Scope Creep

Scope Creep

Scope Creep, words that make you cringe. Scope Creep can happen to even the most seasoned Project Manager, it can happen at any time and on even the most well planned project. Scope creep happened on a recent project in my office.

The project converting from our old Learning Management System (LMS) to a new Learning Management System. Project manager has created a project plan, time line and done all the research. Project is moving along, when suddenly the Director of the training department says that the LMS needs to produce a custom transcript that lists Continuing Professional Education credits along with Continuing Education Units. The project manager now has to review the project, add this in, speak with the hosting company, revisit the time line, and add this, as it was never part of the original project. We get moving again, and now the Chief Executive Officer realizes the LMS needs to do something else that is outside the original project scope. These two projects set our project back from a few weeks to several weeks what was to happen the first of the year didn't happen until late February, and still took many more months of releases and bug fixes, but the new LMS is released and being used on a daily basis.

Project Management Allocating Resources and Cost Estimation

                

Project Management Allocating Resources and Cost Estimation 

                 The first site I looked at is Ganttic, with this site you get a 14 day free trial. This site allows you to drag and drop, you can assign colors to tasks and projects, you are able to add reports, import reports and filter items. This site is easy to use and provides some useful information, It provides the information in a neat and organized manner, you can leave notes for the project team members. 

                  The next site I looked at was Asana, I have used this site in my current job. I like the ability to add team members to the project, provide deadlines, and provide status updates. Asana is easy to use, and you can set your own updates, link it to your email and it has an app that you can download and use it while on the go. 

Resources

“Resource Management Multi-Project Planning.” Ganttic. Web. 6 Feb. 2016. http://www.ganttic.com/

“Move Work Forward.” Asana. Web. 6 Feb. 2016. https://asana.com/

Communicating Effectively

Post-mortem

   Summer Vacation  Project FAIL....

      Picture it, a tropical vacation, a cruise ship, two single mom's with their teenage sons, setting out for the "BEST" summer vacation ever. A few years ago one of my best friends and I decided that we were going to go on a summer vacation. We sat down and came up with our project plan, hard to believe you would need a project plan for a vacation, but you don't know me. I have never been able to actually take a vacation, money is always my issue. So here we were, we decided we were going to take a family vacation for the summer.

    We sat down one winter night and tossed around what type of vacation, so we priced Disney, Disney cruises, an all inclusive trip to Mexico, a trip to the Virgin Islands, or a cruise. We proposed the ideas to our team (families) the vote was for a cruise. Now we had to come up with a budget. Our budget was $1600 per family (family size is 2 and there are 2 families). We divided the work up, we had a project manager, drivers, supporters and even an observer or two that were outside the project team. 

      Most of us took our job seriously, we did our research on airfare, hotel costs, planned excursions, chose destinations, researched cruise lines, we wanted to get the absolute best deal for our money. Various factors would come up along the way, but we had our budget, plan and we were determined to make this work. However, we quickly found out that if you don't get buy in from all parties, including some very vocal observers, you will get more headaches and eventually the entire project can begin to fall apart. 

        Our project was moving along swimmingly for several months, we had chosen the cruise line, we had picked a few options for location, we were working on dates, this is where we started to lose control, the best friends ex husband, father of one of the teenagers going on the trip. He wasn't buying in to our project, when it would come time for us to run date options by him, he would often delay his responses, or not respond, sometimes would agree to a time frame only to come back with a no, we would come up with another option, and then would meet with budget constraints. In the end the family vacation was never taken. It is still a goal and I am hoping that in the next few years my son and I can go on a cruise, hopefully before he graduates high school.  

My Reflection on Distance Learning

To talk about the future of distance learning, I would need to start with my dealings with distance learning. When I decided to pursue my Bachelor’s Degree several years ago, I was a single mom of a newborn, I wasn’t sure how I was ever going to achieve my degree as well as raise my child, then I found an online degree program. I found that I could obtain my bachelors in Graphic Design while staying home with my son, and I could still work. I first thought it was too good to be true, I researched as much as I could, I asked family and friends what they knew about obtaining an online degree, very few knew anything about it and most did not think it would be credible. I did my research, found an accredited online degree program and went for it, I received my Bachelors of Science in 2010, upon receipt of that I knew I wanted to go even further, I wanted to take some time off but knew that I would go for my Masters.  Five years later and now I am here at Walden University working on my Master’s Degree, now many of my family members and friends have now attended online programs and are more accepting of distance learning.

                I believe that over the next five to ten years distance learning will continue to become more accepted and more credible, I think as technology advances and people get even more comfortable using technology, advances will continue to make distance learning common place. In 10 to 20 years I believe that distance learning will be as common as classic brick and mortar schools, you will have your choice of which you want to attend, I could see more and more parents choosing distance learning for their own children, to home school or to further develop those children who have learning disabilities. I can see distance learning being used in elementary schools and companies to assist in ways we have yet to think of.

                As an Instructional Designer we can be proponents for improving societal perceptions of distance learning because some of us will have obtained our degrees and will be able to use our personal experiences when talking about distance learning. Many times the best ways to change a person’s attitude towards something is to provide them with information based on personal experiences, if you had a positive experience and share the experience with someone considering a distance learning program, it might help them to choose the program and guide them.  We can also improve perceptions in our designing, when we design courses and curriculums we can take all of what we have learned and what we will continue to learn and improve. Always keeping the learner in mind and their learning styles, the technologies that they may or may not have, their experiences and being mindful of making their learning experience the best possible. It is never easy to improve societal perceptions, but it can be achieved and it can be great when it is done.

                I plan to be a positive force for continuous improvement in the field of distance education by taking everything I have learned from this class, from this program and from life experiences when building courses, developing online learning experiences and creating the best distance learning experience possible for my learners, getting to know my learners, knowing as much as I can about the materials, keeping up to date on the latest technology advances, ensuring the learner’s engagement.

“Distance education will be impacted by: New communication technologies, contribution by experts around the world, and increase use of multimedia, games, and simulations.” (Laureate Education, n.d.) As an Instructional Designer it is up to us to keep with technologies and the advances, we need to test, implement, develop and play with these advances so that we can see how they work,  what might work best for each of our learners and programs.

References

Laureate Education (Producer), (No Date). The Future of Distance Education [Video file of Dr. George Siemens]. Retrieved from https://class.walden.edu

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., & Zvacek, S. (2015). Technologies, the Internet, and Distance Education, Teaching and Learning At a Distance: Foundations of Distance Education (6th Ed.), Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing

Converting to a Distance Learning Format

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Are you considering updating a face-to-face training session to something new, possibly converting it to a distance learning format? These Best Practices will help guide you with your transition. 

You have already taken the first step, by identifying the format. This is an important piece, choosing between asynchronous, synchronous and hybrid can make all the difference in what you do from here on out for this conversion.

Target Audience 

Choosing/Knowing a target audience  is a very important step, "the learners in the class must be considered in order to ensure success and doing so “…yields a more productive learning environment.” (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, & Zvacek, 2012, p. 154). Learn about your learners, what are they looking to get out of the class, what is their level of understanding, where are they technology wise. Answer questions about the learner to get a better understanding of where they are coming from and how they will access and use the information.

Instructional Design Models

Next, you should research your options for Instructional Design Models, there are several out there. While ADDIE is most commonly known and used it is not your only option, knowing more about models like Dick and Carey Model, which "addresses instruction as an entire system, focusing on the interrelationship between context, content, learning and instruction." (Instructional Design Central) You can also explore Kemp's Instructional Design Model "is particularly useful for developing instructional programs that blend technology, pedagogy and content to deliver effective, inclusive(reliable) and efficient learning. (Instructional Design Central) These are just a few options available to help you.

Technology

Technology, will you use a Learning Management System (LMS), how will you deliver the materials to the learner. Choosing a LMS is important if this is the route you choose you will want to research the options. Choosing your technology will help you choose your interactivity,which is the next step.

Interactivity

Interactivity, how will you interact with the learners, what are your options here, explore the concepts and options that are available. Will you use Discussions, will you use Wiki's, Blog or something new and innovative? The interaction needs to occur on many levels, Learner to Content , Learner to Instructor and Learner to Learner. (Pappas 2012)

Evaluation

Evaluation, how will you evaluate the learner, what they learned and how much they retained. “Evaluation of programs is used to identify strengths and weaknesses as well as the benefits and drawbacks of teaching and learning online”, (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, & Zvacek, 2012, p. 348). 
  

References

Design, I. (2012). Instructional Design Central | Instructional Designer Resources, Information, and Professional Networking Services. Retrieved December 11, 2015, from http://www.instructionaldesigncentral.com/

Pappas, C. (2012, August 28). ELearning Industry, TOP 5 tips to Convert your Traditional Course into an eLearning format. Retrieved December 11 2015, from http://elearningindustry.com/

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

Wordle image: www.wordle.net - created by Delena Holmes

Open Source's Impact on Distance Learning

In my current class Distance Learning we were asked to review an Open Source course, I chose to explore a course offered by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) the course name is "Slavery and Human Trafficking in the 21st Century"(http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/anthropology/21a-445j-slavery-and-human-trafficking-in-the-21st-century-spring-2015/) this course was offered during the Spring of this year. The course is well laid out, the materials were easy to locate and I was able to locate a syllabus, calendar and my assignments. From and Instructional Design standpoint, the course has been carefully planned with the learner in mind, you are provided with instant links to purchase course materials as needed, you have downloads available and easily located. Our text states “the components of a successful learning system are the learners, the content, the methods, the materials and the environment, including the technology” (Simonson, Smaldino, Zvacek, 2015). It is my belief that this course had all these components. I think it is great that during this course you not only have reading materials, you also get to watch films and videos.       

The subject is not an easy one to watch, but the ID for this course took a difficult subject and made a course that to me is engaging, insightful and keeps the learner in mind. There are weekly notes as part of your assignments, a small group presentation and a term paper is due at the end, and it’s a minimum of 17 to 20 pages. You are provided with more than enough resources, and information, samples and time. I felt the course was engaging, even without being in a live group environment.

        As I perused some of the other offerings I began to notice that MIT has a template for the layout of their courses. This in my opinion makes it easier for the learner feel comfortable navigating between the courses, having everything structured provides a comfort level once you have completed your first course you know that your future courses will have the same feel to them.

References

Mitali Thakor. 21A.445J Slavery and Human Trafficking in the 21st Century, Spring 2015. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology: MIT OpenCourseWare),http://ocw.mit.edu (Accessed 2 Dec, 2015). License: Creative Commons BY-NC-SA

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., & Zvacek, S. (2015). Teaching and Learning at a Distance: Foundations of Distance Education

Collaborative Training Environment

Example- A new automated staff information system was recently purchased by a major corporation and needs to be implemented in six regional offices. Unfortunately, the staff is located throughout all the different offices and cannot meet at the same time or in the same location. As an instructional designer for the corporation, you have been charged with implementing a training workshop for these offices. As part of the training, you were advised how imperative it is that the staff members share information, in the form of screen captures and documents, and participate in ongoing collaboration.

There are many great options available, one just needs to do some research. One option that you could offer is a virtual session, utilizing a combination of video conferencing, such as Vidyo and web hosting program, such as On24, you would be able to host a training that can be live for multiple attendees, and recorded for future attendees, you have options like annotations, chats and Q&A sessions to interact the staff members they can share screen captures, documents and various other items during the session. Another great option is to utilize a CMS, like Moodle.com and create the course and allow discussions, 

During a recent roll out of a new software at the Firm we created a progressive roll out of the software training. We offered several Live in office and Virtual offerings, we also recorded a session and created a course in our LMS, our LMS is SumTotal, to offer to those unavailable for the live sessions. We then created Q&A sessions for after the roll out that could be attended and to allow for even more questions and collaboration. For these sessions we simply utilized a webinar hosting program, we use WebEx. 

As an Instructional Designer it is important to know your options, research your options and find the one that works best for that situation. Currently we are exploring options for how to offer more virtual training to our world wide offices, with budget and travel constraints it becomes important to look at options on how to continue to offer training sessions. This is where we get to really have some fun and explore options, try new things and see what works best for our clients. We have explored two options for some classes, we recently offered an entire 4 hour course virtually using video conferencing software. The class went well, our learners were engaged and the facilitator was able to get all the materials in. 

References:

www.webex.com
www.on24.com
www.vidyo.com
www.moodle.com
www.coursesites.com

Distance Learning

     In my lifetime I have not traveled to many places, but thanks to distance learning I have been able to receive my education without leaving my home. I have been able to raise my son on my own, without having to put him in daycare or having missed milestones in his life thus far. I now have a teenager, my Bachelors and am working on my Masters, 

       Distance Learning means different things to different people. For example, I don't think I would have thought of the distance learning like correspondence courses, I hadn't thought of those in years, not till I read about it in our readings. Now I can remember when correspondence courses were offered, I can remember many of the other types of distance learning I researched when I first graduated high school, and wasn't sure the traditional classroom was for me. It turns out I wasn't meant for the traditional classroom, online learning was what fit me, I could participate in discussions, be a part of a group, learn at my own pace and learn self discipline. 

          While Distance Learning might not be for everyone it has changed my life both personally and professionally. I believe Distance Learning is such a generic term, if you ask someone in the learning field what is Distance Learning, you are sure to get many different answers. I actually did this in my office, I asked some of our Trainers, Senior Trainers, Training Coordinators even Managers, how they would define Distance Learning, it was truly amazing at how many different answers I received. While it appears to me there is no one way to define Distance Learning, it is what you make of it. . 

Reference:

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., & Zvacek, S. (2015). Definitions, History, and Theories of Distance Education, Teaching and Learning at a Distance: Foundations of Distance Education, pgs. 35 – 40.

Reflecting on a semester of Learning Theories…

Reflecting on a semester of Learning Theories…

About 16 plus weeks ago, I made a decision to return back to school to obtain my Masters Degree, not an easy decision and one I continue to struggle with, and I am sure I will struggle with till I have the degree in hand. That being said I think it is going to be the best decision I have made in a long time. The learning experience thus far has been great, just in this class alone I have gained so much knowledge that will carry forward not only in my future career as an instructional designer but also in my current job as a training coordinator. 

            I have gained knowledge about how we learn, how the brain works and how to enhance the learning experience utilizing this information. I think the most surprising thing I learned was actually about my own learning, I realized the type of learner I was and that my own learning changes often. I also gained knowledge about my son’s learning and with all his different disabilities it is with this knowledge that I can work with his teachers to work on a learning plan that will work for him and will enable him to learn like his classmates.

            With the knowledge I gained from this course about my own learning, I will be able to work on times when I am having difficulties, I can think back and focus the information into a learning theory that works best for me.

            This course deepened my understanding of my own personal learning process by showing me different ways to learn, the different ways each person learns and what I can do to enhance my own learning into a more exciting experience. Learning for me was once a painful and tough experience. It is now that I am an adult learner that I am finding that learning can be fun, I can learn without all the pain, and retain the knowledge.

            I plan to take the information and knowledge I gained from this course and use apply it to so many aspects of my life, from helping my son with his studies, working with his teachers. Everything we learned about motivation, how the brain functions, the different learning theories, learning styles and educational technology I plan to use in my everyday job, all of this information will be helpful as we build our classes and work on learning plans.

            This course has taught me so much about theories and styles of learning and the use of educational technology, and I learned even more from my fellow classmates and our search for outside sources. I now have some great references to use, blogs that I have bookmarked all that I can refer back to as I continue my education and in my everyday life.

Learning Theories, Learning Theory Matrix and Understanding How I Learn

   I have learned so much this last 7 weeks about how we learn, how I learn, and how to use this information to help with the designing of courses. When I began this class I would have simply said that I learn from watching once, then doing, there was not theory, no name for it just what I have come to know as how I learn. Now I have learned that my learning style has changed over the years and continues to change from course to course and even day to day. With the knowledge that my learning styles change, I can prepare myself so that I get the most out of my learning experience.  Before this class and not having read our readings I would have said based solely on names that my learning style was Social.

  Oh the things I have learned about learning theories, how the brain process learning, how the brain functions at all, and even how each individual learns. It has been so much, that at times I wonder if there is room in my brain for more learning. Now, I know there is plenty of room, and that I have the ability to learn so much more, I even know the styles in which I may learn over the future.  All of the learning we have done will further us in our future designing courses, these will guide us to design effective learning for our learners.  With each person having a different learning style, know this will greatly enhance our programs.

  Technology plays an important part of my learning, and has for a few years now. I received my Bachelor’s Degree via an online program, technology was my method of learning as well as what I was learning about, I was studying graphic design, technology was all around my learning. Once I finished my degree, technology slowed down in my learning realm.  I was focused more on just daily technology use, all my learning was done via person to person, I was focused on getting training from those around me. Now I am in a new position and a new field, where technology is again at the forefront of my learning, we use technology as a learning tool for all of our clients.  We utilize a Learning Management System to allow our clients the ability to sign up for courses, take online courses, manage their learning hours and invest in their future.  I myself have decided to go back to school for my Masters and now here I am once again using technology for my own learning. I also have access to the internet and various other technological devices to help me with helping my son in his studies.

Connectivism

Connectivism

 

 

My learning has changed so much in the past few years, and even more in the last year alone, I believe this is based on my network. Back when I was in high school, there wasn’t much that helped you if you had a question, you had to rely on your teacher or the good old encyclopedia, I am betting and I know with my own son, that there are lots of kids out there that don’t even know what an encyclopedia is, except the one you can find on the internet.  My son was shocked the first time I showed him that it was actually a book, a hardback, with paper pages even. My network that helps me consists of great friends, fantastic co-workers, and social media. I have learned so much with all of these things at my fingertips, it is so easy to get any information I want or need. It’s readily accessible, easy to find, or I can call, text or pin any questions I may have. I still love my books and occasionally still go back to the books, be it for nostalgia or because sometimes it just feels good to look for stuff the “Old Fashioned Way”.

The best digital tools I have found are Pinterest, LinkedIn, Facebook and Google. I enjoy the instantaneousness of these, if I have a question, or need to know something I can find it right away.             

When I have a new question I will begin by asking co-workers and friends, if they are unable to help me I will go to the internet and search, starting with Pinterest, LinkedIn and work my way to Google.

It is my belief that my personal learning network supports connectivism, because we are all in some way connected, be it physically or through the internet, there is some sort of connection to each other and to the information.

 

Evaluating and Identifying Online Resources

I chose two sites to review this week for this weeks assignment:

http://www.dynamicflight.com/avcfibook/learning_process

http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/information-processing.html

The first site was my favorite, I really enjoyed reading all the information presented.  It covered much of what we have covered in our book these first two chapters. This site covers some great information and I found so much of it to be interesting I have actually bookmarked this site for future reference.

Some items I found interesting were the Characteristics of Learning, the information on Learning Styles, the Principles of Learning as well as the levels of Learning. It even covers theories of forgetting, this was and will be something I will take with me to work and share with my co-workers, we always like to share Learning information. 

The second site I reviewed was a brief  review of George A. Miller's two theoretical ideals. It discusses "chunking", and TOTE (Test-Operate-Test-Exit). While this site didn't have as much information, it had some information that I had not seen before and I found to be interesting, I enjoyed reading this information and learning about short term memory. 

References:

http://www.dynamicflight.com/avcfibook/learning_process/

http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/information-processing.html

This is not my first time to blog, but for sure it is my first time to blog for class. I have never blogged for school, so this will be an interesting experiment. My first time blogging was just my attempt at an online journal, I started blogging after hearing about it and seeing it become such a success for so many, even the movie Julia and Julie is about blogging. There are so many blogs out there it is hard to know which ones or what would be interesting or helpful. With that said it was asked of us to take a look at some blogs on Instructional Design and in a sense give an overveiw/review of them.

I looked up three that I thought would be helpful and I have them bookmarked. My first one is from Articulate.com, we use Articulate in my office, so it was easy for me to gravitate to this site, and then to find that they had a blog specifically for Instructional Design, was great! This blog site is easy to navigate, full of useful information, it is great if you are an Articulate fan, and even if you are not there are some great links.

My second site was called IDDblog, this is an Instructional Design blog done by professors at DePaul University this site has some great do's and don't's my favorite was the "Seven Deadly Sins of Online Course Design", Great reading, and I am really looking forward to reading more and more.  I think it is great that they have University professors providing insight and sharing their own experiences.

The third site I looked at was The Learning Circuits Blog, this site was a bit different from the other's that I had visited, this site almost felt like an advertisement site, but still provided some great info and I liked that it had information from ASTD, it is always great when I can find information from ASTD. This blog provides some useful links, great reviews of ID items as well as insightful information.

That's what I have browsed thus far in the Instructional Design blogosphere, I am looking forward to reviewing and visiting even more blogs and keeping up with the ones that I find the most useful, and that I think will provide the most both now while we are in school and after school.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog and I am looking forward to our future posts.