Chapter 5: Course Evaluation and Issues for Future Improvement
5.1 Course Evaluation by Students
5.1.1 Course Evaluation
During the course, five homeroom sessions were held to provide opportunities for the students and ICHARM staff to exchange opinions. We also provided opportunities for students to express their opinions on lectures and make requests regarding way of working on their master’s theses and their daily lives. We also conducted surveys in each homeroom session. References 5-1 to 5-5 show the content of the surveys and responses given.
Table 5-1 Details of homeroom sessions
Date Main topics Reference
number Session 1
November 6, 2009
General aspects such as living at ICHARM and JICA Tsukuba, lectures, instructors, individual studies, etc.
5-1 Session 2
December 22, 2009
General aspects such as living at ICHARM and JICA Tsukuba, lectures, instructors, individual studies, etc. after three months into the program
5-2
Session 3 January 21, 2010
Regarding subjects which had mostly ended by January (i.e. those other than “Sustainable Reservoir Development & Management”, “Control Measures for Landslide & Debris Flow”, “Mechanics of Sediment Transportation and River Changes” and “Practice on Inundation Analysis”),
opinions on each subject, three best instructors, etc.
5-3
Session 4 March 25, 2010
Regarding the four subjects: “Sustainable Reservoir Development & Management”, “Control Measures for Landslide & Debris Flow”, “Mechanics of Sediment Transportation and River Changes” and “Practice on Inundation Analysis”,
opinions on each subject, three best instructors, etc.
5-4
Session 5 June 3, 2010
Process of writing a master’s thesis Daily life at ICHARM
5-5 JICA evaluation
session
September 17, 2010
1. Conformity between designated targets and needs 2. Curriculum evaluation
3. Training period
4. Lecture presentation of instructors
5. Textbooks, training equipment and lecture facilities 6. Administration and management of the program 7. Satisfaction compared to expectations
Based on the results of these surveys, we analyzed points to be improved for each category - i.e. “output,” “lectures and exercises,” “field trips,” “master’s thesis,” and “other” - as follows.
5.1.2 Outputs
In the JICA Evaluation Session on the final day of the course, 11 JICA trainees conducted self-evaluations based on the following classifications: “I think the five outputs are important in achieving the course objectives” and “I think I achieved the five outputs”. Table 5-2 shows the results.
As shown in Table 5-2, students generally gave good evaluations for the outputs; therefore, we consider that the outputs were set appropriately with respect to the course objectives.
Similarly, Table 5-2 indicates that students mostly achieved the unit goals, although this is based on their self evaluations. Some of the comments from students were as follows: “There should be more field trips, since this course is focused on performance of actual tasks” and “It was difficult to completely understand comprehensive flood management, because the methods of application depend on the conditions in a given country”.
Table 5-2 Evaluation for outputs (evaluation based on 11 trainees)
Are outputs important in achieving the course objective?
output achievement level based on self-evaluation Very important Not important Fully Achieved Unachieved 4 3 2 1 4 3 2 1
1) Become knowledgeable about the recent practices in integrated flood risk management in
various localities in the world.
11
5
6
2) Become able to define the requirements for local/national effective risk reduction, including public policies and design a local/national risk management frameworks, institutional coordination and management mechanisms including all stakeholders.
6
5
2
9
3) Become able to develop local/national indicators to detect and monitor changes in the basis of emergency responses and disaster risk reduction policies and to monitor the status and effectiveness of these policies.
8
3
2
8
1
4) Become able to contribute for the implementation of plans developed based on the identified integrated risk management policy by making them underpinned by a clear financial, institutional and legislative framework.
8
3
5
5
1
5) Become able to develop risk management strategies considering all the management cycle components, namely emergency response, recovery, mitigation and preparedness taking into account risk perception and communication issues and emerging threats such as global warming and climate change.
5.1.3 Lectures and Exercises
In the third and fourth homeroom sessions, and in the evaluation session on the last day, we focused on listening to the opinions of students regarding lectures and exercises, the following opinions being obtained.
Prior to the third homeroom session, the students responded to the survey shown in Reference 5-3. In this survey, students expressed their opinions regarding the subjects that had mainly ended by January, and regarding the “three most useful lectures for reducing damage due to water-related disasters in your home country”. Table 5-3 shows the results for the latter category. (It should be noted that the results in Table 5-3 do not cover all the subjects. For example, subjects such as “Sustainable Reservoir Development & Management” and “Control Measures for Landslide & Debris Flow” are not covered by the question.)
As can be seen from Table 5-3, six out of the 12 students selected “Hydrology” and “Basic Concepts of IFRM”, and five chose “Local Disaster Management and Hazard Mapping”. “Hydrology” covers basic areas which are essential when proposing ideas to solve the problems presented by water-related disasters, and it was encouraging that half of the students listed it as a useful subject. “Basic Concepts of IFRM” covered a large amount of material that was new to many, and we were able to reconfirm that, even for the students on this course, who are working practically, this subject provides useful knowledge founded on disaster risk management theory.
“Local Disaster Management and Hazard Mapping” covered various material including lectures on Japan’s disaster prevention systems, lectures by Japanese disaster prevention administration officers, lectures by people involved in community disaster prevention, and town-watching exercises in Kuki City (formerly Kurihashi Town) in Saitama and Ise City in Mie. The survey found that many of the students considered that this class covered the practical aspects relating to “Basic Concepts of IFRM”. In addition, as lectures included in this subject, some students listed “Human Behavior and Social Psychology”, “River Information and Early Warning Systems in Japan” and “PCM”, a result confirming the usefulness of the subject’s syllabus. In the survey conducted in the evaluation session, eight out of 11 students commented on the importance of town watching, and six commented on the importance of community-based disaster prevention (including mutual support). These concepts left a strong impression on students who had arrived in Japan assuming that Japanese flood countermeasures were implemented using costly and massive infrastructure.
In addition, three students listed “Computer Programming” (including those who listed FORTRAN), showing that this class, including its teaching style and quality of teaching materials, was highly evaluated as a practical class for actual working personnel.
One interesting result was that the same three students (student Nos. 1, 2, and 12) ranked “Community-based Disaster Management” and “Global Trends” in the three top positions. Although this could be a coincidence, it may indicate their awareness that in order to debate the worldwide problem of global warming, it is first necessary to start with local-level discussions and activities.
Table 5-3 Table of the “three most useful lectures for reducing damage due to water-related disasters in your home country”
Student
No. Lecture Reason
1
Rank 1 Community based disaster management in Ohminato
This gives a good idea how to involve a community in the management of disaster.
Rank 2 Global trends(1)- Impact of climate change
Bangladesh is one of the countries expected to be affected by climate change. This lecture contains some idea to deal with climate change and existing water resources.
Rank 3 Human behavior and social psychology
This lectures described the cause individual death in a disaster to develop Hazard Map. In our country we should consider to take any measure after any disaster.
2
Rank 1 Impact of climate change
Bangladesh being one of the worst victims of climate change has to prepare for its surface water resource conservation from now. His lecture deals with this issue.
Rank 2 Dr. Watanabe Formation of bar, alternative bar etc. Very common in Bangladesh river.
Rank 3 Community level participation in Disaster mitigation
Community level participation in Disaster Mitigation is still weak in Bangladesh. We can learn from examples of Japan.
3
Rank 1 Local Disaster management and Hazard mapping
I knew about the advanced experience on disaster management, especially the hazard mapping, it is very good for disaster mitigation, which is most important task we should focus and complete now.
Rank 2 Basic Concepts of IFRM This course gave me a complete new idea about IFRM, it is very good for flood risk management.
Rank 3 Computer Programming
Numeric Programming is a very powerful tool for all kinds of problems, and by this course, I learned about the programming idea, this is very important.
4 Rank 1 Basic and advanced hydrology It is the base or the initial point for every water related analysis. Rank 2 Integrated flood risk
management
Because we are trainees for flood disaster mitigation it is very important for us.
Rank 3
Mechanics of sediment transportation and sediment change
If there is flood problem, there will be sediment transportation so it is basic course also.
5
Rank 1 Basic Concepts of IFRM Overcoming water related disaster has to be done by integrating of all sector.
Rank 2 Hydrology
Hydrology is very fundamental to be understood, especially in establishing base concept of counter measures to mitigate water related disaster.
Rank 3 Flood Hydraulics My country is very prone to flood, so it is a need to understand the hydraulics behavior before, during and after flood
6
Rank 1 Hydrology The concept and the basic idea of this lecture is very important for us to making decision in our duty work.
Rank 2 River Engineering The concept and the basic idea of this lecture is very important for us to making decision in our duty work
Rank 3 Hydraulic The concept and the basic idea of this lecture is very important for us to making decision in our duty work
7
Rank 1 Hydrology This lecture is the fundamental knowledge of water resources and how to manage it in every place in the world.
Rank 2 River Information and Early Warning System in Japan
Japan has good effort to develop and maintain system information about river and early warning system. My country should learn more about it.
Rank 3 Computer Programming This is very useful to learn how to make programming by our self and it will be useful and applicable in my office.
8 Rank 1 Basic concept of IFRM Development of effective flood disaster management plan. Rank 2 Rainfall runoff modeling Improvement of forecasting and warning system.
Rank 3 Flood hazard map and local disaster management plan
For the improvement of non-structural measures of flood control system in my country.
Student
No. Lecture Reason
9
Rank 1 Prof. Takeuchi
He always patiently explain to us the general concept of disaster risk management and always challenges us to not just to be observer but be an active student to it. More than the concepts of IFRM, Prof. Takeuchi promotes the change in behavior and attitude of community to be better prepared for disaster risks.
Rank 2 Prof. Jayawardena
He has scholarly presented the topic on Hydrology taking careful consideration of the viewpoint of us masters students. Moreover, he gives good advice on our thesis topics, allowing us to develop our confidence by leading us to the right direction with our topic.
Rank 3 Prof. Tanaka
I like Prof Tanaka’s presentation and humanization of notable Japanese people such as Sontoku and Hokusai relating to disaster mitigation. Sometimes the best way to understand the concept of IFRM is to know the early people who were at risk and took the challenge by turning disaster into opportunity, by being resilient. I guess this is the concept of this course by preparing us to become good disaster planners and managers someday.
10
Rank 1 Flood Forecasting methods in Japan
My country is considerably behind in non structural measures such early flood warning.
Rank 2 Flood Hazard Mapping
Rank 3 Fortran The language has many applications in everywhere. 11
Rank 1 Basic Hydrology It is a very important subject which is applied in most of water-related disaster mitigation.
Rank 2 Basic Concepts of IFRM
This subject is the key idea of the water-related mitigation. It gave us how to make the measures we have develop effective in the real situation which only the technical knowledge is not enough.
Rank 3
Local Disaster Management and Hazard Mapping, Practice on Hazard Mapping
This subject enable us to learn the real cases of disaster management both successful and failure one. We can adapt these experiences to disaster management in our country. 12
Rank 1 Global trends Full of general and latest information of global hydrological cycle and climate change.
Rank 2 PCM A kind of logical game is useful tool for participatory planning Rank 3 Community based disaster
management in Enza
Importance of local community and society toward disaster mitigation was recognized.
At the end of March, we listened to students’ opinions on four subjects (“Sustainable Reservoir Development & Management”, “Control Measures for Landslide & Debris Flow”, “Mechanics of Sediment Transportation and River Changes” and “Practice on Inundation Analysis”) which were not included in the survey conducted in late January. We also asked students to name the best lecturers for two subjects, “Sustainable Reservoir Development & Management” and “Control Measures for Landslide & Debris Flow.”
We discovered the following important points from students’ opinions on all subjects, including the four listed above. Table 5-4 shows the main good and bad points.
Numerous instructors taught “Basic Concept of IFRM” and, up to last year, opinions were expressed to the effect that lecture content overlapped in places. As a result of adjusting lecture content in accordance with these opinions, we received no responses of this kind in this year’s survey.
As mentioned above, the lectures and exercises for “Local Disaster Management and Hazard Mapping” were conducted jointly with another JICA training course. Opinions were expressed such as, “The participation of experts from various countries enriched the class,” and “This lecture was truly memorable as we were able to join another training group on FHM”. We were thereby able to confirm that training conducted jointly with other courses had a positive effect on students. No negative opinions were expressed regarding the joint training with other courses.
but some said that more exercises were necessary.
With regard to “Sustainable Reservoir Development & Management” and “Control Measures for Landslide & Debris Flow,” numerous students said that these subjects were applicable in their home countries, but some said that the classes covered too much content which was difficult to understand.
In addition, numerous students say every year that the time for exercises was short in the exercise-oriented classes. Since the level of understanding varies amongst students, however, it is probably better to provide plentiful material for self-study.
Table 5-4 Good and bad points of each subject
Subject Comments from students
Basic Hydrology, Advanced Hydrology
Good Point
The syllabus covers all categories.
Textbooks and reference materials were useful. Bad
Point
Content was difficult. I wish there had been more time to understand the content. There should have been more time for exercises.
Hydraulics, Practice on Hydraulics
Good Point
(Many comments on the content) Bad
Point
I was tired by the time I got to the class, because it took three hours to get to the Tokyo Institute of Technology.
There was too much content for the time allocated to the class.
Only a few pages of PowerPoint slides were handed out, and reference materials were not sufficient.
Basic Concepts of Integrated Flood Risk management (IFRM)
Good Point
I have never taken a class like this. I gained new knowledge and information. I gained theoretical and practical knowledge on flood risk management. The “At Risk” teaching material enhanced the learning experience. I gained useful information from many experts in many fields. Bad Point (None) Local Disaster Management and Hazard Mapping Good Point
The class offered many on-site exercises and field trips such as town watching. The class contained a good combination of theory and practice.
Bad Point
I would like to know about hazard mapping in other countries. Flood Hydraulics and
Sediment Transport
Good Point
I gained new knowledge that I didn’t have before, such as how river bank vegetation affects floods.
The instruction was easy to understand. The material was well prepared. Bad
Point
Some of the lectures covered the same material as other subjects. Computer
Programming
Good Point
Both material and teaching style were good. The assignments also helped understanding. Bad
Point
This subject should be offered as a short intensive course. I would like to have more time.
The class speed was slow. Practice on Flood
Forecasting
Good Point
The content was new and practical. Bad
Point
I needed more exercises. The class content was too easy.
Subject Comments from students Sustainable Reservoir Development & Management Good Point
These subjects are very useful in my home country.
I gained a good understanding of dam development in Japan. Bad
Point
Many of the lectures were too specific. The class would be fine as long as it covered general concepts regarding dams.
There is only one dam in Bangladesh, so I cannot immediately put what I learned into practice.
The class covered too much content, and it was difficult to understand given the short period of time.
Control Measures for Landslide & Debris Flow
Good Point
I gained insights into applying practical and sustainable solutions. Useful for my line of work.
Presentation of reports by students was a good way to share our progress. Bad
Point
There was too much content, and it was difficult to understand given the short period of time.
There should have been more time for exercises.
There will be no opportunity to utilize the knowledge, because there are no landslides in Bangladesh.
Landslide prevention in Japan is costly, so it would be very difficult to apply this knowledge in my home country.
Mechanics of Sediment Transportation and River Changes
Good Point
This is the subject that I enjoyed most and in which I learned the most. Useful for river improvement projects in my home country.
I gained the latest information on soil management, in addition to knowledge of the basic mechanisms of soil transportation.
The instructor often described his own experiences. Bad
Point
I learned a lot, but no examples were given, and I am not sure how to utilize this theory.
The class needs more exercises and relevant problems to work on.
Good lecture, but I wanted reference materials because it covered a wide range of fields.
Not enough exercises on prediction of changes in river flows Practice on Inundation
Analysis
Good Point
The instructor was patient and gave a clear and accurate lecture.
By actually working on analysis, we were able to gain a clear understanding of how to create maps of flooded areas
HEC-RAS is good software that is available free
Good for applying to actual conditions, and is an important subject. Bad
Point
More exercises are needed to deepen understanding.
The instructor should use some examples to explain the limits of one-dimensional