Processes
Understand processs such as change, design, development, and learning.
Artifact: EDTEC 572 Instructor’s Guide
Related Artifacts:
Context
Charton Management Inc. (CMI), a privately owned company that employs over 900 employees in three states, was planning to transition from Microsoft Office (MSO) to OpenOffice.org (OOo) and their high-level employees were in need of training. I learned about their plans and volunteered my services in order to help them as well as fulfill the course requirements for EDTEC 572. A very thorough analysis was conducted to determine the amount and the kind of training, if any, was needed. It was determined that there was a definite need for training at CMI because there are important differences between MSO and OOo that learners must know in order to conduct business effectively. Mostly due to the amount of distance communication, something as simple as saving a document can become a source of major problems for the company if the correct procedure is not followed. This artifact is the instructor’s guide I created for the first module of a six module course.
Demonstrating the Standard
This was a great learning experience for me because I was able to work with a real client on a real project and start at the front-end analysis phase and work all the way through the process to creating a detailed instructor’s guide, complete with a script, website for all digital materials, student manual with job aids and activity sheets, presentation slides, and more. I worked closely with Charton Management Inc.’s CEO and IT Specialist but was given overall control of the educational side.
After conducting my initial analysis, I created a detailed work plan which included descriptions of all deliverables (student manual, instructor manual, media used, and assessment material), the course outline, and visuals of the style sheets used. I followed Gagne’s 9 events closely and drew from what I was learning at the time about behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism. I also reached back to what I had learned in my previous classes about objectives, the content performance matrix, and web design principles. For example, the course is full of hands-on constructivist activities were developed as opposed to lectures in order for the learners to remember important procedures.
Challenges / Opportunities
Motivation is often a challenge, but it also provides the opportunity to be creative. Most of the learners were not excited about learning the new software because the company just recently changed their accounting software and their payroll program. In my initial analysis, I found that the company maintained a very relaxed atmosphere and put a lot of effort into team building. Many of the employees spent time together outside the office and their turnover was very low. As a result, they were very loyal to the company and were willing to make the switch to OpenOffice.org if it would help the company and ensure their job security. If I would not have taken the time to discover this, I may have spent unneeded resources trying to motivate them and the content would have suffered.
Scheduling time with the CEO and IT Specialist was also very difficult. Both traveled extensively and were very busy throughout each day. Conversations with them needed to be extremely focused and to the point. We were able to use various technologies in order to communicate effectively, and creating a detailed work plan helped keep us on the same page and able to meet all of our deadlines.
Personal Growth
This experience helped me to be more organized throughout the entire design process. I learned to create an agenda for every meeting, whether it was face-to-face or via distance technology. I also learned to keep accurate records of all correspondence so that I wasn’t wasting my client’s time having them repeat information. Starting with a well thought out and detailed work plan is a great start and in this case, it helped me to stay on schedule and finish my tasks on time.
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