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Paper

Tracking Footprints - improving out-of-home care services through research: Former SOS children reflect on their experiences

abstract

Background and introduction

Founded in 1949 in Austria, SOS Children's Villages is an international child-care organisation that operates in 132 countries worldwide with the aim to protect and promote the right to grow and develop in a caring family environment for children at risk of losing parental care and those who have lost it. Its fields of work consist of family based care (children living in family homes with an SOS Mother and siblings), empowerment of families and communities, giving access to education and advocacy actions to help improve conditions for children in out-of-home care.

 

On a global level, systematic reflection on the educational work of SOS started with the research project Tracking Footprints in 2001. Former SOS children have been asked to talk about their lives as children and youth. Their experiences and recommendations should help improving the educational work of SOS Children's Villages. The study is presented as an example of an ongoing impact evaluation focused on the main stakeholders, SOS children, which contributes to the continuous improvement of the pedagogical work of an international family-based child-care non-governmental organisation.

 

Purpose

Tracking Footprints is the organisation's first global research project with a strong focus on evaluating its educational work. By conducting interviews with a standardized questionnaire the study seeks to obtain information from former SOS children on three levels: on their current live situation (e.g. marital status, educational and professional development, health) and satisfaction with it, their experiences during their time in the SOS Children's Villages facilities, and their recommendations as experts on how to improve the pedagogical work of the organisation.

 

Between 2002 and 2005, twenty countries all over the world participated in the study. In 2006, the questionnaire was further developed putting more emphasis on life quality and life satisfaction. At the same time, countries which already carried out the study are focusing on using the results in order to further improve the pedagogical service of SOS Children's Villages. By the end of 2008, more than seventy countries worldwide will have carried out the study. After 2008, the methods will be reflected and revised based on the experiences made so far. It is planned to carry out the study every five years in order to monitor changes.

 

Results are and will be used on a national and a global level. Country results are reflected upon and changes made within national planning processes. An overall report is provided for global management for their decision making processes.

 

Key findings

The following results are based on more than 1,130 interviews in twenty countries worldwide: SOS Children's Villages is mostly perceived by those interviewed as an organisation providing a positive family environment, caring for basic needs, offering reliable relationships and supporting education. Former SOS children wish for more adequate assistance in the process of becoming independent and more help in integrating into their social environment; they recommend a better training of care persons and less fluctuation of SOS Mothers.

 

Recommendations and implications: lessons learnt

The results have an effect on the organisation on different levels. In the first place, in the practical field of work the results serve to give the SOS co-workers clear feedback on their achieved goals, their perception is no longer based on "gut feeling" but empirical data from the children in their care. This kind of evidence can motivate the organisation as a whole to further follow the established vision, mission and values and at the same time to have a close look at what has been successful in their work and what needs to be changed and further developed. Co-workers in the field have mostly been very open and interested to reflect and to learn; suspicion and anxiety about "being evaluated" came mainly at the beginning of the project - and more from the management level. Demystifying research and evaluation has been a central aspect of the communication procedure with various stakeholders of the project; and it proved very important in order for the project to be accepted widely.

 

As a learning organisation we are also aware of unexpected effects resulting from the research process on the staff and hierarchy level, the communication level, and the structural level. As the first global research project carried out by SOS Children's Villages, Tracking Footprints has realised some pioneer work in establishing a network of people responsible for research in the different SOS regions. The roles and responsibilities of some co-workers have changed during that process supporting the realisation of the strategic research initiative, e.g. a village director has experienced a shift in his competences as a project partner.

 

Contact details

Claudia Mödlagl, SOS Kinderdorf International, Hermann-Gmeiner Strasse 51, 6020 Innsbruck; Austria

Tel: 0043 512 3316 5645

Email: Claudia.Moedlagl@sos-kd.org

 

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