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Community Assessment Rubric (Example)

(Detefmining Viability for Community Teaching & Learning Centers)

Demographics

1. How many people do you have in this town/community? What percentage of those people
are students between 13 - 20 years of age? How many teachers are there?
2. How is the community organized? Who are the key decision makers for the community?
Are there youth leaders? How are decisions made for the community? For the youth?
3. What is the level of communication between this community and other communities in your
country? Around the world? What is the level of communication with the government?
Would the community like to see the quality and/or quantity of that communication
enhanced?

4. How have the demographics of the community changed over the past 10 years? What do you
think will happen over the next decade?
5. What have been the most important changes in the community over the past 10 years? What
were the community's greatest successes overt that time? It's greatest challenges?
6. What have been the most important successes witnessed by the community over the past 10
years? What was the basis of those successes?
7. What were the most significant concerns of the community over the past 10 years? What are
the most significant concerns today? If those changed, what happened? If not, why not?
8. What are the greatest challenges facing the community over the next 5 to 10 years? How do
those challenges apply to the youth?
9. What are the community's greatest hopes for the future? How do those hopes apply to the
community's youth?
10. Are there any initiatives the community supports to provide additional skills to youth? What
are they? Have they been successful? Why or why not? Are there any facilities where young
people can gather? Please describe them.
11. How does the community think technology can help the community address its concerns, face
its challenges, and move toward its vision of the future? How does the community think we
could best assist with those changes?
12. Based on what you know about us and our objectives, what do you think would be most
helpful to this community? In the best of all worlds, what would you like to see us do in this
community?

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Education System

1. Please describe the education system in this community. What/who are the body making
curriculum decisions for the community? What are the class levels and graduation levels?
How are administrative functions within the schools handled?

2. What is the official language of education? Are other languages taught in the schools?
Which ones? At what age/class level does that secondary language education begin? What
would is the level of student proficiency in additional languages when they graduate?
3. What are the strengths of the education system in this community? Why do you consider
those attributes as strengths?
4. Are there places for continued teacher training?
5. What are the greatest challenges facing the education system in this community? What are
current plans to overcome those challenges? Do you need external assistance to tackle these
problems? What type of assistance would be most valuable? What recourse currently exists
within the system when difficulties arise?
6. What are the key subjects taught in the education system? Are there subjects that you would
like to see strengthened? If so, what are they? What could help you strengthen those courses?
7. Are there any courses that focus on your country's history, culture, or beliefs? If so, are these
courses mandatory?
8. How do the students fare within the education system? Are they engaged by the process? Is
non-attendance or high drop out rates a problem? If so, what are the key causes?
9. How many schools, and at what levels, are there in this community? What is the average size
of the student body? What is an average class size?
10. Do schools have adequate, secure facilities to operate? Are there enough books and basic
materials to support the schools? How far apart are the schools? Do they share resources?
Expertise?
11. Are there any initiatives underway at either the local, regional, or national level that will
impact the schools in the next 5 years?
12. Is there anything of significance you would like to mention about the schools in this
community, the students, or education in general that we have not discussed?
13. Do any of the schools currently have computers? If so, how many overall? Per school? How
are the computers used? How long have they been in place? What has been the level of
success with these computers? What were the greatest obstacles?
14. How many people in the community leave to attain advanced training in other parts of your
country? In other parts of the world? What happens to them when they complete that
training?
15. What percentage of the youth pursue studies within math, science and technology?
16. Based on what you know about us and our objectives, what do you think would be most
helpful to the education system here? In the best of all worlds, what would you like to
see us do in this community?

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Yo u t h S k i l l s a n d I n t e r e s t s

For students between the ages of 13 - 21:

1. What are your hopes for the future? What type of job or career would you like to have when
you graduate? Are you interested in getting an advanced degree? In what subject? Do you
think you will be able to realize your dream? If not, why not?
2. What do your parents think about your goals for the future? What do your peers think?
3. In ten years do you believe that you will still be living in this community? In another part of
your country? In another part of the world? Why do you believe that? How do you feel
about that aspect of your future? Are you excited or disappointed? What about in 20 years?
30 years?
4. What do you believe to be the biggest challenges for you as you think about the future? Do
you think you will have the skills you will need to achieve your goals?
5. Are there any places in the community that you can go to assemble with other young people?
Where? What do you do there? Would you like to see more activities available there? What
would those activities be?

6. Are there places in the community that you can go to learn additional skills? Anything from
health care to agriculture to music? Which ones can you think of? Which ones do you
attend?

7. Have you ever had any experience with computers or other technology? If so, where did you
learn? How proficient would you say you are with the technology? Do you like it? What is
the most interesting aspect of what you learned?
8. What do you think about computers in general? Do you think they would be valuable to you?
If so, how? If not, why not?
9. Based on what you know about us and our objectives, what do you think would be most
helpful to you and your friends? In the best of all worlds, what would you like to see us do in
this community?

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Technology and Communications
For community and business leaders:

1. How many people in this community have telephones? Are they land-line or cellular? How
much does telephone service cost? How long does it take to get a phone? Are the phones
reliable? What are the biggest challenges with telephony? What are the leading telephone
companies?
2. How pervasive and reliable is the electricity infrastructure in this community? What are the
biggest challenges with electricity? Who are the leading electricity providers?
3. How many people in the community have computers? Email access? Internet access? How
many does this access cost? ISP charges? Phone charges?
4. Are there computer centers in the community? Who developed these centers? How are they
currently used? How are they managed? Have the centers been successful? Are they
growing in size and capacity?
5. What about Internet facilities, such as an Internet caf6? How successful is it? Who are the
primary users? What are they charged?
6. Are they any individuals in the community that have prior, and/or extensive, computer
experience?
7. Are you familiar with any other initiatives to roll out computer technology to other
communities in your country?

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Facility Location, Management, and Ownership

After interviews point to a potential outcome, the following questions are addressed to
community leaders:

1. What would be the most appropriate location for a Community Teaching & Learning Center?
Why would you suggest this location? Is this facility secure? Does it have locks? Does it
have stable electricity? A climatically stable environment? Phone lines to carry data? Will it
be easily accessible to a wide range of the community?
2. Who should own the computer center? Why do you believe this would be the best solution?
3. What do you believe would be the most appropriate management structure for this center?
Who should be involved in the management of the center? Why? Is there anyone in the
community that would be appropriate to manage computer training?
4. Would the community be willing to work with us to seek a sustainable solution for the center,
i.e. a strategy to have the center generate at least even revenue over time to pay for its
recurring costs?
5. What people within the community would need to participate in the center to ensure its
success?

6. Would this center need to be under the jurisdiction of the national government in any way?
What types of permits/permissions would be required to get the equipment into the
community? Would there be any issues getting wireless connectivity?
7. Are there any political sensitivities related to the introduction of a computer training facility
and/or wireless connectivity into this community?
8. How could we best minimize any legal and bureaucratic interference with this project? What
types of activities are heavily regulated? Are they any activities related to computers that
would not be permitted in this community?
9. Is there anything that we have not discussed that would be critical to the success of a
computer center targeted at providing the skills necessary to help young people find more
meaning job opportunities?