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Syllabus Design- Learning & Teaching Effectively: From the classroom to the boardroom

Laura A. Black

McCall Aldrich

Katelyn Neary

Ball State University

Syllabus Design- Learning & Teaching Effectively: From the classroom to the boardroom

Interpretation of Rationale

This syllabus design is for a business training program for a group of facilitators (instructors, professors, teachers) working at different universities across the state of Indiana. The contents of the course and the syllabus will focus on how facilitators can create a pleasant learning environment for students so they will learn business more efficiently. There are five dimensions of environment and context including the physical, cultural, knowledge, power and real-life environments; furthermore, for this syllabus design focus is on the ‘real life’ environment. 

Based on programs that were researched, this syllabus will incorporate ideas and concepts for each program. The concepts will assist the facilitators in providing a ‘real-life’ learning experience for each student to assist in a powerful learning experience. Each seminar attendee will gain personal experience from the learning process and knowledge in how to guide and better prepare students for this ‘real-life’ context incorporation.

A syllabus has been designed to capture all of the extraordinary features identified by programs previously investigated and the literature that has been reviewed. The seminar, Learning & Teaching Effectively: From the Classroom to the Boardroom, has been designed to recognize the importance that environment and context can have on adult learning. This seminar is a training program that highlights these external factors.

Programs

Three programs were investigated to overcome the limitations identified by the literature review. The first program, “PricewaterhouseCoopers Experimental Case Study” used an undergraduate course to complete a systems analysis project replicable to one industry professional’s use. The second program, “Simulation-based Learning” Just like the Real Thing” helped medical students and other health professionals’ develop knowledge, skills, attitudes, and teamwork to enhance performance on the job. The third program, “Learning from Others: Learning in a Social Context” takes examples of different facilitators in how their teaching was affected by social interactions in different settings; furthermore, this program provides facts on how these social interactions among students can enhance the learning environment in a ‘real-life’ setting.

The seminar held will use realistic scenarios incorporating the previous mentioned programs to allow for those attending to get ‘real-life’ experience that will enhance business skills. Retraining and practicing sessions will take place till one can master the procedure or skill being taught. Teamwork training conducted in the simulated environment may offer an additive benefit to the traditional didactic instruction, enhance performance, and possibly also help increase learning effectiveness.

Features integrated into syllabus & seminar design

Many great features were identified by the programs investigated that were considered in the creation of the course syllabus as well as use of ‘real life’ environment.

Features from “PricewaterhouseCoopers Experimental Case Study” provide great ideas that should be implemented into a syllabus. The first feature of this program that will be intergraded is the facilitator’s encouragement for students to treat the case as ‘real work’ rather than a class assignment; furthermore, students were told to act as PwC system and process assurance consultants. The second feature that will be integrated into the syllabus design involves the emphasis on skills developed from the case and how applicable they are to a variety of contexts and firms. Stressing the importance of the skills acquired from the ‘real life’ case study approach and how beneficial it is for an person in a working environment, not just as an employee of whatever industry topic is being used for the case. The third feature applicable to our syllabus design is the discussion of nuances not portrayed in the classroom, but may arise in the ‘real world’.

Features from “Simulation-based learning: Just like the Real Thing” provides simulation-based training techniques, tools, and strategies that can be applied in designing structured learning experiences, as well as be used as a measurement tool linked to targeted teamwork competencies and learning objectives. The first feature of this program that will be integrated is to encourage critical thinking to resolve dilemmas. This will allow participants of this seminar to use critical thinking to narrow options and assess situations to gain results. The second feature of this program that will be integrated into the syllabus design will allow time and tools for retraining and practice until a skill or procedure is mastered. This will give participants the tools needed to successfully complete a task once they return to their place of work. The third feature applied will be building communication skills through collaborative group work.  This will give participants the opportunity to build trust and rapport with co-workers, use active listening to know when “not to step on each other’s toes,” to clearly define roles and responsibilities, as well as communicate awareness of common goals.

Features from “Learning From Others: Learning in a Social Context” provide guided social interactions to increase the learning sophistication in each student’s situation. The first feature that will be incorporated in this syllabus design for training program will be; guided discussions in the classroom. Students will have opportunities to voice their knowledge of business and their personal experiences with the assistance of the Facilitator. The Facilitator will lead discussions in in a professional setting, guiding meaning discussions on business topics and incorporating ‘real-life’ scenarios to get each student thinking and learning from one another as-well-as learning from the educated instructor. The second feature that will be incorporated from this program in the training is small group work. There will be opportunity for each person attending this training to be assigned in a small group and learn to work through a business problem or situation with this group. The social interactions in this group will facilitate a meaning learning experience. The third feature to be incorporated in the syllabus design for this learning program is the ‘reciprocal teaching’ that is taught in the ‘Learning in a Social Context.’ Each group will be assigned to work through a business situation together, then groups will present their material teaching the others in this training the information they came up with. This experience will provide each person with greater understanding of the material and gain experience in different social settings.  

The programs investigated provide excellent features from which our group can build an effective program. Attention of the physical, cultural, knowledge, power, and real-life environment will be given while constructing our program. The program will try to create a learning environment conducive to as many individuals and learning styles as possible while using a ‘real life’ environment approach.

There are also ideas from the reviewed literature that will be implemented in the syllabus design in relation to learning and facilitating principles. According to Mackeracher (2004), “the brain requires that learning activities be carried out in a physically supportive environment in which the learner is reasonably comfortable, the temperature and lighting are suitable, and the air quality is good. (p. 102)

For the seminar, creating a physically supportive environment is a main focus as it should be for any facilitator. Providing a good example for the seminar attendees will allow facilitators to see experience the difference and hopefully try to recreate it when they are back in the classroom for their students. The seminar will be held in a large conference room with the tables initially set up in a term known as a ‘Cluster’ (Lawson, 2009, p.157). This allows for the trainer to allow for moderate group involvement during the presentations and discussions of the case studies. The ‘cluster’ table set up also allows for two-way communication compared to most conference table settings.

These features previously mentioned from the investigations’ and literature will serve as a basis for the design of the proposed syllabus. There are five main features that will be implemented:

1. Instructors highlight benefits and possible barriers of using case study in class room setting.

2. Strategies learned can be applied to design additional learning experiences.

3. Students should act more as researchers compared to traditional students.

Implementation

To implement these features into the design of a syllabus, modifications are needed to maximize the effectiveness of the features within the syllabus. The first feature will be advocated in the syllabus by the reading material and learning tools, which emphasize encouragement from facilitators to treat the case as ‘real work’ rather than another assignment and putting an emphasis on the numerous industries that are applicable to the case; therefore, while also discussing the differences between ‘real world’ and classroom problems. The syllabus will include activities to reiterate the second feature by highlighting the professional skills acquired from the use of a ‘real-life’ or case study. The third feature will be reinstated in the syllabus by encouraging social interactions in several different settings such as giving students more responsibility in the classroom; furthermore, for example allowing them to check email in class and encourage communication to be that of a business professional.

Conclusions

In the creation of Learning & Teaching Effectively, the physical, cultural, power, knowledge, and ‘real life’ environments were all considered and addressed in the integration and application of the seminar. By designing a seminar and syllabus that is based on using real life environments it will hopefully create more effective learning and teaching practices. 

Seminar Outline

Learning & Teaching Effectively: From the Classroom to the Boardroom

Seminar Outline

Seminar Website: www.classroom2boardroom.com

Session Meetings:

Saturday, January 25th, 2014 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM

                        Sunday, January 26th, 2014, 8 AM to 4 PM

                        Saturday, February 1st, 2014, 8 AM to 4 PM

                        Sunday, February 2nd, 2014, 8 AM to 4 PM

Location:        Indiana Convention Center, Room 101

100 S. Capitol Indianapolis, IN

Instructor: Dr. Ball State

Instructor Contact Information:

bstate@bsu.edu

Cell phone: 317-333-3333

Office phone: 317-555-5555

Seminar Objectives

1. To learn the benefits and possible barriers of using a case study in a classroom setting.

2. To learn strategies that can be applied to design additional learning experiences.

3. To acknowledge the importance of treating students as a professional and not as a traditional student.

4. To identify and apply social interactions as support for future learning and teaching experiences.

5. To become familiar with teaching in groups and the benefits of learning role contexts.

Skill level requirements for seminar attendees:

Professor or instructor at a university headquartered and located in Indiana;

Interest and/or experience in using ‘real life’ case study;

At least 5 years’ experience as an instructor or facilitator at particular university.

**Note the special requirements for attendance. Contact bstate@bsu.edu for further questions in relation to the skill level requirements.

Seminar Format

The seminar will include multiple forms of instruction and evaluation including individual, small, and large group work. Instructional methods will include lecture presentations, pre-session questionnaires, assigned reading materials, discussion, case study evaluations, videos, expert speaker presentations, testimonials, and question and answer sessions. For convenience and understanding handouts, worksheets, and notes will be available online and at each seminar meeting. Nametags will be provided at each seminar meeting check-in to try to help familiarize the attendees with one another. Nametags will include: First and Last name, University, Area of study, years in the position. It is expected that attendees arrive with time to check-in, collect name tags and any session documents, and are ready for participation.

Attendance: Attendees are allowed up to a quarter day of absence from the seminar or 2.25 hours over the course of the four seminar meetings. There will be no make-up opportunities available. If attendance cannot be achieved due to any circumstance including emergency- withdrawal from the conference should be considered. The stringent attendance policies required of the seminar is based on the certification that is awarded after completion of the 4 seminar meetings. Successful completion will be judged based on attendance, completion of pre-questionnaire, reading material with assignments, and participation. We ask all participants to clear their schedules in advance, so limited interruptions and complete participation is achieved. Any questions or concerns in relation to the attendance policy and withdrawal procedure, contact Dr. Ball State, bstate@bsu.edu.

Certification: Upon successful completion of the seminar and assigned materials a conference certification will be issued to each successful attendee. The certificate will instate the successful completion of the “Learning & Teaching Effectively: From the Classroom to the Boardroom” seminar and the skills acquired and topics discussed. See Exhibit #4 for the Learning & teaching effectively: From the classroom to the boardroom certificate.

Accommodations: If any attendee needs any adaptations or accommodations because of a disability or any other reason, please contact bstate@bsu.edu in advance to allow for appropriate procedures as well as notification of the Indiana Convention Center personnel.

The Indiana Convention Center allows guests to walk from Lucas Oil Stadium to twelve premium hotels including the Westin, Hyatt, Marriott, Conrad, Omni, Crowne Plaza at Union Station, Embassy Suites, and JW Marriott. There are over 7,100 + hotel rooms within blocks of the Indiana Convention Center. The seminar has a special premium package deal with The Westin Indianapolis Hotel. The address of The Westin is 50. S Capitol Ave Indianapolis, IN 46204, phone contact: (317) 262-8100. The Indiana Convention Center is connected via an enclosed walkway to The Westin Indianapolis Hotel. For a special seminar package pricing use the promotion code: Classroom to boardroom.

There is no obligation for seminar attendees to stay at The Westin Indianapolis Hotel; furthermore, there are an abundant number of hotels located closely to the Indiana Convention Center, if The Westin is not of preference. There are 108 rooms within 1 block of the Convention Center and the skywalk connects to 4,715 hotel rooms. 1-1.5 miles from Convention Center there are 379 rooms available, with so many different rooms available in a close proximity to the seminar the decision to hold the conference at the convention center was made (Indiana Convention Center, n.d.).

Parking

Downtown Indianapolis hosts more than 70,000 parking spaces. An interactive map is available with pricing, hours, and more at Indianapolis Downtown Inc. and parking reservations can be made at Parking Whiz. Go to http://www.indydt.com/interactivemap.cfm?&lm=vd for more information about parking and reservations.

Internet Accessibility

Free Wi-Fi is available in the Convention Center for tasks that are not bandwidth intensive such as reading email and light internet browsing. Clients that require higher needs can contact Smart City Networks. The seminar committee has taken care of this and seminar attendees are encouraged to bring personal lap tops or operating systems.

Assignments

A pre-assessment questionnaire (Exhibit #2) will be distributed to each seminar attendee via email and United States postal mail service approximately 3-4 weeks prior to the first seminar meeting. If it is past December 16th, and no email or hard copy has been distributed to the attendee, please contact bstate@bsu.edu immediately. The purpose of the questionnaire is to provide the facilitator of this program with insights into your current skills or knowledge about the subject of using ‘real life’ environment in the classroom. By knowing what new skills and knowledge you would like from the program, the facilitator will be better able to meet your needs.

Specific reading material is assigned and is available on the seminar webpage (www.classroom2boardroom.com). Requests for additional hard copies should be made to bstate@bsu.edu in advance with understanding of U.S. postal mailing delivery methods. Each reading material requires the completion of an assignment, the document is standard for all three reading assignments and can be found on the webpage and under Exhibit #3 Not only are the assignments due at the start of the conference, but each attendee should be prepared for a discussion and evaluation over reading material.

Reading & Assignment # 1: From the Journal of Innovative Education, “A systems analysis experiential case study: Repeatable real-world problem solving.” Reading and assignment #1 due:  Saturday, January 25th, 8 AM

Reading & Assignment #2: From the Journal of Emergencies, Trauma, and Shock: the article titled, “Simulation-based learning: Just like the real thing.” Reading and assignment #2 due: Sunday, January 26th, 8 AM

Reading & Assignment #3: From the research article titled, “Learning from others: Learning in a social context.” Reading and assignment #3 due: Saturday, February 1st, 8 AM.

The morning each reading and assignment is due, dedication will be given at the seminar for each assignment, starting with a small group discussion (at each individual table), followed by a total group discussion- moderated by Dr. Ball State.

Seminar Meetings and Schedule of events

Learning & Teaching Effectively: From the Classroom to the Boardroom

Saturday, January 25th, 2014

8:00- 8:30 AM Registration/Check in

8:30-9:00 AM Welcome/Opening Comments/Ice Breaker

9:00-9:30 AM Evaluate pre-session questionnaires responses, discussion

9:30-9:45 AM Break/Snacks Provided

9:45-10:30 AM Discussion on case study (reading assignment #1) A Systems Analysis Experiential Case Study: Repeatable real-world problem solving

10:30-11:00 AM Break into groups – evaluate case

11:00-11:15 AM Total group discussion

11:15-11:45 AM Video on real-life experience case study

11:45 AM-12:00 PM Questions/comments on seminar so far

12:00-1:15 PM Break for lunch, lunch tickets provided in welcome packet

1:15-1:30 PM- Return from lunch

1:30-2:30 PM- Presentation/ Q&A: Dr. Priscilla Arling, Professor at Butler University, author of Case Study: A Systems Analysis Experiential Case Study: Repeatable real-world problem solving

2:30-3:00 PM Meet and Greet with Dr. Arling

3:30 PM Explanation of future readings & meetings, Questions

4:00 PM Dismissal

Sunday, January 26th, 2014

8:00- 8:30 AM Registration/Check in

8:30-9:00 AM Welcome/Opening Comments/Ice Breaker

9:00-9:30 AM Introduction & Discussion about yesterday’s meeting

9:30-9:45 AM Break/Snacks Provided

9:45-10:30 AM Discussion on case study (reading assignment #2) From the Journal of Emergencies, Trauma, and Shock; “Simulation-based learning: Just like the real thing.”

10:30-11:00 AM Break into groups – evaluate case

11:00-11:15 AM Total group discussion

11:15-11:45 AM Video on real-life experience case study

11:45 AM-12:00 PM Questions/comments on seminar so far

12:00-1:15 PM Break for lunch, lunch tickets provided in welcome packet

1:15-1:30 PM- Return from lunch

1:30-2:30 PM- Presentation/ Q&A: Dr. Ball State, Experience and work with ‘real life’ case studies

2:30 PM Explanation of future readings & meetings, Questions

3:00 PM Dismissal

Saturday, February 1st, 2014-

8:00- 8:30 AM Registration/Check in

8:30-9:00 AM Welcome/Opening Comments/Ice Breaker

9:00-9:30 AM Evaluate previous seminar meetings

9:30-9:45 AM Break/Snacks Provided

9:45-10:30 AM Discussion on case study (reading assignment #3) “Learning from others: Learning in a social context.”

10:30-11:00 AM Break into groups – evaluate case

11:00-11:15 AM Total group discussion

11:15-11:45 AM Video on real-life experience case study

11:45 AM-12:00 PM Questions/comments on seminar so far

12:00-1:15 PM Break for lunch, lunch tickets provided in welcome packet

1:15-1:30 PM- Return from lunch

1:30-2:30 PM- Presentation/ Q&A: Dr. May, Professor with over 20 years of case study experience

2:30-3:00 PM Meet and Greet with Dr. May

3:30 PM Explanation of future readings & meetings, Questions

4:00 PM Dismissal

Sunday, February 2nd, 2014

8:00- 8:30 AM Registration/Check in

8:30-9:00 AM Welcome/Opening Comments/Ice Breaker

9:00-9:30 AM Evaluation of previous seminar meetings

9:30-9:45 AM Break/Snacks Provided

9:45-10:30 AM Discussion on seminar and objectives achieved

10:30-11:00 AM Break into groups – evaluate seminar

11:00-11:15 AM Total group discussion

11:15-12:00 PM Questions/comments on seminar so far

12:00-1:15 PM Break for lunch, lunch tickets provided in welcome packet

1:15-1:30 PM- Return from lunch

1:30-3:00PM- Presentation of Certificate of Completion

3:30 PM- Farwell & Dismissal

REFERENCES

Arling, P.A., Deeter. C., & Eggers, H. (2010). A system analysis experiential case study: Repeatable real-world problem solving. Journal of Innovative Education, 8 (2), 417-422.

Hammond, D., Austin K., Orcutt S., Martin, D.(nd). Session 7 Learning from others: Learning in a Social Context, 125-142.

Indiana Convention Center (ICC). (n.d.). In Indiana Convention Center and Lucas Oil Stadium online. Retrieved from http://www.icclos.com/about.aspx.

Lateef, F. (2009). Simulation-based learning: Just like the real thing. Journal of Emergencies, Trauma, and Shock, 3(4), 348-352.

Lawson, K. (2009). The Trainer’s handbook (3rd Updated ed.). San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer Wiley Press.

MacKeracher, D. M. (2004). Making sense of adult learning (2^nd ed.). Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

EXHIBITS

EXHIBIT 1

Participant Cover Letter

Dear Program Participant:

Welcome to the Learning & teaching effectively: From the classroom to the boardroom workshop! I am looking forward to meeting and working with you as we explore ways to enhance and create pleasant learning and ‘real life’ environments to improve teaching and learning.

In preparation for this session, I am asking you to complete the following pre-session assignments:

1) Confidential Pre-session Questionnaire. Please fax your completed questionnaire to me by January 17th. My fax number is 317-666-6666.

2) Assignment & Reading Material #1: Please bring your completed assignment with any questions or comments to the session on January 25th.

It is imperative that you complete these pre-session assignments. We do not want to take valuable seminar time to complete this work. It should take you about one hour to complete both assignments.

This seminar will be highly interactive, and you will have several opportunities to apply concepts and skills to ‘real life’ scenarios.

See you on Saturday, January 25th, 2014!

Sincerely,

Dr. Ball State, Ph.D.

Program Facilitator

EXHIBIT 2

Confidential Pre-Session Questionnaire

The purpose of this questionnaire is to provide the facilitator of this program with insights into your current skills in or knowledge about the subject of using ‘real life’ environment in the classroom. By knowing what skills and knowledge you would like from the program the facilitator will be better able to meet your needs.

Name:_____________________                    Current Position:________________________

University:_________________                    City, State:_____________________________

Previous experience with real life environment:

Previous positions held:

Formal education beyond high school:

What course, workshops, or seminars have you attended related to the topic?

Briefly describe the responsibilities of your current position:

How long have you facilitated others?

How many students are in your program?

What do you believe is the most difficult problem or challenge you face when trying to translate ‘real life’ to students?

What one specific thing do you want to get out of this program?

What concerns do you have about participating in this learning experience?

Additional comments:

Please Fax this to Dr. Ball State at (317) 666-6666 no later than January 17th, 2014.

Any questions please email bstate@bsu.edu.

EXHIBIT 3

Seminar Assignments

Instructions: Read the following articles, which can be found at www.classroom2boardroom.com, and answer the following questions for each reading assignment (numbers one through three). These questions will guide your small group discussions at the start of each seminar.

Reading & Assignment # 1: From the Journal of Innovative Education, “A systems analysis experiential case study: Repeatable real-world problem solving.” Reading and assignment #1 due:  Saturday, January 25th, 8 AM

Reading & Assignment #2: From the Journal of Emergencies, Trauma, and Shock: the article titled, “Simulation-based learning: Just like the real thing.” Reading and assignment #2 due: Sunday, January 26th, 8 AM

Reading & Assignment #3: From the research article titled, “Learning from others: Learning in a social context.” Reading and assignment #3 due: Saturday, February 1st, 8 AM.

 

EXHIBIT 4

 Certificate of Completion

Syllabus Design Team Contributions:

McCall Aldrich: Program description, description & features of program

Laura Black: Program description, description & features of program, Exhibit 3- Seminar assignments and questions, Exhibit 4- Certificate of Completion

Katelyn Neary: Program description, description & features of program, Seminar Outline, Exhibit 1- Participant Cover Letter, Exhibit 2- Pre-session Questionnaire.