Program Learning Outcome 6 and 7

Evaluate technology resources to facilitate effective assessment and evaluation.  Utilize technology to collect and analyze data, interpret results, and communicate findings.

JIT Survey Results

            Surveys are a powerful data collection tool.  One person can answer a quick survey and provide a lot of information that can then be used to change a program or to improve it.  In the past, before the Internet, collecting data from a survey meant hundreds of man-hours finding people to answer the survey, organizing the data, and finally creating a way to display it all.  Now with the Internet, fewer hours are spent handing out surveys.  With a click of a button a few hours later the researcher can have a lot of data from a wide range of people.

            Google Forms has also greatly advanced how information is collected.  Not only can you create a survey but it also collects the data for you in a separate spreadsheet, from where it is easy to create graphs and other models to represent the data.

In EDU656:  Technology Solutions for JIT Training & Learning, the assignment was to collect data about Just In Time training.  Just in Time training is training that is based on information that you need right at that moment.  This is the type of learning that humans do most often.  A problem at work comes up that needs a solution. With a few quick searches on the Internet the answers can be found and put to use right away.  Using Google Forms I created a survey that I then sent out to my friends using Facebook to collect information about how they would like to learn about new concepts that would be beneficial for their job.  The survey can be found at the following link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1440BZWexMqdiYduDk0VvgoLyFXeK4kfNMiUFJ14ofXc/viewform.    This survey was created using the cognitive and pragmatic instructional model.  Having people fill out a survey about how they best learn is a way to get the learners to be active participants in the learning (Dabbagh, 2006).  This type of learning also focuses on the Constructivism and Interpretivism model by understanding that learning for everyone happens in diverse ways and what works for one person might not work for another (Dabbagh, 2006).  Getting the learner’s input will help make the learning process more meaningful and useful.  After leaving the survey online for a few days, enough data was collected to work with and the following links have graphs that were created to represent the answers to the following survey questions.

How many days in a week would you be able to be part of a learning group?

How much time would you have daily to be part of a learning group?

What types of technology do you use on a daily basis?

When learning a new concept, which of the following ways would you prefer to learn by?

After reviewing the data, the information that was most surprising was that even though many people are always complaining about not having enough time, most people still noted that they would rather meet in person with colleagues to learn a new concept.  With that in mind maybe it is not the physical meeting that people are seeking, but just the chance to discuss the concept with another human, whether that is via the Internet or in person.  Even though Small Group Physical (SG-Physical) setting was rated the highest preferred way of learning, considering time constraints and that discussion was rated so highly, an online learning environment, like the one a student can experience attending Ashford University’s online program is the best venue for Just in Time learning. In this format, people have the chance to discuss the concepts and practice them where they can get constructive criticism and fine tune their skills.  This type of learning can easily be set up with a Wiki or blog format and the learning can happen within the time constraints of peoples' day to day lives.  In the end, we all do not have hours upon hours to spend learning new skills, but adding to our skills toolbox is extremely important.

            In redesigning this assignment, not much needed to be changed.  The information that was collected from the survey was valid enough to draw conclusions about what type of Just In Time learning would work best. When the survey was first created, it was created using Google Forms because that was the easiest way to get the survey out to people and to have the data collected as quickly as possible.  The great things about Google Forms is that you do not need to have a Google account and the link to the survey can be sent out to people in many different ways; either by posting it to a blog, a Facebook wall or Tweeting it, the information was collected quickly and effortlessly.

            Data collection keeps getting easier and easier to do.  No longer do thousands of surveys need to be sent through the mail or hours upon hours spent standing outside a storefront trying to convince people to answer survey questions.  Now with the click of a button it is sent out and people can fill it in on their own time without being hassled about it.

References

Clark, R. C. & Mayer, R. E. (2011). E-Learning and the science of instruction (3rd ed). San Francisco. Pfeiffer.

Dabbagh, N. (2006). Instructional design knowledge base. Retrieved from http://classweb.gmu.edu/ndabbagh/Resources/IDKB/models_theories.htm