Abstract
The objective of this article is to describe and explain what evaluation indicators are, what their role is in systematic evaluations, and to differentiate them according to the different classification frameworks gleaned from the current literature. Many classification systems in literature have been used to classify the different types of evaluation indicators. The fact that any classification depends on one’s perspective makes it almost impossible to provide a systematic distinction between the different evaluations. The methodology used in this article is mainly based on critically analysing various secondary sources to achieve a more systematic discussion and consolidated conclusions that will help to harmonise the competing types of evaluation indicators and to suggest how they can be systematically classified. After critical analysis of literature on the different classification evaluation indicators’ general types, the study concluded that the competing types of evaluation and evaluation indicators in the current literature can be systematically organised and classified into two main groups: namely (a) classification of evaluation indicators by their nature; and (b) classification of evaluation indicators by what these indicators are used to measure.