Processes

Understand processes such as change, design, development, and learning.

San Diego County Resume Project:

Captivate Movies Created for Project:

REFLECTION

In Ed 795A, our capstone class with Allison Rossett, we were “hired” by various organizations to create a short-term project. I was given the assignment to create a Web-based course in how to create a resume for the San Diego County’s Department of Human Resources. This was the class, and especially this project, which became a real turning point for my understanding of instructional design, the theory that underlies it, and how it is applied in the real world. You could say, ADDIE finally came to life for me. This project also may lead to a real turning point in my career.

Prior to this experience, ADDIE, Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation and Evaluation, was simply a concept. It seemed tedious to me — out of step with the speed instructional products now need to be developed in this digital age of instant gratification. I remember when presented with the concept in EDTEC 540 I had an immediate mental rebellion against it. With my creative art sensibilities I felt I was being forced into an anti-creative way of working.

In my other EDTEC classes my only pay was a letter grade. In fact I had to pay money for the privilege of taking the course. In this class I was given the opportunity to work for a client who was actually paying me for my services. I decided to do the best work possible as correctly as possible to find out if I would actually like to make my living as an Instructional Designer.

Applying the Analysis step in the real world was a revelation. It involved in depth conversations with the stakeholders in the county HR department, researching existing resume courses, an online survey using WebMonkey, interviewing employees who took the in-person course in the past, and others who were planning to take the course.

The stakeholder and employee interviews were what helped guide me the most in creating something that fulfilled the unique needs of the county. The stakeholders wanted me to make sure I included something that demonstrated how employees could look up the job classification on the county’s Intranet. The employees told me what they enjoyed the most were the Word templates they could access on the Microsoft site. In addition to basic resume information these two aspects of my resume class became the centerpieces that were not found in any other online course. The Analysis became the guide for the Design and Development parts of the ADDIE model.

Implementation was not something I could do, since the county IT staff had to actually publish the site, but we did do an Evaluation prior to publishing that was very useful. We had some employees test the prototype. They discovered links that did not work, some spelling errors, and they also made others suggestions for improvement. All these things were corrected and implemented. We were proud of the end result.

The course is being used today. I am told the employees really enjoy it. In fact, it was the first course in this series that the county put online.

When the project was completed the HR staff held a special meeting that became like a movie premier. They had pop-corn and snacks while I showed them the site. After the initial showing they even gave me an ovation. I was gratified that I had tried to follow the ADDIE model as best I could and the end result was such a happy one.

Another result of this project was for the first time I started seriously considering a career in industry rather than in the education system. I had been trying for a summer internship at a European university. When that fell through I received an email about a summer internship with the Bank of America. I responded immediately. The bank was interested in my resume and they interviewed me by phone. They asked if I had any experience with Captivate. I had just mastered it for the San Diego County job. When I described the project I had just created, that sealed the deal. I spent the summer working for the Bank of America in a Boston skyscraper. Last September they offered me a position — amazingly in San Diego. I am strongly considering accepting.

Things go better with ADDIE.