Welcome: Project Managment in Education and Training

Hello Classmates,

I am looking forward to learning more about project management and training. I am very interested in learning about the  training aspect because it something I am looking into. I am looking forward to working and learning from you all in these next eight weeks.

Aneesah 

Rflection

As I reflect about how distance education has changed over the past ten years. Distance education has become very popular among young adults and is seen as the first options instead of going to a traditional college or university. According to Sloan Consortium Survey shows that over 90% of public universities offer online course. 85% of public universities consider online education critical to their long-term academic strategies (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2012). With rapid advancements in technology it has allowed greater interaction with web 2.0 applications such wikis, blogs, Google docs and many others. This advancement has helped adult’s learners to see the many options and flexibility that distance education brings to adults who have busy lives.

The perception of distance learning in the next ten to twenty years will be much more excepting then it is now. The majority of adult learners will obtain their bachelors, masters, and Phd’s online. There will be increase in online communication with different video tools, a growing since of comfort with online discourse and the ability to communicate with diverse and global groups. Distance education will allow learners to bridge that gap with others more than it is now (Laureate Education) . There will be many factors that will contribute to the growth in distance education that adult learners will be more comfortable with new technology tools that will benefit their online learning. An increased of multimedia, games, and simulations will also enhance the way people view online education (Laureate Education) . Also in the next 5 to 10 years increase of global expectance of distance education will have profound effect of on distance education (Laureate Education). The increase ability to communicate with diverse and global groups will help learners to take courses from instructors from all around the world. Distance education will allow learners to communicate with different groups and learn different perspectives from instructors and classmates which will help the learner to increase their knowledge.

As instructional designer the way I can help to improve the perception of distance education is to always look for new opportunities to improve the quality of distance education.  As, an instructional designer I will continue to search for new web 2.0 technologies that will help the learners to grow in distance education.  As an instructional designer I should consider all aspects of the instructional environment following a well-organized procedure that provides guidance to even the novice distance instructor 9 Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2012). As a designer I must consider looking at all learning environments that will impact the learner.  I must designed and plan a course that will consider all learners and apply technology tools that will foster positive learning outcomes for all learners. Continue to also search and improve the technology tools which will increase the accessibility to distance education and .

As an instructional designer the way I will make positive changes is to continue to always make improvement to distance education. I need to stay aware of new improvements to distance education and the best way to implement those changes to the designed. The more an instructor understands the members of the audience, the better the distance learning experience will be for all involved (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2012). As an instructional designer I must understand how the learners will be impacted by the learning experience and apply a systematic process that will impact all learners.

Reference

Laureate Education (Producer). (n.d.) The future of distance education [Video file]. Retrieved from https:// class.walden.edu

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.

Converting to Distance Learning Envrionment

Converting a Distance Learning Format

The training manager in this scenario is frustrated with how the face-to-face training sessions are going. The manager wants to convert the current training module into a blended learning environment where the trainees and trainers will have the opportunity to interact with their classmates in a traditional class setting and in an online environment. The trainer is also looking to put the training materials all online so that the trainees can have access to it at all times. The trainer must consider many things in the planning process to ensure that all of the trainees will develop the skills that are necessary for them to successful in their current position or future position. When planning for a distance education, the instructor must make decisions that will affect all aspects of the system (Moore and Kearsley, 2005).  The theory that reflects the distance learning environment is Desmond Keegan which states that electronically linking instructor and students at various locations creates a virtual classroom (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013).

During the planning process the training manager must consider before converting the training is that previously taught traditional classrooms may need to be retooled. The focus of the instruction shifts to visual presentations, engaged learners, and careful timing of presentations (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013). It’s important that the trainer understands the ends and outs of changing a course from a traditional classroom setting to an online course. That the trainer also considers every outcome such as the content of the course that it reflects and relates to the rest of curriculum. The trainer must also make sure that content is consentient throughout the course so the learners will have a successful learning experience .It’s important for the trainer in the planning process to understand who the learners are so that the instructor can design a classroom that all learners can be successful .Taking time to learn about the learners in the class yields a more producers learning environment. Knowledge of general learner characteristics can inform the instructor of the nature of the students (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013). It will allow the instructor to understand the learners more and see their strength and weakness so that the learners will be successful in class and in the online setting.

In the original training program the aspects of the program that could be enhanced is that the trainer wants to put the training materials on a server so that learners will have access to them at all times. The trainer can enhance this feature by making sure that every week that training materials are uploaded on the online site. This enhancement will also help the learners to print out the training materials and bring them to class. This feature can cause the students to have an open discussion in the classroom where they are able discuss to the topic at hand.  In a distance teaching reading, handouts, and information is how content is delivered but also provided other various forms such as videos, visual presentations (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013). All of these different kinds of content will help the learner to grow understand the information more clearly when there are many instructional materials.

The trainer’s role will not change in a distance learning environment since his role will not be different from a face-to-face facilitator. The reasonability of the instructor is to ensure that the learners have a clear understanding of the expectations and opportunities for participation in a distance learning environment (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013).  The trainer must make sure that the students have all of the required information before the start of the training program so that learners can actively participate in the online setting and in the classroom. The trainer’s role is to also be the facilitator but also giving the reasonability to learners to make that required assignments, course projects, and discussion questions are turned in on time. So the trainer’s role will not be so hands on in a distance learning environment but to make sure that required information there so the students can have positive learning experience. 

The only steps that the trainer can do to encourage the trainees to communicate online are through weekly discussions. The trainer can provide scholarly discussion weekly which will allow the trainees to draw from their own experience, course readings, or internet research. This is a great way for the trainer and trainees to communicate with each. The trainees will learn from one another and get to know who is in their class which can carry over into the current class and in future courses. Another suggestion is set up a blog account in the distance course. Blogs can be an excellent tool for student’s reflections about course content, students experience and many others (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013). It’s a way for the students reflect on their experience in the course and be able to communicate that while in the course. It’s also a way for the teacher to see how well the trainees are progressing through the course.  Are the students hitting certain milestones throughout the training course, are they using the course book and other authors to reflect that they acquire more knowledge in the required field.

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.

Application Blog- The Impact of Open Source

Application: Blog—The Impact of Open Source

The Harvard Open Course is an open site that offers free videos that have been made available by the Harvard Extension Schools Open Learning Initiative. The courses are all noncredit and feature Harvard Faculty. All of the courses are open to the public and you do not have to register to view the lectured videos. After viewing the design of the site it has not been set up as a distance learning environment.  The design of the site is more for adults who may be interested in the attending Harvard University. So it gives someone insight into what type of courses that are offered at Harvard, it allows someone to become familiar with the university  professors, the lectured videos also gives someone an idea of how the classes would be ran, and for each class there is a list of lectured videos from the semester. There are four strategies for organizing instruction linear-programmed instruction, branched-programmed instruction, hyper-programmed and student-programmed instruction (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013) .This site allows in individual to learn about a particular subject for free but still gain the knowledge from the instructor. Even though the site is not designed for an online course you are able to  still have the  distance learner experience.

In any distance learning environment, the technology becomes the element of most concern. The instructor must become familiar with the hardware so the technology can be used effectively. In a distance learning environment resources are available to students are very important (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013). In the Harvard Open Course site the learning environment is an open site where the learner is independent and is in control of what lectured videos he or she would like to participate in. Just as stated by Charles Wedemeyer the essence of distance education was the independence of the student (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013). Wedemeyer also stated that offer students and adult’s wider choices in courses, formats, and methodologies (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013). In the learning environment the participants have to be familiar with the technology tools in order to fully participate on the course the site.

The course designer did not implement any assignments, test, quizzes, and discussion questions. The learner is able to go through each lectured video and flow along with instructor as if they were classroom. The instructor provides the learner with step by step instructions on how to solve problems. For example The Harvard Open Course offers Algebra and each instructor builds on the previous lesson so the learner is able to have a positive learning experience. Knowing how convenient it is for students to access the resources or to rearrange their own personal and work schedules is important when planning instructions (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, Zvacek, 2013). Even though this site is not built as a fully online course it still offers the learner the convenience of going on the site when there schedule allows them to.

Overall The Harvard Open Courses is open to the public for those learners who are interested in attending Harvard University or becoming a distance learner. It also applies to learners who are interested in learning a new subject or looking for new ways to learn. This open course offers many opportunity without begin a part of an online course. It gives the learner many options to different courses and receives knowledge from the top Harvard professors.

Reference

Harvard Open Courses: Open Learning Initiative
http://www.extension.harvard.edu/open-learning-initiative

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.