Enlightenment comes ultimately from education
As a result, various educators have developed curricula and methods that help students comprehend the ideas being taught. A set of guidelines and goals known as an educational model is frequently used to create curricula and provide direction for instruction in classrooms and other educational environments.
Goal of the essay
This essay's goal is to evaluate a case by looking at the procedures and results of curriculum evaluation. The field of study chosen is corporate training. The Kirkpatrick's model of assessment is the curricular evaluation model applied in this instance. This paper discusses the model in full and states how the author applied it in providing proposals in restructuring the current e-learning curriculum. The authors of the article used in this paper as a case study worked tirelessly to discuss a model and tools of evaluating a curriculum in the corporate training domain and e-learning setting.
Key words
educational model, curriculum evaluation, Kirkpatrick's model of the assessment.
Case Study
Case Study's Educational Setting and Social Situation
The selected case study is in an article written by Hallett et al. entitled "E-Learning indicators: A multi-dimensional model for planning and evaluating e-learning software solutions." The primary objective of the article is to present a model for evaluating online classes. The domain of this case is corporate training which can be defined as a system of professional development activities that are aimed at educating the employees of a given firm on specific areas of competencies (Hallett & Essex, 2002). Most firms offer training in-house as this form of education may be considered as cheap. However, the setting of this selected case is e-learning and not in-house training as practiced by most firms. Tertiary institutions have been at the forefront in implementing distance and open learning over the past few years (Clark & Mayer, 2016). The convenience that online learning offers is the reason behind its widespread adoption. The students also get a chance to interact with their colleagues via social platforms that are also online.
Curriculum Evaluation Model Used in The Case Study
The curriculum evaluation model used in this case is the Kirkpatrick's model of the assessment. This system involves four assessment levels that are based on reaction, learning, behavior, and results (Agarwal, Pande & Ahuja, 2014). The first tier, reaction measures how the employees responded to the entire process of training. This stage determines the perception of the trainees on the topic being taught. The reaction stage assists the trainer to know how to conduct future sessions as he or she can realize the topics or areas that are missing from training.
The second level is learning where an evaluation of what the trainees have learned is evaluated. This stage also helps in knowing whatever the trainees had no prior knowledge on and the things that need thorough teaching. Level three is the behavior stage where the traits of the trainees are assessed. The trainers evaluate the capability of the employees applying this information. This stage acts as a point of reflection of the previous points. Lastly, the result level is where findings of the entire training process are compiled and analyzed (Agarwal et al., 2014). At this stage, the trainer fully understands whatever each trainee knew and when they may need another cycle of training.
Hallett et al. had a student satisfaction as their first level. These authors identified the goals of distance education on corporate training. Secondly, the authors stated the necessity of defining the objectives basing on the goals of the course. The individuals who develop an online course evaluation must always ensure that they measure the level of student satisfaction. Thirdly, the authors stated that there needs to be the development of criteria for developing performance criteria and a review of the existing assessment techniques (Hallett & Essex, 2002). Hallett et al. went ahead to perform the same standards on the other three levels of evaluation, i.e., learning, behavior, and return on investment or result or academic impact.
Assessment Tools Used to Evaluate the Curriculum
The central tool of curriculum assessment used in this case was the employment of anecdotal records. This strategy employs the use of observational techniques to assess the success or failure of curriculums (Van Hoorn et al., 2014). The tool is selected by the persons who are responsible for the training process. In this case study, the authors made a proposal of this tool that bases on observation. The primary users of the tools were the trainers who observed the progress of their trainees after each level in the Kirkpatrick's model and noted them down. The evaluation tools were used online since this was a corporate e-learning training. According to the proposed model, anecdotal records were to be used after each level of training during the evaluation, for example, after the behavior stage, an observation was to be made before proceeding to the result stage. There was no exact duration of using the assessment tool. The use of this assessment tool was appropriate for the curriculum in this case study. However, the use of rubrics and checklists would also be suitable for the curriculum evaluation.
Summary of the Evaluation's Outcomes and Recommendations
In summary, the authors found that the Kirkpatrick model of evaluation was beneficial since it fostered a systematic examination of the instructional procedure. Hallett et al. had no other recommendation on from the same data. More curriculum analysis on the assessment model and tool must be done to incorporate other aspects such as accuracy, proportionality, and variance. My opinion is that this model was suitable for this curriculum and setting. However, other evaluation models would also give similar results but with fewer details. The many levels of assessment that the Kirkpatrick model has a higher level of accuracy than any other model. In conclusion, the authors of the article used in this paper as a case study did a recommendable job in discussing the models and tools of evaluating a curriculum in the corporate training domain and e-learning setting.
References
Agarwal, N., Pande, N., & Ahuja, V. (2014). Expanding the Kirkpatrick evaluation model-towards more efficient training in the IT sector. International Journal of Human Capital and Information Technology Professionals (IJHCITP), 5(4), 19-34.
Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2016). E-learning and the science of instruction: Proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
Hallett, K., & Essex, C. (2002). Evaluating online instruction: Adapting a training model to e- learning in higher education.
Van Hoorn, J., Nourot, P. M., Scales, B., & Alward, K. R. (2014). Play at the center of the curriculum. New York: Pearson Higher Ed.
