On Wednesday, April 19, I will be presenting this poster at Kent State University’s College of Education, Health & Human Services (EHHS) Graduate Research Gallery. It outlines the proposed professional development support that Mustard Seed Training will be providing in 2023-24 for IE&T providers in Washington D.C. Enjoy!
Presented by Farrell H., Meagen from Kent State University’s Department of Curriculum & Instruction. Faculty mentor: Chia-Ling Kuo, Kent State University, Department of Curriculum & Instruction
Background
IE&T: Integrated Education & Training (IE&T) is a program model for non-traditional adult learners. IE&T providers develop curricula that simultaneously build the technical skills of Career Technical Education (CTE) while also improving basic skills taught in Adult Basic Education (ABE).
Figure 1: IE&T Model
Career Technical Education (CTE) + Adult Basic Education (ABE) = Integrated Education & Training (IE&T)
ARDLSIA Project: From 2109-2024 the partners are collaborating on a five-year Action Research / Distance Learning project. The project’s goal is to improve outcomes in distance learning (DL) using action research (AR). 2023-24 will focus on incorporating O*NET standards in action (SIA) in lesson plans in order to increase the number of adult learners passing industry certification exams.
Proposed Methods
AR: Action research involves a cycle of planning, acting, observing, and reflecting. Each participating IE&T provider will create and implement an action research plan.
McNiff, J. (2013) Action research: Principles and practice [3rd ed.]. Routledge.
Figure 2: Action Research Cycle
- Plan
- Orientation webinars
- Submit action research plans for review
- Act
- Develop lesson plans
- Facilitate lesson plans for monitoring
- Observe
- Monitor & peer review of lesson plans
- Track data for action research plan
- Reflect
- Reflect on results
- Write & present reports
CoP: Communities of Practice describe social context in which individuals become practitioners. Meagen Farrell will facilitate online CoPs for four industry clusters of IE&T providers. Participants will share plans, provide peer review, check in on progress, and present results.
Wenger, E. (1999). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511803932
Figure 3: Four Industry Cluster CoPs
- Business Administration + Info. Tech. (IT) + Entrepreneurship
- Construction
- Healthcare + Early Childhood + Law & Security
- Hospitality
2023-24 Timeline
| DATE(S) | ACTIVITY | DELIVERABLE |
| 9/18-9/20 | Orientation webinars: Action research, distance learning, and O*NET standards | |
| 10/6 & 10/20 | Pre-CoP webinars for each industry | |
| 11/10 | Submit draft ARDLSIA plan | |
| 11/20 | Receive feedback on ARDLSIA plan | |
| 11/28 | Submit updated plan | |
| 12/4-12/8 | Technical assistance on lesson plans | |
| 12/8-12/31 | Design & facilitate lesson plans | Lesson plan for quarterly monitoring period |
| 1/15 | Documentation for all lesson plans & classroom observations complete | 1st & 2nd quarter reports |
| 2/9 | Receive peer and monitor feedback on lesson plans & classroom observation | |
| 2/16 & 2/23 | Post-CoP webinars for each industry | |
| 3/1 | Submit final lesson plans | |
| 2/27-3/1 | Technical assistance on one-page summaries & poster presentations | |
| 3/8 | Submit one-page summary & poster | |
| 3/18 | Receive feedback on one-page summaries & posters | |
| 3/22 | Celebration event | Share project highlights |
| April TBD | UDC Research Week | Present posters |
O*NET standards: The Occupational Information Network (O*NET) collects data on knowledge, skills, activities, training and wages for hundreds of occupations. The database is provided free at onetonline.org through sponsorship by the U.S. Department of Labor/Employment and Training Administration and the North Carolina Department of Commerce. Millions of people each year use O*NET to create job descriptions, design occupational training, analyze occupational trends, or find job openings.
Partners
OSSE: 12 IE&T providers in the District of Columbia receive funding through the Office of the State Superintendent’s (OSSE) Department of Adult & Family Education (AFE) led by J. Michelle Johnson. Providers will receive an honorarium from OSSE to defray costs of participating in the research project.
UDC: The University of D.C.’s (UDC) Adult Education program is coordinated by Dr. Heather Bruce. UDC will support the ARDLSIA project by coordinating professional development by Meagen Farrell, World Education, and educational technology vendors. UDC will incorporate ARDLSIA poster presentations in their annual UDC Research Week in April 2024.
Mustard Seed Training: Founder and KSU student Meagen Farrell H. contracts to provide professional development services. In 2023-24, she will support ARDLSIA project implementation through online CoPs for four industry clusters, technical support, and feedback for IE&T providers.
Future Opportunities
Online courses: All OSSE & UDC professional development webinars are recorded and made available online for free. In order to increase future PD usage and structure new provider orientation, recorded webinars may be repurposed into an online course format. This would allow interactive elements for asynchronous users, tracking of participation, and possible scheduled facilitation of cohorts.
Modified CoI survey: The Community of Inquiry (CoI) survey was developed in higher education to measure presence in online courses. The CoI survey could be used to gauge IE&T providers’ presence in online CoPs. The survey has not been validated for use with participants under 11th grade reading level. IE&T providers could provide feedback to pilot a modified CoI survey appropriate for their adult learners.
Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (1999). Critical inquiry in a text-based environment: Computer conferencing in higher education model. The Internet and Higher Education, 2(2-3), pp. 87-105. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1096-7516(00)00016-6
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