I’m almost done with my Masters in Research.  I have two modules to complete then a dissertation.  The dissertation takes the form of a small research project.  I want to get started soon and have it completed so I can graduate next November at the latest.  If I’m super organised I could graduate in July.

Being super organised would include actually choosing a topic to research.  That’s when things get complicated.

I have three potential topics:

1: Youth work and social media - models of good practice using web2.0 tools to work with young people

2: Does youth work work? - Does employing a youth worker make a difference? Probably a case study

3: Towards an evaluation framework - how could churches/projects evaluate what they do? Working towards an evaluation framework.

This is where you come in.  Any thoughts, comments, ideas, avenues to pursue and general advice and suggestions would be very welcome.

There are lots of people I know who read this blog who never or rarely comment.  It would be great to hear from some of you about this as I’d really value as much input as possible.

Stewart

The other day my colleague emailed to say that he was working with a church who were considering employing a youth worker but they had asked a question that had stumped him.

‘Will employing a youth worker make a difference?’

It stumped him because they were asking for hard proof.  Not a series of anecdotes.  Not some platitudes or fob offs.  They really wanted to know.

So, that’s my question.  Does employing a youth worker make a difference?  How do you know?  Who says?

I’ll post some thoughts soon but I’d like to hear your stories, evaluation methods and research.