Reflections on observations acquired for a framework to understand and assess an Education Technology programme.

 

Aim of the observation made:

To incorporate the learning from the lectures to understand an ed-tech programme and to understand its efficiency and the effectiveness.

Learnings from the lectures considered:

All the discussions in class and the reading that complemented them gave me idea of how an education program can be assessed. The conceptual understanding only helped me understand this programme consciously, while the discussions and the examples, that were a part, taught me the nuances of observation and analysis.

The influences to create the framework-

Personalised Adaptive Learning
Behaviourist, Cognitivist and Constructivist theories of learning
21^st Century Learning skills
Frameworks and models in understanding education programmes
Development theories in learning
ISTE standards
Activity Based Learning.

 

 

 

 

 

About the programme:

The Princeton review is a tutoring website and institute offering courses for various examinations and also academic help for subjects. The courses specifically considered for observation, under the framework prepared, are only GMAT and GRE.

The program is available in online, offline and hybrid models. The online course has the instructor access, study material and assessments, both online. The offline course has the instruction in the classroom in an offline mode and physical study material with the assessments and additional study material access online. The hybrid model has all the online access with physical instructor assistance, as and when required.

The courses for GMAT and GRE include classroom or instructor led sessions for 24 hours each for both Quantitative Analysis and Verbal Reasoning. The age group of the learners is between 20-30 years. The learners are necessarily graduates or in their last year of under graduation. The learners had exposed to Basic English and Arithmetic skills. This course offers a second level training pertaining to the exam for admission for their higher studies. There is a portal access given to the learner where the online session happens. The portal also provides assessments and tests as a part of the programme.

 

 

The framework:

The framework attempts to understand the efficiency of the considered course, in a comprehensive way, by considering the responses from the stakeholders, as observed by the assessor.  The stakeholders identified are Student, Parent, Teacher, Technology and Institution.

The questions posed are mostly close-ended questions with answers YES/NO. Few questions also involve subjective responses from the stakeholders. The ambiguity, if any, may be addressed through the subjective explanation.

The questions are as follows –

To the Student:

1.     Does the program offer a choice of content for the learner?

2.     Does the student get to explore different things than what only books or material offer?

3.     Does the student interact with the system/ instructor?

4.     Is the interaction with the instructor direct, online or hybrid?

5.     Is the student familiar with the interface?

6.     Does the course offer flexibility to the student in terms of time?

7.     Does the student have a choice in ways of maneuvering through the content?

8.     Is the content understandable to all students alike? Does it require prior knowledge?

9.     Does the student receive feedback?

10.  Is the learning consequence of the course limited to the exam or does it result in generic improvement with the learner?

 

To the Parent/ Guardian:

1.     How connected is the parent with the student’s learning?

2.     Does the parent receive a feedback on the performance of the learner/child?

3.     Is the interface of the training for the parent different from that of the student?  Does it show the progress?

4.     Would you rate the course as reasonably charged or expensive?

 

 

To the Teacher:

1.     Does the course offer flexibility to the teacher in terms of time?

2.     Is the content created and owned by the instructor?

3.     Is any improvement over the specified content encouraged?

4.     Is the vocabulary inclusion restricted by the conductor of the exam?

5.     Is the learning adaptive or rigid?

6.     Is the scrutiny of assessments done by the teacher?

7.     Does the instructor have access to the performance and progress of all learners?

8.     Is the interaction with the student direct, online or hybrid?

 

About the Technology:

1.     Is the technology or platform user friendly or does it need prior training to use?

2.     Does the platform facilitate networking among learners?

3.     Is the networking positive reinforcement of knowledge or casual interaction?

4.     Does it facilitate peer review or assessment?

5.     Does the course, in anyway, address or consider the digital divide in the society? If yes, Please elaborate how.

 

About the Institution/ Course:

1.     Does the course involve a certain age group of learners? If yes, please specify-

2.     Is there a specific outcome expected? If yes, how often is the outcome observed?

3.     Should the learner only be from a certain academic discipline?

4.     Is the content supplementary in nature?

5.     Does the membership to the course offer a lifetime learning experience?

6.     Does the course facilitate personalized learning?

7.     Are the assessments a part of the course?

8.     Are the assessments adaptive in nature?

 

 

Observations:

Observations were collected from The Princeton Review establishment in Himayath nagar, Hyderabad. The students who I interacted with have been attending the course some for two weeks and some for 4 weeks already. The names of the students are :

·       Satvika - GRE

·       Vennela Chakravarthy - GRE

·       Sanjana Samba – GRE

·       Rohit Kishan, GMAT

·       Nikhil Pokuri, GMAT

·       Sai Teja, GMAT

 

The instructors interacted with are

·       Rajesh, Quant faculty, The Princeton Review

·       Shruthakirthi, Verbal faculty, The Princeton Review

 

I had the opportunity to interact with their management as well, to get the perspective of the institution and the course. The technology category involves the user’s side of experience but could have been more informative and helpful if the developer was approachable. The responses of the students are as follows.

 

 

 

 

Satvika –

1.     Does the program offer a choice of content for the learner?
- Yes

2.     Does the student get to explore different things than what only books or material offer? - Yes

3.     Does the student interact with the system/ instructor?
 - Yes

4.     Is the interaction with the instructor direct, online or hybrid?
- Direct

5.     Is the student familiar with the interface?
 –Partially familiar, needs time to acquaint one’s self with the portal and the options available

6.     Does the course offer flexibility to the student in terms of time?
- Yes

7.     Does the student have a choice in ways of maneuvering through the content?
- Yes

8.     Is the content understandable to all students alike? Does it require prior knowledge?
-Prior knowledge is not required. Everyone would be able to understand the content.

9.     Does the student receive feedback?
- Yes

10.  Is the learning consequence of the course limited to the exam or does it result in generic improvement with the learner?
- It results in a generic improvement of the learner’s language.

 

The learner, Satvika, shares that the course has been taught by multiple faculty as she moved from an online course to an offline class which made a bit difficult for her to cope up with understanding the content. She says the portal access was given later than when it was promised.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vennela Chakravarthy

1.     Does the program offer a choice of content for the learner?
- Yes

2.     Does the student get to explore different things than what only books or material offer?
- Yes

3.     Does the student interact with the system/ instructor?
- Yes

4.     Is the interaction with the instructor direct, online or hybrid?
- Direct

5.     Is the student familiar with the interface?
- Yes

6.     Does the course offer flexibility to the student in terms of time?
-Not entirely, but adjustable on request.

7.     Does the student have a choice in ways of maneuvering through the content?
- Yes

8.     Is the content understandable to all students alike? Does it require prior knowledge?
- Yes, everyone would be able to understand the content.

9.     Does the student receive feedback?
- Yes

10.  Is the learning consequence of the course limited to the exam or does it result in generic improvement with the learner?
- It results in a generic improvement of the learner’s language.

 

 

Vennela has learnt a fair bit of writing skills with this course, she says, apart from the course content. The essay or subjective writing as a part of the assessment pushed her to work on it. The faculty also was very helpful in catering to her needs.

 

Sanjana Samba

1.     Does the program offer a choice of content for the learner?
- Yes

2.     Does the student get to explore different things than what only books or material offer?
- Yes

3.     Does the student interact with the system/ instructor?
- Yes

4.     Is the interaction with the instructor direct, online or hybrid?
- Hybrid

5.     Is the student familiar with the interface?
- Yes

6.     Does the course offer flexibility to the student in terms of time?
- Yes

7.     Does the student have a choice in ways of maneuvering through the content?
- Yes

8.     Is the content understandable to all students alike? Does it require prior knowledge?
- Not understood by everyone alike. Would require prior knowledge of English to understand these better.

9.     Does the student receive feedback?
- No

10.  Is the learning consequence of the course limited to the exam or does it result in generic improvement with the learner?
- Improvement in vocabulary possible.

 

Sanjana had higher expectations on the course but she seems a little disappointed by the service she received. She shared that the instructor was resourceful but the portal access was something she was troubled with. She did not have the access to contact the right person to get the issue resolved.

 

 

 

Rohit Kishan

1.     Does the program offer a choice of content for the learner?
- Yes

2.     Does the student get to explore different things than what only books or material offer? - Yes

3.     Does the student interact with the system/ instructor?
 - Yes

4.     Is the interaction with the instructor direct, online or hybrid?
- Direct

5.     Is the student familiar with the interface?
- Yes

6.     Does the course offer flexibility to the student in terms of time?
- Yes

7.     Does the student have a choice in ways of maneuvering through the content?
- Yes

8.     Is the content understandable to all students alike? Does it require prior knowledge?
-Prior knowledge is not required. Everyone would be able to understand the content.

9.     Does the student receive feedback?
- Yes

10.  Is the learning consequence of the course limited to the exam or does it result in generic improvement with the learner?
- It results in a generic improvement of the learner’s language.

 

 

Nikhil Pokuri

1.     Does the program offer a choice of content for the learner?
- Yes

2.     Does the student get to explore different things than what only books or material offer? - Yes

3.     Does the student interact with the system/ instructor?
 - Yes

4.     Is the interaction with the instructor direct, online or hybrid?
- Direct

5.     Is the student familiar with the interface?
- Yes, but a little tricky in the first few instances.

6.     Does the course offer flexibility to the student in terms of time?
- Yes

7.     Does the student have a choice in ways of maneuvering through the content?
- Yes

8.     Is the content understandable to all students alike? Does it require prior knowledge?
-Prior knowledge is not required. Everyone would be able to understand the content.

9.     Does the student receive feedback?
- Yes

10.  Is the learning consequence of the course limited to the exam or does it result in generic improvement with the learner?
- It results in a generic improvement of the learner’s language.

 

 

 

 

 

Sai Teja

1.     Does the program offer a choice of content for the learner?
- Yes

2.     Does the student get to explore different things than what only books or material offer? - Yes

3.     Does the student interact with the system/ instructor?
 - Yes

4.     Is the interaction with the instructor direct, online or hybrid?
- Direct

5.     Is the student familiar with the interface?
 –Partially familiar, needs time to acquaint one’s self with the portal and the options available

6.     Does the course offer flexibility to the student in terms of time?
- Yes

7.     Does the student have a choice in ways of maneuvering through the content?
- Yes

8.     Is the content understandable to all students alike? Does it require prior knowledge?
-Prior knowledge is not required. Everyone would be able to understand the content.

9.     Does the student receive feedback?
- Yes

10.  Is the learning consequence of the course limited to the exam or does it result in generic improvement with the learner?
- It results in a generic improvement of the learner’s language.

 

A student from commerce, Sai Teja, feels that there is a gap between what he had learnt in his regular academic curriculum and what is taught in the course. This was an obstacle he had to overcome with great difficulty. Basic English and Grammar by Wren and Martin helped him greatly in understanding the concepts and techniques better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rajesh, Quant faculty, The Princeton Review

1.     Does the course offer flexibility to the teacher in terms of time?
- Yes

2.     Is the content created and owned by the instructor?
- No

3.     Is any improvement over the specified content encouraged?
- Yes

4.     Is the vocabulary inclusion restricted by the conductor of the exam?
- No

5.     Is the learning adaptive or rigid?
- Adaptive in nature

6.     Is the scrutiny of assessments done by the teacher?
- Yes

7.     Does the instructor have access to the performance and progress of all learners?
- Yes

8.     Is the interaction with the student direct, online or hybrid?
- Direct.

 

 

 

 

 

Shruthakirthi, Verbal faculty, The Princeton Review

1.     Does the course offer flexibility to the teacher in terms of time?
- No

2.     Is the content created and owned by the instructor?
- No

3.     Is any improvement over the specified content encouraged?
- Not really, subjective.

4.     Is the vocabulary inclusion restricted by the conductor of the exam?
- Yes

5.     Is the learning adaptive or rigid?
- Adaptive to some extent

6.     Is the scrutiny of assessments done by the teacher?
- Yes

7.     Does the instructor have access to the performance and progress of all learners?
- Yes

8.     Is the interaction with the student direct, online or hybrid?
- Hybrid.

 

Both Rajesh and Shruthakirthi have agreed to the fact that the course could be better delivered to the learner with improvements and innovation if they had more leeway with the content. The technology that is a part of the course has not been as effective as they assumed it to be. The absence of efficient grievance redressal mechanism with respect to the portal has affected the teacher’s understanding of the student’s capability.

 

 

 

 

 

The Management, Himayathnagar Branch, The Princeton Review.

1.     Is the technology or platform user friendly or does it need prior training to use?
- It is designed to be user friendly. We don’t offer or suggest any prior training for it.

2.     Does the platform facilitate networking among learners?
- No, It does not.

3.     Is the networking positive reinforcement of knowledge or casual interaction?
- No Networking

4.     Does it facilitate peer review or assessment?
- No

5.     Does the course, in anyway, address or consider the digital divide in the society? If yes, Please elaborate how.
- The digital divide is not acknowledged or looked at to offer a resolution in that direction.

6.     Does the course involve a certain age group of learners? If yes, please specify-
- Yes, between 20-30 year graduates.

7.     Is there a specific outcome expected? If yes, how often is the outcome observed?
- No, the improvement of score the student shows is the only outcome expected. So, it is subjective.

8.     Should the learner only be from a certain academic discipline?
- Not necessarily.

9.     Is the content supplementary in nature?
-  Yes, we could say that. It not only caters to the exam but also shows improvement in the reading and writing abilities of the student.

10.  Does the membership to the course offer a lifetime learning experience?
- No.

11.  Does the course facilitate personalized learning?
- Yes. The course is self paced and the student can finish the course at their own pace.

12.  Are the assessments a part of the course?
- Yes

13.  Are the assessments adaptive in nature?
- Yes, they help the student to assimilate the actual test pattern. The difficulty level of the mock tests provided is different.

 

Reflections on the observations made:

´ This programme proves to be resourceful taking into consideration the exam and addresses all the nuances effectively.

´ The course time proves to be practical and does not interfere with academic curriculum.

´ Though this programme is not academic in nature, it offers the same level of formality.

´ The course times are flexible and any administrative issue can be resolved within a reasonable time. The technical issues prove to be a problem for the learner. Absence of technical problem resolution is observed.

´ The students and their progress is of paramount importance. Both the courses involve adult learners which makes it irrelevant for the parents to be informed of the learner’s progress, though it is provided.

´ The monetary charge is very relative. Taking into consideration the time spent on the learner and the resources offered, the expense is justified.

´ Though there could be more connectivity among the learners which can be helpful in understanding the relative performances.

´ The activities on the online portal are available but, there is no imposition of the same. The learner needs to have the drive. This could also be considered as an aspect of free learning which might not be successful.

´ The time spent with the instructor is limited and the content explained by the instructor in the class is limited. Though the discussion goes beyond the exam, the time limits it to a great extent.

´ Not all students have the same level of exposure. Though all the learners are graduates or about to graduate, their abilities differ and have to be addressed differently. This does not happen much.

´ No specific outcome can be expected of the course. It is relative to the students’ performance.

´ This is not something that can be a lifelong learning experience. It is very subjective to the exam.

´ The course follows behaviourist and cognitivist pedagogies but not constructivist.

 

 

Recommendations:

´ The course can be more practical in its learning approach. Having the test score improvement is not a consequence that might result in actual learning.

´ The time that the instructor and the student interact with each other can be more and the practice should happen along with the instructor, in some cases.

´ The technology that is a part of the course involves lot of study material but is not able to be utilized by the student. There should be more hand holding either by the instructor or the institution to reap the best benefit out of it.

´ The course is not inclusive of vocabulary as a part of its content, whereas the exam tests the student’s vocabulary explicitly.

´ Though it is graduates that the course caters to, the 21^st century skills observed in the learners is meek. Meagre focus is given to communication and critical thinking as they constitute a part of the test itself.