Education Commons^™

Standalone, Supplemental, And Embedded Microlearning Development Alternatives For Federal Programs During A Pandemic, Tod M. Hebenton

Instructional Design Capstones Collection

Microlearning has been studied since the early 2000’s. Comparisons of microlearning and eLearning are found throughout the research. Some research has presented developing microlearning as an alternative to developing eLearning courses. However, this action research paper is written in support of developing microlearning to be implemented alongside or as a component of eLearning. Microlearning benefits learners because it can be developed as standalone, supplemental, or embedded course content. A literature review and close examination of a series of microlearning videos developed for a federal program will highlight how microlearning can be developed as standalone or supplemental course content that can …

Social Media For Senior Citizens: An Introductory Course, Cheryl Raistrick

Instructional Design Capstones Collection

The Woburn Council on Aging is a municipal, volunteer board appointed by the Mayor of Woburn. The Woburn COA operates the Woburn COA Senior Center as a resource for the community's senior citizen population. The Senior Center provides information, referrals, information, outreach, advocacy, transportation, health screening, nutrition, education, peer support, recreation, volunteer development and intergenerational programming for members of the community. Educational programs on the use of technology are offered monthly at the Woburn COA Senior Center though members have expressed interest in learning more about social media applications and how they can be used to communicate with family and …

Laws Pertaining To Harbormasters, Stephen Bedard

Instructional Design Capstones Collection

The Massachusetts Harbormaster Training Council (HTC) was looking to create training programs specifically for Massachusetts harbormasters. The HTC received a grant to create the training programs and began working with the Urban Harbors Institute (UHI) to coordinate the project. The UHI reached out to the Instructional Design program at UMASS Boston for assistance. The Instructional Design program contacted students looking to complete their Capstone projects to see if they were interested in creating training programs for the HTC as part of their Capstone project. Three students were selected to create the training programs as part of their Capstone and one …

Institutional Conditions To Improve The Educational Outcomes Of Part-Time Community College Students, Rhonda M. Gabovitch

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Community college graduation rates are low for the entering cohort of degree or certificate-seeking students who have always attended full-time. After six years, four out of 10 students fail to earn a credential or continue to be enrolled. Graduation rates are even lower for students who enroll consistently on a part-time basis. Approximately three out of four of these students fail to earn a credential within six years. Much of the blame for failure of part-time students is attributed to their demographic characteristics, their lack of motivation, and poor educational preparation for college. Some of these characteristics result in their …

The Massachusetts Early Education And Care: Professional Development Study, Anne Douglass, Alice Carter, Frank Smith

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

This study is a research-policy partnership. This study used workforce registry (n=55,768) and professional development attendance data to examine early educator characteristics and patterns of professional development participation in one state.

In the paper, we describe how these new workforce data can inform professional development. We present the concept of density in professional development participation, discuss its potential benefits, and highlight the utility of state-wide digital tracking of early educators’ patterns of professional development for informing policy. We suggest that professional development policy can impact professional development participation density, and can thus be used intentionally to promote investments that have …

The Post Master's Certificate Program In Early Education Research, Policy, And Practice, Anne Douglass, Mary Lu Love, Lynne Mendes, Angi Stone-Macdonald, Lisa Van Thiel

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) has selected the University of Massachusetts Boston to lead this innovative initiative. The development of a Post Master’s Certificate Program in Early Education Research, Policy, and Practice will build much-needed capacity for advanced graduate study in early education in Massachusetts. This model program is designed to address the demand for new leadership in the rapidly advancing field of early education and care.

Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (Olli): A Program Of The Gerontology Institute, Wichian Rojanawon, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, University Of Massachusetts Boston, Gerontology Institute, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at UMass Boston is the largest lifelong learning program in Massachusetts. It was established in 1999 as a learning community to enrich the intellectual, social, and cultural lives of adults aged 50 and older. One of our objectives is to build a sense of community – a social connection among members. In additions to our courses, we offer this opportunity through several social events a year: a holiday party, a Boston harbor cruise, museum trips, attendance at theatre events, overnight trips, and international trips. OLLI has helped the university to secure over $4 million …

Nontraditional Approaches With Nontraditional Students: Experiences Of Learning, Service And Identity Development, Suzanne Marie Buglione

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Nontraditional students are a growing population in higher education, yet our understanding of the unique factors that predict their success have not increased. Economic challenges, changing work demands, and the desire for personal and professional advancement fuel the nontraditional student's return to school (Kelly & Strawn, 2011). Their isolation and lack of social networks lead to poor academic outcomes as defined by retention, graduation and degree attainment. The classroom offers a beacon of hope for the engagement of nontraditional students, an opportunity to strengthen student identity and draw connections across the multiple worlds where these students reside. This phenomenological inquiry …

The Massachusetts Early Education And Care Professional Development System Study: Year 1 Report, Anne Douglass, Lucinda Heimer, Winifred Hagan

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publication Series

The purpose of this report is to present the findings from the first year of the Massachusetts Professional Development System Study (MA PDS). This study examined the implementation of Massachusetts' new statewide model for professional development of the early education and care and out of school time workforce. The study was funded by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care (EEC).

This study examined the process of implementation of the new professional development system between August 2010 and June 2011. Implementation research is important because it provides insights into whether a new system is operating as intended and identifies …

We Know More Than We Are, At First, Prepared To Acknowledge: Journeying To Develop Critical Thinking, Peter John Taylor

Working Papers in Critical, Creative and Reflective Practice

Exponents of critical thinking emphasize the teaching of skills and dispositions for scrutinizing the assumptions, reasoning, and evidence brought to bear on an issue by others and by oneself. In short, they promote thinking about thinking. But how do students come to see where there are issues to be opened up and identify them without relying on some authority? The current form of my evolving "answer" is that people need support to grapple with inevitable tensions in personal and intellectual development—support to undertake journeys that involve risk, open up questions, create more experiences than can be integrated at first sight, …

A Structured Approach To Training And Development Programs For Business And Organizational Leaders, Thomas M. Burns

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

This paper addresses and integrates two issues. Its first premise is that training and development programs in most organizations are often poorly planned or randomly implemented, a condition which undermines much of the potential benefit these programs may offer. Secondly, the paper argues that the development and application of critical and creative thinking skills, traditionally applied only in educational settings, can also serve businesses in very important ways. Towards the integration of these two issues, a six-stage model is presented that can serve to coordinate the process of personnel development in organizations. It is highlighted by the identification and application …

A Second Chance: Meeting The Needs Of Adult Learners, Elizabeth F. Fideler

New England Journal of Public Policy

Changing demographics and economic factors are focusing national attention on adult learning as a major resource for solving many of the nation 's social and economic dilemmas. However, adult learners, the poor especially, face obstacles to educational advancement even where tuition is waived or incentive grants are given. Despite the considerable recent growth of adult education, the vast number of those who need it the most are not as yet participating. This article examines adult-education practices and participation in general — in the areas of literacy, occupational education, and higher learning — and conditions in Massachusetts in particular. It explains …