academically published.
CASE STUDY OVERVIEW GROUP 2

22. What is the situation? (Context)
- Skill India Mission of the Government has trained several
youth. They only have placement details and want to understand
wider impact of the program
Who are the stakeholders?
- Funders
- Government
- Youth
- Training Institutes
Who are the story listeners? (Audience)
- Same as stakeholders
Aim of the story (Aim and narrative)
- Showcase impact of the program by involving maximum
beneficiaries into evaluation
- Use an innovative method rather than telephone surveys,
which at most times is not feasible and beneficiaries are not
reachable
Who are the storytellers? (Individual, group)
- Youth beneficiaries of the training program
How will you prepare the story?
- A campaign initiated with support of the training institutes
where they ask alumni of programs to send a one minute video
on their feedback and impact of their trainining, to a dedicated
‘WhatsApp’ number.
Where will you share the story?
All the received videos will be consolidated into one impact
video involving voices of many alumni and shared with varied
stakeholders. It will specifically be used to orient youth to the
benefits of skill training as well as clarifying
on-the-job expectations and responsibilities
CASE STUDY OVERVIEW GROUP 3

23. What is the situation? (Context)
- An NGO working in the grassroots to provide meals and
nutrition plans to mothers and children. There is sufficient
quantitative data to show evident improvement in the health
and nutrition status of children, over the three year
intervention.
Who are the stakeholders?
- Mothers
- Government
- Funders
- NGO
- Children
Who are the story listeners? (Audience)
- Community members of the village
Aim of the story (Aim and narrative)
- Understand from mothers what components of the project
worked best for them and which, if continued will ensure that
positive results are sustained.
Who are the storytellers? (Individual, group)
- Mothers of the village
How will you prepare the story?
Mothers will be taught basic photography skills and asked to
click pictures on the positive change in children. In addition they
will be asked to take photos of things that need to be done to
sustain the work undertaken by the NGO.
Where will you share the story?
- A village level exhibition will be organised which will showcase
all the catalogued pictures with captions. This will help to
understand percieved impacts and increase
community
CASE STUDY OVERVIEW GROUP 4

24. The groups worked on their cases
for 2 hours after which
a Story Circle was formed.
The story circle represented
a hypothetical National Conference on
Program Evaluation, where
development organizations and civil
society bodies who had used
storytelling tools
for evaluation of development
initiatives, presented their stories.
The objective of the story circle was to
introduce the audience to how
different NGOs, CSR departments and
civic bodies can use the art of
storytelling to evaluate andconvey the
impact of their development
initiatives, in a participatory fashion.

25. 1. FEEDBACK
ON WORKSHOP
COMPONENTS
To gauge participants perception on the workshop and the extent to which it
met their expectations, feedback was taken in three areas :
PARTICIPANT FEEDBACK AND PERCEPTION
0%
30%
60%
90%
Presentation
Learning
G
roup
W
ork
Exercises
O
verallw
orkshop
0
25
50
75
100
LearntM
&
E
Tools
Expectations
M
et
A
pplication
Relevance
O
verallScore
2. OVERALL
PERCEPTION ON
WORKSHOP

26. “I got a good exposure to and understanding on techniques for
participatory M&E which were largely unknown.”
“The explanation on the importance of involving all stakeholders
in the different stages of project planning, design and evaluation was very insightful.”
“It was a great opportunity to experiment with tools through pictorial case studies and story circle.”
COMMENTS
FROM PARTICIPANTS!

27. SUSTAINING WORKSHOP LEARNING!
CAUSE CATALYST
TECHNOSERVE
ATMA EDUCATION
NAZ FOUNDATION (INDIA) TRUST
THERMAX FOUNDATION
SAFECITY
THE AANGAN TRUST
SHANTI LIFE INDIA FOUNDATION
VIDYA
SURYODAY TRUST
OMKAR FOUNDATION
MENTOR ME INDIA
TEACH FOR INDIA
ANIMEDH CHARITABLE TRUST
IDOBRO
While promoting storytelling and other participatory evaluation techniques,
4WSI envisions being forerunners in the practical application of these tools and techniques.
The co-learning opportunity provided by the workshop has furthered our capacities in this space.
Let’s use storytelling to make development participatory, innovative and culturally appropriate.
We invite individuals and organizations to share their stories of participatory evaluation at
hello@the4thwheel.com
LIST OF PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS:

28. of10, Ground Floor, Prudential Building,
Central Avenue, Hiranandani Gardens,
Powai, Mumbai - 400072
www.the4thwheel.com
hello@the4thwheel.com
+91 9825885044