text: Chapter 5
  Evaluation and Assessment
  The truth is sought, regardless of whether pleasant or unpleasant.
  Lieutenant General Leslie J. McNair
  OVERVIEW
  5-1. The training evaluation and assessment process provides commanders a process to judge the
  organization’s training proficiency. Accurate assessments provide the basis for the unit’s entire training
  effort. It is a continuous process based on a wide variety of inputs and feedback. These inputs include Soldier,
  subordinate leader, and noncommissioned officer observations and evaluations, external reports and
  inspections, after action reviews, and senior leader observations. (See the Army Training Network (ATN) at
  https://atn.army.mil for more information on training evaluation and assessment.)
  5-2. Evaluating and assessing training proficiency is a two-step process:
  * Evaluation.
  * Assessment.
  EVALUATION
  5-3. All training is evaluated. Evaluation is the observation of performance measured against standards. For
  individual tasks (Army warrior and military occupational specialty tasks), drills, other collective tasks, and
  collective live-fire tasks, training and evaluation outlines (T&EOs) are the reference for task standards. (See
  appendix D for T&EOs.) For weapons qualification standards, the applicable weapon system publications
  are the principle reference.
  5-4. The commander relies heavily on evaluation results when assessing proficiency. Evaluations can be
  executed using internal or external assets. The evaluation of training occurs during the execution phase of
  training events as well as during the planning and preparation phases as leaders continually find ways to
  improve unit tactics, techniques, and procedures. Additionally, leaders use evaluations as opportunities to
  coach and mentor subordinates.
  EVALUATION PLANNING
  5-5. Commanders ensure a supporting evaluation plan exists for training events. This plan provides trained
  and certified evaluators with a process to observe and record task proficiency. Evaluators record the results
  of their observations and provide them to the commander at the conclusion of training as part of feedback.
  EXTERNAL EVALUATION
  5-6. External evaluations (EXEVALs) are directed and resourced by the commander two echelons above
  the evaluated unit. Leaders outside the evaluated unit’s chain of command conduct these evaluations.
  EXEVALs are conducted down to platoon level, but at the commander’s discretion can be conducted below
  platoon. The selected collective tasks to validate become EXEVAL training objectives. The EXEVAL
  exercises unit command and control, communications, movement, and operations against an actual or
  simulated opposing force in a replicated operational environment. (See appendix H and AR 350-1 for
  additional information on EXEVALs.)