A Questionbased Approach to Educational Planning

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A Question-based Approach to Educational
Planning

• Thomas J. Sork
• The University of British Columbia
• December 3, 2001

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A Skilled Program Planner is

• Technically capable
• Politically aware
• Ethically responsible

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Basic Elements of Program Planning
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Basic Elements of Program Planning
Analyze Planning Context Learner Community
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Context Defined
The interrelated conditions in which something
exists or occurs. Websters Collegiate
The circumstances relevant to something under
consideration. Concise Oxford
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Analyze Planning Context

• What factors are important?
• How will they affect planning?

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Some Contextual Factors

• Mission/purpose
• Formal/informal authority
• History/traditions
• Internal/external political climate
• Role of education
• Structure

• Accountability framework
• Cooperative/competitive relationships
• Social/economic forces
• Reputation/status
• Others . . .

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Analyze Learner Community

• Who are the learners?
• What learner characteristics are important to
  planning?
• How will they affect planning?

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Some Learner Characteristics

• Gender
• Cultural/ethnic background
• Educational level
• Employment/work history
• Work/family obligations
• Attitude toward education
• Disabilities

• Barriers/deterrents to participation
• Age
• Facility with languages
• Learning styles
• Sources of information
• Social networks
• Economic circumstances
• Others . . .

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Basic Elements of Program Planning
Analyze Planning Context Learner Community
Justify Focus Planning
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Justify and Focus Planning

• Needs assessment
• Interest inventory
• Market test
• Problem analysis
• Trend analysis
• Combinations
• Others . . .

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Educational Need Defined(general)
A gap or discrepancy between a present capability
(PC) and a desired capability (DC).
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Capability Defined
The capacity to think and to act in specific
ways.
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More capable
Desired capability
n
Educational need
l
Less capable
Present capability
Time
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Methods of Gathering Information

• Written surveys
• Telephone surveys
• Individual interviews
• Group interviews
• Nominal groups
• Focus groups
• Delphi technique
• Talking circles

• Incident analysis
• Doc./lit. analysis
• Observations
• Self-assessments
• Tests/examinations
• Job analysis/DACUM
• Practice audits
• Others

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Interest Inventory

• Most interest inventories ask some form of the
  following
• Which of these possible programs are you
  interested in attending?
• OR
• What programs would you like us to offer?

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Market Test

• How many people will buy this program and what
  will they think of it after they use it?
• What changes should we make to the program based
  on the market response?

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Problem Analysis

• Any systematic effort to understand the origins
  and possible solutions to a recognized problem.
  Once possible solutions are identified, those
  that can be implemented via education or training
  programs become the basis for the rest of the
  planning process.

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Trend Analysis

• Trend analysis is any process that studies an
  existing trend (social, technological, economic,
  educational, etc.) to determine what might happen
  in the near-term future that could be the basis
  of an education or training program. Trend
  analysis is a more proactive, anticipatory,
  future-oriented approach to planning than
  needs-based approaches.

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Combinations

• Two or more of these methods to justify and focus
  planning can be combined to take advantage of the
  strengths of each. This may require added work
  but can also produce more detailed information
  about what should be included in the program.

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Basic Elements of Program Planning
Analyze Planning Context Learner Community
Justify Focus Planning
Clarify Intentions
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Clarify Intentions

• Objectives
• Purposes
• Processes
• Content

• Benefits
• Outcomes
• Combinations
• Others . . .

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Different Forms of Objectives

• Tylers approach
• Magers approach
• Gronlunds approach
• Gagne, Briggs Wagers approach

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Tylers Approach

• Objectives should not describe behaviours of
  instructors. Rather, they should describe changes
  that will take place in students. An objective
  should have two components
• The behaviour to be developed
• The area of content or life in which the
  behaviour is to be applied.

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Magers Approach

• Useful objectives contain three elements
• Performancewhat the learner is expected to be
  able to do.
• Conditionsthe important conditions under which
  the performance is to occur.
• Criterionstandard of acceptable performance
  quality of the performance.

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Gronlunds Approach

• Objectives should describe what students will be
  able to do following instruction, but this can be
  done at two levels
• General instructional objectives provide an
  overall view of outcomes.
• Specific learning outcomes are detailed
  descriptions of what students will be able to do
  following instruction.

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Gagne, Briggs and Wagers Approach

• Suggest a five-component objective
• Situationfaced by the learner.
• Learned capability verbone of nine.
• Objectcontent of performance.
• Action verbdescribes performance.
• Tools, constraints, or special conditionsrelated
  to the performance.

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Purposes Approach

• A purpose statement is usually more general than
  an objective, but can do a good job of
  communicating program intent. Example
• The purpose of this program is to encourage
  participants to adopt innovative approaches to
  conflict resolution and to show how conflict
  resolution strategies can be used to improve
  organizational effectiveness.

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Processes Approach

• Describes what will take place during the
  program. Intentions are inferred from this
  description. Example
• This program will provide participants an
  opportunity to assess their current assertiveness
  skills, to practice new skills in simulated work
  situations, and to develop strategies to apply
  these skills in their work, family and social
  lives.

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Content Approach

• Describes the content of a program and leaves it
  to the reader to infer what outcomes might result
  from exposure to the content
• Example This program includes An Introduction
  to Transformational Learning Distinguishing
  Transformational from Other Types of Learning
  Recent Research on Transformational Learning
  Facilitating Transformational Learning
  Evaluating the Outcomes of Transformational
  Learning

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Benefits Approach

• Describes the anticipated benefits to
  participants of attending the program. Example
  By attending this program you will be able to
  (1) have greater influence on people, (2) add
  power and polish to your professional image, and
  (3) handle difficult people.

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Outcomes Approach

• Learning outcomes describe the capabilities that
  learners will develop as a result of
  participating in programs. They are somewhat
  different from objectives because outcomes
  describe how learning will be applied after the
  program is completed.

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Combinations

• Two or more of these can be combined to
  communicate program intentions. For example,
  purpose, content and objectives can all be used
  to communicate program intent. Other combinations
  are also possible. Use as few or as many as
  necessary to communicate program intentions to
  stakeholders and the learner community.

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Basic Elements of Program Planning
Analyze Planning Context Learner Community
Justify Focus Planning
Clarify Intentions
Prepare Instructional Plan
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Prepare Instructional Plan

• includes . . .
• Selecting content, skills activities
• Sequencing activities
• Scheduling feedback
• Developing a motivational plan
• Specifying instructional resources
• Attending to aesthetics

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Basic Elements of Program Planning
Analyze Planning Context Learner Community
Justify Focus Planning
Prepare Administrative Plan
Clarify Intentions
Prepare Instructional Plan
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Prepare Administrative Plan

• includes . . .
• Deciding on date, time location
• Arranging for facilities amenities
• Financing budgeting
• Developing a marketing plan
• Designating responsibilities
• Setting monitoring timelines

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Budget Concepts

• Fixed costs
• Variable costs
• Overhead or indirect costs
• Break-even point

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Break-Even Chart
Revenue
Costs Revenue
Break-even Point
Variable Costs
10,000
4,500
Fixed Costs
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No. of Registrants
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Marketing/Promoting the Program

• Means of communication
• Content of the message
• Timing
• Support services

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Basic Elements of Program Planning
Analyze Planning Context Learner Community
Justify Focus Planning
Develop Summative Evaluation Plan
Formative Evaluation
Prepare Administrative Plan
Clarify Intentions
Prepare Instructional Plan
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Develop Summative Evaluation Plan

• includes . . .
• Identifying involving stakeholders
• Determining purpose
• Gathering evidence
• Developing and applying criteria
• Making judgements
• Reporting results

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Program Evaluation Defined
the process of judging (or a judgment as to)
the worth or value of a program. This judgment is
formed by comparing evidence as to what
the program is with criteria as to what the
program should be. Steele, 1970
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Criteria
Comparison
Judgement
Evidence
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Possible Evaluation Stakeholders

• Participants
• Planners/administrators
• Instructors
• Program staff
• Sponsors
• Employers

• Professional associations
• Labour unions
• Governments
• Advisory groups
• Board members
• Others...

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Kirkpatricks Evaluation Levels
1. Reaction ? How well did the participants like
the program? 2. Learning ? What principles,
facts and techniques were learned? What
attitudes were changed? 3. Behavior ? What
changes in job behavior resulted from the
program? 4. Results ? What were the tangible
results of the program in terms of reduced
costs, improved quality, improved quantity, etc?
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Evaluation Evidence

• Written questionnaires
• Interviews/discussions
• Nominal/focus groups
• Supervisor ratings
• Peer ratings
• Self-ratings/assessments
• Reflective journals
• Tests

• Record/report analyses
• Observations/videos
• Simulations/role plays
• In-basket exercises
• Program/learning portfolios
• Cost-benefit/ROI analyses
• Others

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Basic Elements of Program Planning
Analyze Planning Context Learner Community
Justify Focus Planning
Develop Summative Evaluation Plan
Formative Evaluation
Prepare Administrative Plan
Clarify Intentions
Prepare Instructional Plan
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Formative Evaluation . . .

• . . . involves analyzing the decisions and
  actions taken at each stage of planning to
  determine if the design of the program can be
  improved before it is implemented.

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Basic Elements of Program Planning
Analyze Planning Context Learner Community
Justify Focus Planning
Develop Summative Evaluation Plan
Formative Evaluation
Prepare Administrative Plan
Clarify Intentions
Prepare Instructional Plan
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Basic Elements of Program Planning
Analyze Planning Context Learner Community
Justify Focus Planning
Develop Summative Evaluation Plan
Formative Evaluation
Prepare Administrative Plan
Clarify Intentions
Prepare Instructional Plan
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Three Domains of Program Planning
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Three Domains of Program Planning
Technical
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Three Domains of Program Planning
Technical
Social-Political
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Three Domains of Program Planning
Technical
Social-Political
Ethical
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Adult educators have spent the last fifty years
trying to develop ever more sophisticated
approaches to planning in the technical-rationale
tradition. We have suffered from a fixation on
linear, tidy, and familiar models that treat a
complex social process as unproblematic. It is
time that we shifted focus from finding the
perfect planning model to asking the right
questions (Sork, 2000, p. 186).