This school sits at the edge of a small town in Romania, among comunist era blocs and across the street from one of the most controversial, highly polluting timber factories in the country.
We went there to talk to 14-15 year olds who are part of a programme that offers career counselling to help them navigate the transition to upper secondary school and make informed choices about their future. Talking to the students is one of the most important components of the evaluation of the programme that we have been conducting since April. We wanted to find out what matters to them, how they perceive the benefits of such a programme, and what else they would need in this transition.
What we found were smart, outspoken kids who are not passive recipients of what is offered to them in and outside of school. They think for themselves and are able to articulate their needs and goals, if only given the chance.
For them, the greatest impact of the programme is that, in developing a meaningful relationship with an adult – the counsellor – who is not there to grade and judge them, but to listen, they develop confidence in their own decisions and are more motivated to work for their goals.
For us, it was more evidence that in such interventions, change is shaped by relationships it can only be captured by an evaluation focused on people rather than indicators.
We’ve decided to start sharing bits of our field work, stories and pictures, mostly because we’re such good photographers and storytellers that we don’t want to keep them to ourselves. The other reason is to share a bit about how we work and start some conversations.