harnessing technology to empower learners nercomp’s annual conference march 17, 2003 worcester,...
TRANSCRIPT
Harnessing Technology to Empower Learners
NERCOMP’s Annual Conference
March 17, 2003Worcester, Massachusetts
2:00 p.m. - 2:50 p.m.Josh Wilson, Tufts University
Information Technology [email protected]
Colleen Wheeler, Wheaton CollegeInformation Technology & Services
Copyright Notice
Copyright Josh Wilson and Colleen Wheeler 2003
This work is the intellectual property of the authors. Permission is granted for this material to be shared for non-commercial, educational
purposes, provided that this copyright statement appears on the reproduced materials
and notice is given that the copying is by permission of the author.
To disseminate otherwise or to republish requires written permission from the authors.
About This Session
• Learn about us, our academic institutions and how we came to work together
• Find out how we introduced web-based learning at two institutions
• Discover best practices from learner stories
• Leverage collaboration to create valuable vendor relationships
• Connect with your peers• Ask questions
Context:Tufts UniversityWheaton CollegeThe Boston Consortium
Tufts University profile
Private Research I university
3 schools on the Medford campus: Arts & Sciences, Engineering,Fletcher School
3 campuses in MA: Medford, Boston, Grafton
One campus in Talloires, France
8 schools at Tufts
On the Medford campus:•1450 faculty & staff•6500 students
Wheaton College
Private, 4-year, liberal arts college
Founded in 1834 as a female seminary
Co-educational since 1987Residential,
300-acre campus in southeastern Massachusetts
500 faculty/staff 1500 students
The Boston Consortium (TBC)
• Association of 13 higher education institutions in the Boston area– diverse mix of colleges and universities– 45,000 FTE; 122,000 students– founded in 1995 by CFOs– focus on cost & risk management– sharing best practices and information
• 13 working groups, including– IT Training Group (ITTG), Telecom– CFOs, CIOs– Purchasing, Facilities– HR, Organizational Development & Training
ITTG Milestones
1998ITTG formed
1998Trainingexchange
1999 Classroom training vendor partnership
2000WBL vendor partnership(Element K)
2002Educause Quarterly“Good Ideas”
2003Web collaborationtools exploration
Success through collaboration
2002Learning History published
Harnessing the Technology
Finding a learning solution
Shared needs• Just in time learning• Learning materials
with depth & breadth • Consistent with existing
learning content• Skill assessment
Shared response• Jointly investigated
several providers of WBL services
• Partnered with Element K after extensive research
Element K: the technology
• Hosted solution• Bandwidth requirement: moderate • Plugins: Shockwave Player only• Web-based administration:
– Database-driven back end– Multiple training administrators– Managed access to content libraries
• Account creation: individual or in bulk• Reporting: online and exported
A learner-centered tool• Searchable learning
materials– Instructor-led courses– Self-paced
course modules– Reference materials
• Self-paced tutorials– performance-based– interactive
• Personalized learning path– Assessments to help
skill gaps – Progress tracked
over time
• Observations– Learners primarily select relevant
self-paced modules– Most effective as part of learner-
manager partnership
Empowering
Learners
Tufts Learner Profile:
Jeanne BeckAbout Jeanne• Staff Assistant,
Economics Dept.• 17-year
Tufts employee• Administrative
support & information resource
• Started using WBL in 2000
Jeanne’s Goals• Acquire skills for tomorrow to address a challenge
identified today• Learn every day & every year• Apply tools in innovative ways
Tufts Learner Profile:
Jeanne BeckHow Jeanne learns• Uses a skill development plan with her
manager• Learns at home to minimize interruptions• Focuses her learning around specific projects• Repeats modules to reinforce new skills
Evaluation & Observations• Uses WBL to work toward professional
certification• WBL allows her to become progressively more
effective in her work• Starting with a problem, she creates valuable
solutions
About Janet • Department:Physical Plant; C.P.O.• 4 years at Wheaton• Worked in dorms & athletic facility• “People person”
Where Janet Wants to Go• Develop skills not obvious to her current job category • Move into higher education administration• Improve her ability to gather info & find solutions for
today• Update her skills to improve future opportunities
Wheaton Learner Profile:
Janet Sebetes
Wheaton Learner Profile: How Janet’s Getting ThereHow Janet’s Getting There
• Manager support
• Clear focus on her goals
• ID required skills
• Motivated to find time
Observations
• This local cheerleader spreads training news
Her message to managers and to you:
• Meet me halfway.
• Give me time to develop.
• Remember that every person makes a difference.
Stories about
Blended learning
Learning multimedia skills I
The Situation• Existing course on digital
multimedia, taught by a faculty member with a joint appointment with ITS and Drama & Dance
• Highly skill-based; emphasis on Flash with some initial focus on PowerPoint
Goals• Enable students to create multimedia projects that
are both more advanced and of greater quality• Focus in-class instruction on more advanced skills• Provide more time for in-class practice & feedback
Carolyn Larson & Neal Hirsig
Learning multimedia skills II
How• Requires students to complete
Element K’s basic courses in:– Flash MX (level 1 & 2)– PowerPoint (level 1)– Photoshop Basics (level 1)
Observations• Learning & skill development both in and out of
class• Neal focuses instruction on more advanced skills
& spends more time working with students• Course projects are of much higher quality
Learning in action
The Situation• Summer 2001, 3 Wheaton technical specialists
needed Linux training to complete summer project
• On-site option: too few to justify cost• Off-site option: $, scheduling
difficult/inconvenient
Goals• Respond quickly to tech needs specific to higher
ed environment with ILT on fund, admin, config• Contain costs• Support maximum learning in short time• Manage divergent starting points
Learning Technical Skills I
Learning Technical Skills IIHow• Discovered similar TBC needs & constraints• Invited similar specialists from TBC schools to
ILT; their reduced fee offset our cost• Required participants to go thru 2 El K modules
before first classroom meeting
Evaluation & Observations • Collab made it cost-effective; passed good rate
to all participants (our first “learning exchange”)
• Some “marginal” people could attend• Instructor reported good baseline entry skills• Learners able to learn with peers from higher
ed
Success through
Collaboration
ITTG Milestones
1998ITTG formed
1998Trainingexchange
1999 Classroom training vendor partnership
2000WBL vendor partnership(Element K)
2002Educause Quarterly“Good Ideas”
2003Web collaborationtools trial
Success through collaboration
2002Learning History published
Driving the success• Collaboration is central to ITTG’s
success!• Shared needs shared response
shared benefits shared commitment
Benefits• Realize best value for products/services• Distribute work• Share costs & resources• Forge powerful personal connections
Collaboration Cycle
Share good information.
Identify needs and wishes.
Step past boundaries. Take risks. Follow through.
Develop and enjoy trustful relationships.
Listen for connections, and build on them.
Build upon trust toenhance dialogue.
Recognize and celebrate small “wins”.
Reflect on accomplishments. Share with others.
Connectwith colleagues
Making connections & WIIFM
• Break into groups of 4-8 by content area (2 mins)
• Introduce yourselves within the group (3 mins)
• Individually, complete the Making Connections worksheet (3 mins)
• As a group, record your top successes and key areas for improvement (5 mins)
• Debrief
Learning topics• Core competencies• Distance learning• Faculty development• Professional
development for staff• Skill development &
curricular learning• Web-based training for
students• Other interests
Collaboration….
• Valuable & invigorating for you & your organization
• Possible where you are!
Connect with us!– We’re happy to help….– Colleen Wheeler
[email protected]– Josh Wilson
Last points• Making connections personbase• Thank you• Evaluations