MSC story collection and selection worksheet

Two parts: a field staff story form and a meeting selection record. File them after each cycle and share across all levels during feedback.

When to use this worksheet and what completion involves Fictional completed example

EvalCompass Worksheet

MSC story collection and selection worksheet

Method: Most Significant Change

Two parts: a field staff story form and a meeting selection record. File them after each cycle and share across all levels during feedback.

Basic information

Record basic information for each cycle.

Completed example for this section (fictional)

This fictional example is for explanation. Adapt it to your own program. Your entries will not change.

Program name: Youth community space (fictional)
Reporting period, for example April–June 2024: September 2026
Domain of change: Changes in relationships that allow people to feel safe
Story collector's name and organization: Recording staff member A, community space staff
Collection date: September 30, 2026

Reason for this entry: Clarify the scope of change discussed.

Program name

Reporting period, for example April–June 2024

Domain of change

Story collector's name and organization

Collection date

Writing tips and explanation for this section

About this section

Record basic information for each cycle.

Clarify the scope of change discussed.

View the method explanation

Writing tips

Follow each field’s heading to record the program name, focus, period, and other details. Leave undecided matters clearly marked as unresolved.

Read the full fictional example

Story record: 1 episode per sheet

Specify who did what, what changed and why it matters. Anonymize names or use initials.

Completed example for this section (fictional)

This fictional example is for explanation. Adapt it to your own program. Your entries will not change.

Scroll horizontally to view the table

Storyteller: role / characteristics	Change: what changed?	Background and process of change	Why did this feel most significant?
Participant A	Realized it was acceptable to stay without speaking	Staff did not demand speech and offered a quiet seat.	Could stay without forcing themselves to fit in with others
Participant B	Found it difficult to decline invitations	Was asked to respond to weekly invitations	Realized the space could also feel burdensome

Reason for this entry: Include positive and negative experiences to retain differences within the same program.

Scroll horizontally to view the table

Storyteller: role / characteristics	Change: what changed?	Background and process of change	Why did this feel most significant?

Writing tips and explanation for this section

About this section

Specify who did what, what changed and why it matters. Anonymize names or use initials.

Include positive and negative experiences to retain differences within the same program.

View the method explanation

Writing tips

Keep the information in each row aligned. Scroll wide tables horizontally to see every column.

Read the full fictional example

First-level selection record for the field team meeting

Select the most significant 1–3 stories and record reasons.

Completed example for this section (fictional)

This fictional example is for explanation. Adapt it to your own program. Your entries will not change.

Scroll horizontally to view the table

Selected story: title or summary	Selection reason: why significant?	Selectors and meeting date
Can stay without speaking	Gained a perspective valuing freedom to participate over amount of conversation	Participant representative and staff / October 5, 2026

Reason for this entry: Make value judgments explicit in selection reasons.

Scroll horizontally to view the table

Selected story: title or summary	Selection reason: why significant?	Selectors and meeting date

Writing tips and explanation for this section

About this section

Select the most significant 1–3 stories and record reasons.

Make value judgments explicit in selection reasons.

View the method explanation

Writing tips

Keep the information in each row aligned. Scroll wide tables horizontally to see every column.

Read the full fictional example

Higher-level feedback

Complete when higher-level selections and reasons arrive, recording the feedback loop.

Completed example for this section (fictional)

This fictional example is for explanation. Adapt it to your own program. Your entries will not change.

The management meeting selected A's story and retained B's burden as an improvement issue. Confirm consent and return selection reasons and planned responses to both.

Reason for this entry: Do not erase unselected experiences.

Writing tips and explanation for this section

About this section

Complete when higher-level selections and reasons arrive, recording the feedback loop.

Do not erase unselected experiences.

View the method explanation

Writing tips

Use the example as a reference and record what you have established about your own program. Distinguish assumptions and unchecked matters from confirmed facts.

Read the full fictional example

Cycle reflection checklist

Completed example for this section (fictional)

This fictional example is for explanation. Adapt it to your own program. Your entries will not change.

☑ Checked: Stories include difficulties and unexpected changes as well as successes
☑ Checked: Recorded selection reasons at each level
☐ Not checked: Passed feedback to lower levels
☑ Checked: Recorded improvements for the next cycle

Reason for this entry: Feedback is scheduled for mid-October; do not record it as completed.

Stories include difficulties and unexpected changes as well as successes
Recorded selection reasons at each level
Passed feedback to lower levels
Recorded improvements for the next cycle

Writing tips and explanation for this section

About this section

Feedback is scheduled for mid-October; do not record it as completed.

View the method explanation

Writing tips

Read each item and check those you have confirmed. Do not use the fictional example’s checkbox states as findings about your own program.

Read the full fictional example

Before writing, check when to use the worksheet and what completion involves

MSC story collection and selection worksheet is a worksheet for applying Most Significant Change in meetings or individual work. For the overall duration of the method, use “Illustrative estimate, adjusted to scale and staffing: 1–2 weeks collecting stories plus half a day–1 day for selection meetings, repeated in cycles” as a reference, adjusting for scale and resources. Fill in what you know provisionally and leave unresolved matters as questions to check next.

When this worksheet is useful

When exploring unanticipated changes or unintended influences on a program
When beneficiaries, implementers and funders want to discuss and align what they value in outcomes
When recording behavioral, attitudinal or relationship changes not fully captured by quantitative indicators

Participants and preparation

Beneficiaries and community members as storytellers; field staff collecting and selecting at the first level; program managers and senior decision-makers selecting at higher levels. Use 2–4 levels according to organizational scale.

Bring the materials used for decisions, existing data, and differing stakeholder views to help complete the worksheet.

Suggested order

1. Basic informationRecord basic information for each cycle.
2. Story record: 1 episode per sheetSpecify who did what, what changed and why it matters. Anonymize names or use initials.
3. First-level selection record for the field team meetingSelect the most significant 1–3 stories and record reasons.
4. Higher-level feedbackComplete when higher-level selections and reasons arrive, recording the feedback loop.
5. Cycle reflection checklist

Signs the worksheet is ready for review

Story collection by domain
Selected stories and reasons at each level
Learning summary for each cycle

Cautions for review

Often confused with the most important success story. Without explicitly including failures and unexpected adverse effects, only success stories accumulate.
Omitting feedback eliminates field learning and reduces the process to mere reporting.
Recording only selected stories without reasons loses the greatest value of the dialogue.

Guides to read before starting

Read a completed fictional example (your entries will not change)

Fictional example; not actual results

A fictional illustrative example. Participants in a youth community space recount a month's experiences, and the operations team discusses significant changes.

Basic information

Program name: Youth community space (fictional)
Reporting period, for example April–June 2024: September 2026
Domain of change: Changes in relationships that allow people to feel safe
Story collector's name and organization: Recording staff member A, community space staff
Collection date: September 30, 2026

Reason for this entry: Clarify the scope of change discussed.

Story record: 1 episode per sheet

Scroll horizontally to view the table

Storyteller: role / characteristics	Change: what changed?	Background and process of change	Why did this feel most significant?
Participant A	Realized it was acceptable to stay without speaking	Staff did not demand speech and offered a quiet seat.	Could stay without forcing themselves to fit in with others
Participant B	Found it difficult to decline invitations	Was asked to respond to weekly invitations	Realized the space could also feel burdensome

Reason for this entry: Include positive and negative experiences to retain differences within the same program.

First-level selection record for the field team meeting

Scroll horizontally to view the table

Selected story: title or summary	Selection reason: why significant?	Selectors and meeting date
Can stay without speaking	Gained a perspective valuing freedom to participate over amount of conversation	Participant representative and staff / October 5, 2026

Reason for this entry: Make value judgments explicit in selection reasons.

Higher-level feedback

The management meeting selected A's story and retained B's burden as an improvement issue. Confirm consent and return selection reasons and planned responses to both.

Reason for this entry: Do not erase unselected experiences.

Cycle reflection checklist

☑ Checked: Stories include difficulties and unexpected changes as well as successes
☑ Checked: Recorded selection reasons at each level
☐ Not checked: Passed feedback to lower levels
☑ Checked: Recorded improvements for the next cycle

Reason for this entry: Feedback is scheduled for mid-October; do not record it as completed.

Common errors in judgment

Assuming collecting moving success stories constitutes MSC

How to revise: Plan selection dialogue, reasons and feedback.

Reason: The central process is learning what is valued.

Treating 1 story as outcomes for all participants

How to revise: Specify the storyteller's experience and scope of selection.

Reason: This sampling does not guarantee representativeness.

Editorial and checking information

Content updated: 2026-09-13Source checked: 2026-09-13 (includes AI cross-checking)No documented human reviewIncludes fictional examplesEditorial policy and scope of checking Cite this page Report a correction

References and checked sections

Most significant change
BetterEvaluation
Section consulted
Overview; Steps 4–7
How it relates to the text
Go beyond collecting stories to record selection reasons, provide feedback to storytellers and verify content.
Source checked: 2026-09-13 (includes AI cross-checking)

How to cite this page

EvalCompass Editorial Team. “MSC story collection and selection worksheet”. EvalCompass, updated 2026-09-13. https://evalcompass.jun-nakatani.com/en/worksheets/msc/

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Change history

2026-09-13 — Updated explanations to correspond with sources, and added method-specific fictional worksheet examples, judgment examples and revision history.