Evaluations are the heartbeat of Toastmasters. Every speech, leadership role, and meeting assignment comes with feedback designed to help members improve with encouragement and clarity. The goal is not criticism — it is guided growth.

• Identifying what worked well

• Offering specific suggestions for improvement

• Building confidence and motivation

• Tracking progress over time

Great evaluations balance encouragement and direction — helping members leave the meeting knowing exactly what to keep, what to adjust, and what to try next.

• Members improve faster and stay engaged

• Meetings maintain high speaking quality

• New members feel supported

• Experienced members continue to grow

Bottom Line

Toastmasters evaluations transform good speakers into great ones. When feedback is clear, kind, and focused, everyone in the club improves together.

You can find all Toastmasters Pathways evaluation forms directly within Basecamp on the Toastmasters International website (toastmasters.org) by logging in and navigating to your profile, or by looking in the Toastmasters Resource Library under specific project pages. The best method for finding forms for your specific project is through Basecamp, either via the main Speech Evaluations button or within each project's content.

• Log in: Go to the Toastmasters International website and log in.

• Access Basecamp: Click on "Basecamp" from your profile.

• Speech Evaluations: Look for the "Speech Evaluations" button (one of the five main buttons).

• Launch PDF: In the Evaluation Resources section, find your project and click the link to "Launch" the PDF evaluation form, which you can print or download.

• Within Projects: You can also find forms within each specific project's lesson page after you've started it.

• Toastmasters Resource Library: Toastmasters International offers downloadable forms for many projects (like the Generic Evaluation, Ice Breaker, etc.).

• District/Club Websites: Many local Toastmasters districts and clubs provide direct links to downloadable evaluation PDFs on their websites

• Download: Get the PDF from Basecamp or a club site.

• Complete: Fill it out on your device or print and complete by hand.

• Upload: Return the completed form in Basecamp under your documents to show project completion.  

• C – Commend: Start by highlighting what the speaker did well.

• R – Recommend: Offer specific, constructive suggestions for improvement.

• C – Commend: Conclude with additional positive feedback, highlighting what they did exceptionally well.

• S – Summary: Provide a brief recap of your main points to help the speaker remember the key takeaways. 

• Encourages Growth: By starting and ending with praise, it makes the speaker more receptive to constructive criticism.

• Maintains Motivation: The final commendation ensures the speaker feels motivated to continue developing their skills rather than feeling discouraged by the recommendations.

• Structured Feedback: It provides a clear roadmap for the evaluator to follow within the standard 2- to 3-minute time limit for verbal evaluations. 

Toastmasters evaluation methods center on the Sandwich Method (positive-constructive-positive), focusing on the speaker's goals and using the Pathways criteria, emphasizing specific examples, and balancing encouragement with actionable feedback to foster growth, not just praise. Key steps involve pre-speech prep (asking speaker goals), attentive listening with notes (using +/-), structuring feedback using the sandwich technique, and focusing on what was said and done (not who they are).

1. Top Bun (Positive): Start with 1-2 specific strengths or things the speaker did well (e.g., powerful opening, clear voice).

2. The "Meat" (Constructive): Offer 1-2 focused areas for improvement, explaining how to improve and giving examples, linking to Pathways objectives if applicable.

3. Bottom Bun (Positive Reinforcement): End with another positive comment or encouragement to build confidence.

RESOURCES

Toastmasters Evaluator Role

Pathways Resources (my-pathways.info)

Resource Library

West Pines Toastmasters Club

(List of all Projects)

The Art of Evaluation

Tips from a District Champion! (Video)