Delivery methods and tools
In the process of implementation, besides the readiness of faculty, three cycles can be planned in advance:
Cycle 1: Needs Assessment
It involves:
- obtaining background information about the course and students
- applying an instrument for assessing needs and
- analyzing and reporting the data collected
For example in the case of RUCAS, every student participating in the revised course had to fill out the following questions prior or at the beginning of the course.
- What skills/knowledge/behaviour do you want to develop by attending this course?
- What will you be able to see/hear/feel differently by developing the above skills/knowledge/behaviour?
- What benefits will there be in relation to your study and job performance by developing the above skills/knowledge/behaviour (be as specific as possible?
- What would you like those around you to see/hear/feel differently about you once you have attended the course?
- What do you feel you are currently not achieving due to the under development of the above skills/knowledge/behaviour?
- What are your personal learning goals? What do you really want to learn? Be specific, with a maximum of 3.
- Any other comments you would like to make prior to attending the course?
Cycle 2: Formative Evaluation
The major goals of this cycle are to:
- determine the strengths and weaknesses of the course
- observe whether students’ needs are integrated into course implementation process
- suggest ways for improvements and for redesigning the course, if it is needed
Formative assessment should be based on shared learning intentions and explicit success criteria developed through quality discourse and learning conversations and reinforced by focused feedback.
Cycle 3: Summative Evaluation
The aim of this cycle of evaluation is to get the overall picture of the quality of the course. There is need to monitor the process in order to achieve the expected quality and maximum benefits for all involved in the course revision and implementation process. These three cycles are more elaborated in the subsequent two modules.