ETEC 501- Session 8: Effective Assessment for e-Learning

This week's assignment asked us to develop "2-3 assessment activities/measures for the course hypothetically developed in Session 5".  Of course these activities should incorporate points and concepts from the reading (chapter 10) and articles (Authentic Assessment Toolbox) (Continuous Assessment: Guaranteed Learning?).  Particular attention should be taken to page 285 of the text, which is a table "Selecting appropriate assessment measures".
Also, we are supposed to incorporate assessment strategies of learning that we have experienced/used as a teacher and/or student that we find to be an effective method.

First off, our text makes it clear that in order to be effective, assessment should "denote the measurement of progress toward a learning goal" (text, pg. 266), and assessment strategies "should match course objectives and the students', instructor's, and institution's personalities" (Continuous Assessment: Guaranteed Learning?, pg. 1). Furthermore, "assessment measures" should be used "to promote learning by providing feedback to the learner and/or the instructor, to identify misconceptions held by the learner, to enhance motivation, and to signal to the learner what concepts are especially important" (text, pg. 266-267).  Therefore, as I set out to complete this assignment, I took time to make sure first, that I clearly understand the specific learning goals of this hypothetical course, as well as what I wish to assess and measure to make sure the learning goals are being learned and more importantly, that these goals are also meaningful and relevant to their future, life long learning.  One final point to add also, is that I decided to incorporate two different assessment strategies of learning to this mix; one that I have used as a teacher and one that I have "experienced" as a learner, just to make it more interesting and beneficial to the process.

Therefore, I began by reminding myself of the reasoning behind the project I will be teaching, which is based on William Kist's theory that "students should be able to both read critically and write functionally, no matter what the medium; we have broadened the concept of literacy to include multi modal projects so that no student feels isolated, and every student will gain better knowledge and understanding from the sharing of ideas" (Kist, W. 2004).  Moreover, the NCTE standards on Multi modal Literacies states "the use of different modes of expression in student work should be integrated into the overall literacy goals of the curriculum and appropriate for time and resources invested" (NCTE statement, October, 2009).

Link to Multi modal Literacies can be explored further: http://www.ncte.org/positions/statements
 /multimodalliteracies.

Link to the lesson plan I adapted: http://readwritethink.org

Now that the theory to practice has been identified. The next stage is to define the specific student objectives for the three assessment activities/measures:
Student Objectives

1. Student will organize their thoughts and express their stories by using PowerPoint presentations
2. Students will improve their technical skills by familiarizing themselves with PowerPoint.
3. Students will examine the lyrics to songs and describe how the music and words relate to their life stories.
4. Students will evaluate their own work. 

A. It's My Life Activity (Session 1) (Activity #1)


1. Present the PowerPoint autobiography assignment to students and explain the required elements. You can present a sample presentation to ensure clarity of expectations for the student.
2. Distribute the It's My Life Assignment and the It's My Life Project Rubric, as well as the It's My Life Assignment Self-Assessment to students and review the details (I have recreated the handout below so you can read what is expected)

• Students will select five important events in their lives.  Using written summaries of these events, they will create a PowerPoint multimodal autobiographies.
• Students may use recordings from the radio or their personal music collections (IPODS)
• Students will follow guidelines for fair use of copyrighted images and music.  (This topic will be discussed further during the session 2)
• Students will present their slide show online or in class.  Slide shows are limited to 5-10 minutes.

3. Have students begin the prewriting stage of their projects by brainstorming at least 15 major events in their lives.  Students can brainstorm with the whole class, small groups, online forum, or individually according to their learning contracts.  
Following are suggestions of what to brainstorm about:

• First day of school (e.g. preschool, kindergarten, day care, middle school)
• A special family vacation
• A family event that is of importance
• A personal achievement (e.g first place in a competition, award from organization, job)
• A personal loss (e.g. pet, or family member)

4. Explain that in this stage of the writing process, students should write down all of their ideas.  Lay down the ground rules that encourage all students to share their ideas with their group or online and discourage any student criticisms at this stage in the process.  Remind students that they will get a chance to peer edit and give their criticism during the activity that shows them how to Peer Edit later.

5.  After brainstorming has elicited 15 major events from each student, have them narrow down their events to the top 8-10.  Have them write a paragraph for each of these events.  This can be done at home or asynchronously submitted to the digital blackboard and saved for the next activity. 


6. Pass out the Self-Assessment handout re-created below and have each student complete this at home or online.
 
It's My Life Self Assessment: 

Reflect on your autobiography project by answering the following questions:

1. What do you think is the strongest/most effective part of your presentation? Why?
2. After viewing your final presentation, what would you change? Why?
3. What part of the project did you find most difficult? Why?
4. What part of the project did you enjoy the most? Why?

Make sure to explain that this self-assessment will be used to assess the final project and that it is important to refer to this as they create their presentations so that they are most likely to comply with all of the expectations.  


There is a rubric developed also that the class will use and this will be handed out as well as being posted to the online course website and the students will have access to review this as they need to further help them create a powerful and meaningful presentation that fulfills all of the desired learning goals.  



B. Finding Your Focus: The Writing Process and Peer Editing (Session 2 Activity)


1. Have students view a PowerPoint Presentation on the writing process.  Discuss the stages of the writing process: including Drafting, Revising, and Editing- Explain that students will go through each of these stages as they work on their autobiographies.  The final stage will be actually publishing their autobiographies in the form of a PowerPoint presentation.


2.  Have the students get out their Summaries of 8-10 Events they did for homework.


3. Discuss how students can get into trouble if they aren't sufficiently skilled in proofreading their presentations before submitting them for final review.  For this reason they will learn a tried and true strategy.


4.  This strategy is a mnemonic strategy called SCOPE, that will assist them in proofreading:

• S- Spelling.  Is the spelling correct?
• C- Capitalization.  Are the first words of each sentence, proper names, and proper nouns capatilized?
• O- Order of words. Is the syntax correct? (Does the sentence sound grammatically correct?)
• P- Punctuation.  Are there appropriate marks for punctuation where necessary?
• E- Express complete thoughts. Does the sentence contain a noun and a verb, or is it only a phrase?

This strategy is used because it is an acronym that can easily be remembered by students to help them develop their editing skills.


5. If this editing is being done online, then have the students work with a pre-assigned partner or have them practice on at least one other student in the class.  If this activity is completed during a face to face meeting, break the class into small groups so the students can really spend quality time working on this assignment, and if they didn't complete their summaries before this meeting, they can work in their groups to complete their summaries by asking for ideas from one another then using SCOPE to edit and proofread their ideas.


6.  To further explain how to peer edit, further explain the five editing points:

1. End punctuation
2. Beginning Capitalization
3. Complete sentences
4. Indented paragraphs
5. Spelling check

Assessment:7.  Create a checklist that the students can use throughout the rest of the class.  This could look like a chart with five lines one for each of the above criteria, with a yes or no check box next to each point, that the student can check off.  There could be a third box for "edits made" so that students could fill in the correction as well as the proper replacement.

8.  Pass out a worksheet with a pre-written page of information that has mistakes fitting the 5 editing guidelines listed above, and have each student mark it up with corrections,  followed by them filling in their editing checklist for further practice as well as quick assessment to make sure they are understanding this activity.


9.  Before ending for this day, remind the students that their next activity will involve them choosing a song that means something to them so they should be considering what they will be selecting before the next session.


C. Presentation Music and Image Planner Activity (Activity #3)


In this activity, (students)you will briefly describe five important events in your life.  Then for each one, write an image and a song to include in your presentation.  When you've finished, hand in the sheet for feedback and approval.  (Below is a recreation of the form used in this activity).


Event #1:________________________________________________________________

Image:__________________________________________________________________

Song:___________________________________________________________________



Event #2: ________________________________________________________________

Image:___________________________________________________________________


Song:____________________________________________________________________



Event #3:_________________________________________________________________


Image:___________________________________________________________________


Song:____________________________________________________________________



Event #4:__________________________________________________________________


Image:_____________________________________________________________________


Song:______________________________________________________________________



Event#5:___________________________________________________________________


Image:_____________________________________________________________________


Song:_______________________________________________________________________


Assessment:


Approved:________

Please revise:________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________


1.  During this activity, the students are left to their own imaginations and they are also supposed to narrow down their important events down to FIVE MOST IMPORTANT EVENTS.  This follows along effective message design and learning in that theories state that five words, five sentences, and five ideas are the most effectively learned and retained to memory.  Usually students are happy to learn that they only need to create five slides and five songs per event.


2. Initiate the discussion by describing a significant life event from your own life (i.e birth of a child, a sibling, parent's divorce, graduating from college, getting married, becoming a teacher, etc).


3.  Pass out a sheet with a Sample Autobiography paragraph for students to review.

4. Have students think about the events they are considering along with their song that reminds them of it.  If this is a hard concept to grasp, give the example of a love song associated with a family member's wedding.

5. Break students into pre-assigned groups of 4 or 5, if online, or in face to face, and amongst these groups, write down the titles of the songs students associate with their events.  Then have them respond to the following questions:

• How does the song make you feel?
• What images come to mind when you think of the event?
• What images come to mind when you think of the song?

6.  Pass out the Presentation Music and Image Planner Worksheets and have each student fill in their responses to the above questions according to the appropriate event, image and song that corresponds.

7. Be sure to discuss lyrics with students to assure that song selections are classroom appropriate as determined by teacher and school policy.


8.  Emphasize that students should avoid songs that contain profanity or derogatory remarks towards race, gender, and/or religious beliefs.  Encourage students to discuss problem lyrics with you before class.  If they need to revise their song choices be sure to be sensitive and not condemning or critical negatively.  Artistic license can be introduced and discussed in class as a group to deal with controversial choices.


9. Before students begin to gather music for their presentations, have a discussion about "artistic license" and "copyright infringement" by asking the following questions:

• Have you ever downloaded music or other content from the internet? What other internet resources have you used?
• You will need to use music for your presentations.  What are some ways you can get the songs you'll need? From what sources can you down load music? Are all of these legal ways?
• Is it okay to use other peoples music in something you have created?

10. At this point, pass out the handout about "Copyright and Fair Use Guidelines for School Projects"  (available as a download from www.readwritethink.org)..


11. If time allows, you can open the class dialog if face to face session, and share some samples of music along with the event and image that corresponds to the song.  This might help out students who may be struggling with this activity.  If their are struggling students, ask other students who have a clear understanding to share their selections with those who aren't quite understanding.


12.  Mention the relevant Copyright and Fair Use Guidelines for this part of the presentation:

• Students can use 1-5 images from the same photographer or illustrator without permission.
• Up to 10% of a song can be used in a presentation.  That translates to 30 seconds from one song.
• Students must include a bibliography of any work used in their presentations.

13.  Explain that a further discussion of how to do a bibliography will be discussed online and in future activities.

14.  Before dismissing the class, review the students planners and sign off if they understand the assignment and have selected appropriate images and songs.  Approve each plan, providing feedback, or make suggestions for how to revise accordingly.

Effective Assessment Strategy of Learning :


For this course, my students are engaging in multiple assessment measures as well as utilizing multi-media, which caters to Gardner's Multiple Intelligences.  However, in order to help them stay focused and on task, I suggest using a "Report Planning Sheet" that uses KWL method of


"What I know/ What I Want to Find out/ Why I Want to Find out/ How I Will find out/ What I Learned".


Basically, I chose this idea of each student creating their autobiographies to ensure they would find relevance to what I am teaching, because what is more interesting to a youngster then themselves?
But just like anything else, they may not know everything they can about themselves, which is why this multimodal project is designed to give them each opportunities to learn from their family and friends more about who they are and what it is that makes them each so individual and interesting and important to the world.


I find that the KWL chart is a good way for someone to incorporate their prior knowledge, and add to this knowledge through the journey of discovering more about the What and Why they are who they are, through their relationships, their family story, their music, and their hopes and dreams.


In summary, the activities I have shared with you all allow for assessment measures that "provide immediate feedback, encourage reflection, enhance motivation, encourage collaboration, facilitate self-assessment, and demonstrate skill mastery (psycho-motor)" (text, pg. 285). All while ensuring the students gain proficiency and mastery of each specific learning goal mentioned at the beginning of this blog.  Thanks for reading and I encourage feedback.
















 

ETEC 501 Session 7 Handout on Concept

ETEC501- Session 6: Effective Instructional Methods for e-Learning

I began this weeks activities by taking both the "Multiple Intelligence Quiz" as well as the "Seeing, Hearing, and Doing Quiz", both of which are available online at: www.jobsetc.gc.ca/toolbox/quizzes/styles_quiz.do.  According to these quizzes, I favor visual learning as well as preferring to learn kinesthetically.  Fortunately, these learning styles mix well with learning online; I have the grades and knowledge to prove it!  I regularly visualize concepts and information to help me remember for later retrieval after all I am 42 so I need all the help I can get with memory (ha ha).  Oh and I regularly cook, to relieve stress, to learn new skills, and to express my love and appreciation for my family; they say, "they taste my creative love in every new concoction"! (I grew up cooking in my parent's restaurant). So the quizzes were accurate and I look forward to using them in the future with my students.

The next part of this week's assignment asks what we would "keep or change" (Session 6 handout, p. 1) in terms of the design of this course (ETEC 501), to help us function better in terms of " course design and participation style/pattern" (p. 1).  Well, I realize that I tend to learn the least from reading the textbook, unless there is some direct associated activity included that relates back to the chapter assigned.  What I mean is that whenever, a class requires me to do something like a summary of each assigned chapter's key points, or responding to a "thread" (usually with a problem to solve or issue to elaborate upon using points from the text), I actually learn and retain the key points (new information) and am able to draw on them later as needed. On the other hand,  If I am just instructed to read a text and then no follow up is used to support the information contained within the text. I tend to lose the knowledge shortly after. 

How this pertains to our class is that, I guess I would somehow, work in key points or information from our text, and give students ability to actively participate in learning more collaboratively,  and expand further upon key points within the textbook, so that they are for sure retained and fully explored.  To do this, I would just use more of the "Discussion Topics" part of our text, because it offers some great sample situations that students  could work to solve in groups or individually, through discussion threads, blogs, etc, to further enhance the materials offered.  For someone like me who admits to learning easier from more visually appealing information like Power-Point presentations, Threaded discussion (blackboard), and Pod Casts really have helped me to learn effectively in other courses I have taken in the past; of Course, I am a self-regulated, learner who is highly motivated, so I read too, but it is not the most effective way for me. 

Now on to how this pertains to my "hypothetical scenario from session 5" (Session 6, p. 1).  Last week I decided that the course I would be designing is for a 6th/7th grade ELL class who have been diagnosed with emotional and learning disabilities.  We are studying Creative writing, and will be learning how to write Autobiographies.  (I am really teaching this face-to- face with students fitting the above description).

My students will represent a multitude of learning styles, attitudes, motivation levels, prior knowledge, distance experiences, and assorted other factors unknown, so it is essential that an effective course is one that creates a "community of learners" (text, p. 165) that includes a variety of high quality learning experiences that draw off the learning community's needs and relevance.  Furthermore, the age of my student's brings in other challenges, such as prior experience, motivation, level of "self-reliance as learners" (p. 165).  Not to mention the fact that my students come from socio-economically disadvantaged families with no internet access, unless provided by the school or local library, so I also must keep this in mind when assigning activities. Luckily my students will each be provided laptop computers for the summer course I will be teaching so the divide is temporarily connected.

Furthermore, I find all of the above characteristics to be important in order for the course to remain relevant and meaningful to the students.  If I know that my class is filled with visual and tactile learners, than I can make sure to include Power-Point presentations and active problem solving threads, etc. rather than heavy reading and audio.  It is essential to create a culture that is welcoming, collaborative, expansive, and one that encourages active learning through positive interaction.  The text mentions the importance of establishing a culture of teamwork (p. 165), because this collaboration "all students expand their knowledge, skills, and ability to self-assess their own progress" (p. 165).  Well in order to make sure this can occur, it is necessary for the course designer to incorporate heavy use of "prior knowledge" (p. 167) because when learning can draw from multiple prior experiences, then more unfamiliar can become familiar, making the learning more effective because now what was once unknown is now understood and familiar (read page 167 for further insight). 

Of course, how I would address these characteristics is through having students take quizzes online that are similar to the ones we were assigned this week.  There are great websites out there for all ages of learners, that offer quizzes to assess and determine learning characteristics, and job skills, etc.  So I would open my course with a thread asking every member to introduce themselves, then I would also direct them to a link (age appropriate) where they could take an online quiz and get a quick assessment of what their learning style is and/or special skills they have.  This is so that they can activate their own  meta-cognition (thinking about how you think).

The next question asks how I will "establish classroom management rules to help my students achieve learning objectives while facilitating a learner-centered approach" (Session 6 handout, p. 1).  Well, I will use a multi-faceted approach to management; I will rely on a clearly written, concise, syllabus (ch. 6 and 7 agree) which will detail expectations, activity instructions, technology requirements, due dates, ways to communicate, how to complete assignments, what to do in case of technological failure, and consequences for failing to contribute and complete assignments.  But, more than just relying on a syllabus, I will also use face-to-face meetings (two days per week), in conjunction with online discussion threads, blog post activities, and email communication, to build a working "community of learners" who will collaborate to create classroom rules and expectations for success.  By including students in the creation of the rules of the classroom community, they will get a chance to contribute and think deeper about such ideas as what constitutes rewards and what appropriate consequences should be for not participating, or being late. Furthermore, this is a great example of learner-centered approach that models collaboration, because the students are working together with the teacher, to create original thinking consciously, about what the classes communal goals, achievement expectations and consequences truly mean since they are inventing the definitions actively for the unique learning community they have built.  Oh, the final result of all of this collaborative feedback and forth will be in the form of a "Learning Contract" ( See Instructional Strategies handout under Resources/Materials Session 6) which will be posted online under the course name and in the classroom for easy review as needed.

This brings me to the final portion of our week 6 assignment, which is to "list one specific learning objective you want to include in your online course and describe how you would design your class activities using one or more multiple instructional strategies to help your students meet the learning objective" (Session 6 handout, p. 1).

Since the course I am teaching is being designed for students with behavioral challenges, I not only am teaching a course on writing "Autobiographies" but I am also supposed to be helping my students develop as self-regulated learners capable of positive problem solving.  Therefore, it is inevitable that during the course of the course, problems will arise and resolution will be needed for progress and learning to occur.  So, the first learning goal we will tackle is one that will teach students ways to effectively communicate and problem solve in a collaborative group environment.

Since my students are 6th and 7th grade students with diagnosed behavioral challenges, we can assume they could benefit from learning positive problem solving and communication skills.  So our first meeting will be face-to-face and it will incorporate multiple instructional strategies including, lecture, problem centered learning, simulation, role playing, class discussion, decision-making panels, and ultimately written exercises to record the resolutions.  There will be follow up activity to this first learning goal in the form of a discussion thread online that will be open throughout the course length so that problems can be resolved effectively and efficiently.

I will begin by probing students for their prior experiences with problem solving and communicating when conflicted.  We will move on through question and discussion, and I will use  a Power Point or an overhead projector or whiteboard to list out the "6 step problem-solving process" ": step 1: Validating student's feelings; step 2: Connecting with student; step 3: Expressing your feelings and asserting your needs; step 4: Transitioning to problem solving; step 5: Facilitating the problem-solving process so that the solution satisfies everyone involved; step 6: Restoring the relationship (if necessary)" (Larrivee (2005), p. 280).  I will then break the class into groups of 4 and have them discuss a  case study which offers a scenario of conflict and then model each step in the problem solving process until it is clear and understood.

After the students and teacher have discussed the case study thoroughly we will move to a game of role playing to further help the students develop their problem solving abilities so that in the future as the collective learning community grows in learning together, these students will be empowered with positive problem solving abilities.  The role playing uses Morgan and Reinhart (1991) strategy which involves: Clarifying a problem, followed by finding a solution, getting in touch with and developing empathy, followed by setting the stage, warming up, finishing with discussion and closure.  Below is a brief sampling of the actual role play (Note that the information described below is found in Barbara Larrivee's 2005 textbook called "Authentic Classroom Management 2nd edition, pgs. 233-236):

Clarifying the problem:  Students come up with a "problem" and  a few students act out the scenario but must show exactly what happened to create the seemingly impossible problem.  After the problem is described and acted out, the observers in the class can ask: "Now what did you notice about the argument? How did that make ___________feel? What about _______'s feelings? What really happened there? What could be done?

Finding Solutions: Now the teacher takes the findings and observations from the above scenario and assigns two new students to come up and reenact the original problem above but this time trying out optional solutions to show ways of resolving the problem in multiple ways.  The teacher can have a few sets of students reenact the problem and potential solutions until it is clear to all that problems come in many different ways and have many possible positive solutions not just negative ones.

Getting in Touch with and Developing Empathy:  This part of the role playing helps students to become aware of their feelings and understand more about how their emotions can play into how their bodies and behavior is affected by it all.  So now the students draw from a list of possible situations listed below which they will then have to act out through facial expressions so that they can see how emotions are expressed outwardly (eye rolling or twisting of the mouth) which can be picked up on by others and reacted upon.  some of the situations include:
Someone told a lie about you
Someone tore up your homework
Someone called you a name
Someone told you to shut up
You just failed your test
You stole something and now you have to face up to it

After the class has all had a chance to "freeze" their bodies and expressions according to how they think they would feel, the class to improvise dialogue with others and act out mini situations in smaller groups until there is a consensus of understanding amongst the group about how they are affected by emotions and how emotions are tied to actions it is time to move to the next:

Setting the stage:  This is when teacher explains to students that there are problems that are not easily solved but that there are many possible solutions to just about every problem out there.  In this part of the role play, the students are asked to take on a character other than themselves and solve the problem as that character.  The example could be for the student to take on the role of a blind man who has been robbed, now what would it feel like to be robbed and be blind so you can't see who did it, now what would this feel like and what do you think the robber is thinking?

Now that the stage is set it is time for Warm Up: During this stage in the role play the students stretch, and practice their new characters assigned above.  At this time, the students make sure they are in character to problem solve by asking some questions: Are you really playing the character? What kind of person is______? Are we working on the problem? Does this sound like something _______ would really do?

After role playing is over, the students will be work with the teacher to devise some classroom rules on how to deal with problem solving and then they will be given their student contracts to take home and have signed by their parents.  What is ultimately the goal of this whole exercise is to allow the students to get to know each other, and joke around together, and to become comfortable working in group situations collaboratively and respectfully, while also realizing that everyone has different ideas and opinions and they are all valid and valuable.  By getting my students involved early in how to problem solve, I hope to ensure they will have more productive disagreements and problems with positive resolutions.

Again, I will also have an ongoing Discussion Thread posted online specifically designed to handle problems and issues that come up, and the entire class can participate in creating solutions through feedback and suggestions.  Further, if there is a continuing issue with students acquiring skills needed to effectively collaborate and learn in groups, I might add a podcast that models effective problem solving and communication.

ETEC501 Session 5 Instructional Design for e-Learning

http://eunokbaek.com/etec501/etec501_bloglist.html

The situation behind this week's blog:

Hypothetically, you have been assigned to teach an online course at your place of employment next term.  Where do you start? What design process do you follow?

• You may choose an instructional design process model (Dick, Dick & Carey model, Morrison, Ross & Kemp model, Rapid Prototyping model, ADDIE model).
•  Describe specific tasks you would perform in each of the steps in the model you chose.

Well, it important to remember first and foremost, that "when instruction is designed within a system, learning occurs" (Text, p. 126). Of course this "learning system" (Dick et. al., 2004) consists of essential components that must be also be considered, and these are: "The learners, the content, the methods and materials, and the environment which included technology" (Text, p. 127). Moreover, it is the "interaction of these components that creates the type of learning experience necessary for student learning" (Text, p. 127).What is more, these components must interact both "efficiently and effectively to produce quality learning experiences.. along with evaluation" (Text, p. 127).  Oh and don't forget the other critical requirement, which is for the whole course designed to be "reusable" (Text, p. 127) with future students.

All this said, it makes is apparent that "where to start?" begins with understanding the subject matter content, who the students are and their capabilities, social skill ability level,  the environment, the available technologies, so that I can best choose which instructional design process model best suits the needs and wants of the course, not to mention the intended purpose/goals for learning expectation.  Also, not to neglect how important it is for the instructional designer (in this case me) to have workable "preplanned contingencies" (text, p. 135) in the event any technology breaks down in the middle of the process. But most important of all, it is also important to remember that because the learning environment and process can be influenced by so many factors out of the designer's control,  "reflective teaching practices play a vital role in developing effective teaching practices" (Text, p. 139) which means that no matter what I design, it must be constantly reviewed, both by the learner and instructor, so that changes can be made to improve and update the experience while at the same time preserving the "repeatability" of the experience.

With such big ideas to fill, I set out to select the model to base this assignment and after I read that "the ADDIE model is the generic process traditionally used by instructional designers and training developers" (Wikipedia.org/wiki/ADDIE_Model.html. Accessed on 5/05/10 at 2:23PM) and that in fact, the other current instructional models are "spin-offs" or "variations of the ADDIE model (these include Dick & Carey model and the Kemp ISD models)" (Wikipedia.org), I decided that since this is a "theoretical" assignment, I will use the ADDIE instructional design method.

Now the next part of this assignment is to "describe specific tasks that I would perform in each of the steps in the model I have chosen" (Session 5 Activities instruction, p. 2).  Well, the ADDIE model consists of "five phases" (ADDIE Model-Wikipedia.org, p. 1): Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation.

1. Analysis Phase-  During this stage, the instructional or design problem is clarified, the goals and objectives are defined and established,the learning environment is described and the learner's existing knowledge and skills are identified.  Examples of some of the questions addressed during this first phase include: Who is the audience of learners for this course and what are their learning characteristics ? What new behavior or experience is intended? What learning challenges are possible? What are the delivery options available for this course?The answers to these questions will enable the designer to review performance objectives and revise performance objectives in order to make sure the course is being designed effectively.  Of course this is the stage where resources are reviewed with others, instructional analysis is conducted, goals are defined and made measurable, and where learners and contexts are analyzed with the ultimate goal being to write the performance objectives.
2. Design Phase- This second phase considers the learning objectives, assessment tools, exercises/activities, content, subject matter, lesson plans and selecting the appropriate media available and appropriate for the course. Some important things to consider in the second phase is how to make sure that the design is "systematic and specific" (ADDIE, wikipedia, p. 2) so as to ensure that the design is "logical, with an orderly way of identifying, developing, and evaluating a set of planned strategies targeted for attaining the project's goals" (ADDIE, p. 2); specific simply means that "each element of the instructional design plan needs to be executed with attention to detail" (p. 2).  Examples of steps involved in this phase include: "Documenting the projects instructional, visual, and technical design strategy; Applying instructional strategies according to the intended behavioral outcomes by domain (cognitive, affective, and psycho-motor); Design the user interface and user experience; Create prototype; Apply visual design (graphic design)" (ADDIE/ wikipedia.org, p. 2)  This is where instructional strategies are planned, where delivery methods are chosen, and where the designer will write instructional design documents as well as where they will review all design documents and make any necessary revisions to the documents.
3. Development Phase- This third phase is where both the creative developers and the instructional designer come together to create and put together content items that were "blueprinted" (page 2 of wikipedia definition of ADDIE) during the design phase #2.  Step in this developmental phase would include the use of visuals like storyboards and specific graphics unique to the course.  If learning is being developed, this phase is where the programmers develop and integrate technology into the equation.  Also this phase is where testers would do debugging procedures and also when the project would be reviewed and revised based on feedback received from tester.  Again, this is the stage where a prototype is developed so it is also where the prototype is reviewed, and where training materials are produced, as well as when the conduct is reviewed and revised accordingly resulting in "piloting the course to get feedback from client or users" (Intulogy, flowchart).
4. Implementation Phase- During this 4th phase of the model, the training materials for both the learner and facilitator is developed. The training for the facilitator should cover the course curriculum, the learning objectives, outcomes, method of delivery of material, as well as testing procedures. The implementation phase for the training of the learner would include, training on how to use the tools within the course, any training on new software and technologies would be handled during this phase.  Not to mention, this would be where the project manager assigned would make sure to order any books, equipment, tools, and also handle student registration (according to wikipedia and other sources I reviewed).  Basically in this step the course would actually be launched!  During this phase the course is tested so that issues can be identified, and dealt with so that the bugs are worked out.
5. Evaluation Phase-This is the final phase and it involves two parts: formative and summative.  The formative evaluation is present at every step of the ADDIE process.  While the summative evaluation would include tests designed for specific criterion-based referenced items, as well as providing for feedback from users.  Steps in this stage could include: gathering feedback from learners, revising course and conduct training as needed; measuring improvement and gaps in model; measuring results to determine level of effectiveness.

I found a very informative web site from Intulogy Ltd.  They are a company that offers ADDIE training for educators and corporations.  There is a very useful flowchart that further illustrates each step for each of the five phases of the ADDIE model.  Below is the link.  Check it out.  I will also try and provide a link to the flowchart on blackboard through file exchange.

http://www.intulogy.com/addie

Take Care
Celeste