Byte Size Assistance

Design, development and implementation of a supported assessment environment .

Funded by the Australian Flexible Learning Framework and the Australian Institute of Management - 2009

The problem.....

... How to improve completion rates

The qualification.....

... The Certificate IV in Frontline Management

The solution.....

... a Wetpaint wiki

The Team

WhatSelect toolsAdapt materialsPilot EvalulateReport

WhenApr-Nov 2009

WhereOnlineFace to face

HowExplorationCollaborationTeamworkCooperation

Technology selection criteria

SimpleFacilitationDiscussionsCollaborationUploadDownload

Virtual Conference RoomInititial online meeting space

Online space for meeting minutes

Social NetworkConsidered for our learners

Learning Management SystemConsidered for our learners

WikiConsidered for our learners

Wetpaint WikiOur tool of choice!

Byte Size Chunks!

Support

The pilotIntroducing Sue Nunn.....

The unexpected hiccups

Firewalls – always testDelayed start – due to firewallParticipant profiles – registering with nicknamesMore than one way to access the site - some participants missed the support pages

Facilitation issues

PrivacyEtiquette

Time

The results

Successful completion rate

90%

The benefits

“..............an excellent way to do assessment”

“I might actually learn something about the

net........”

“What a shame our other assessments could not be

accessed online”

The learners

A strong relationship between assessors and learners increased

the learners motivation to complete the assessment tasks

“.......great return on investment for the Ambulance Service”

The client was impressed by the collaborative nature of the

environment.

The client

The opportunity to provide coaching as part of the

assessment process

Maintaining contact with the students throughout the

assessment process

Continually offering feedback to students on the development

of their portfolio

The assessor

Framework project expert

Ann Morris has been involved in several Framework projects and is currently working with AIM in the Curriculum Development department.“What impressed me most in this project was the commitment of those involved to choose online applications and support that met the needs of the participant group. Often projects become so caught up in the wonder of flexible options available that they lose sight of participants needs and the actual outcome being sought. Managing the collection of evidence in an online environment was challenging but the project team were innovative in actually defining evidence and working within the restriction of having to maintain consistency between paper based and online assessment for the client groups”.

The Byte Size Assistance

Online Supported Assessment Model

The RTO

Client sign off

Client:•completes customisation request

AIM: •issues quote

Client:•signs off

Preparation(Time and costs vary)*

Client:• completes templates on page design and

inclusions

AIM:• custom designs wiki pages, including

introduction, links, graphics• loads assessor profile

AIM/Client:• customises assessment to suit collaborative

environment

* depends on customisation required

Start-up(1 week)

AIM:• sends out initial survey to participants• loads participants’ names into wiki• conducts induction training for participants

(face-to-face or online)• sends info packs to participants

Participants:• set up own profiles• complete induction activity

Assessment(6 weeks)

Participants:•post assessment responses onto the

wiki and upload evidence

AIM Assessor:• monitors, motivates and provides immediate

feedback• resolves issues offline when more appropriate• tracks progress and reports to client and AIM as

required• follows up those falling behind

Completion(1 week)

AIM:•sends out post survey to participants and compares

and collates results

AIM assessor:• places group feedback and farewell message to participants on

wiki• advises individual participants of their final outcomes offline• updates AIM records with outcomes • retains info from wiki in permanent storage