Discussion Question (Please respond to discussion in 10 hrs)(Please respond to both discussions)

Beth Owens Case Analysis

Addressing Multiple Perspectives and Constraints in ID Practice

Key Stakeholders

Beth Owens - Faculty Consultant at State College, Masters degree in Instructional Design

Beth’s role at the college is to provide instructional design support and technology leadership to the programs and faculty members. Beth is experienced in the constructivist approach to teaching. She has been asked to study programs offered by the college by Dean Carlton Jacobs.

Dean Carlton Jacobs - Dean of State School

Dean Jacobs’ highest priority is to analyze and evaluate his programs in order to develop a growth plan and make improvements at all levels. Specifically, the Dean’s principle concerns are maintaining enrollment numbers and the quality of education offered to the students.

Chef Gerhard Reiner - Program Director of Culinary Arts at State School

Chef Reiner teaches introductory and upper-level culinary classes and is considered a highly experienced chef and leader. He has been teaching at State College for five years, primarily using a behaviorist approach to teaching. Reiner’s primary concern at the moment is that students adhere to industry standards for health, safety and professional behavior.

Students at State College

Students are enrolled in the culinary school to learn culinary skills and prepare them for job opportunities as chefs in famous kitchens throughout the world.

Background & Context

The State College School of Consumer Technology has recently been divided into two separate schools. One school, the Management Information and Office Systems was identified as the principle source of income to the school. Dean Jacobs needs to ensure that the remaining half of the school can carry it’s own weight. His priorities are to figure out how the school can be more inclusive, improve retention and, at the same time, maintain a quality program. Dean Jacobs has hired Beth to make recommendations based on her review and analysis of the programs. She will begin with the culinary arts program, which is the smallest program in the school. Significant changes have been made to the course since Chef Reiner began leading the program five years ago. A notable addition to the program is the highly popular and successful “student dining room,” which showcases the talents of culinary students to faculty, administration and the general public by serving gourmet meals three days a week for a small fee. Reiner has also instituted a graded, daily evaluation checklist outlining expectations and specific criteria for students to observe. It is assumed in this case study that this behaviorist methodology is causing students to drop out of Chef Reiner’s class.

Design Challenges

These design challenges are presented in order of priority based on the needs of the main stakeholder, Dean Jacobs.

Design Challenge 1 - Delivering Results:

The first priority of this case is to deliver the results requested by Dean Jacobs. This is what Beth has been explicitly hired to do. Beth needs to gather the information that will help the Dean develop a growth plan and make improvements at all levels. As he states on page 126, “it’s all about including all students and growing enrollments.” In order to deliver, Beth will first need to put aside her expert opinions of constructivist teaching methods and do a serious in-depth analysis and evaluation of the culinary program. Her role is to gather information about the enrollment and quality of the class and report them to the Dean. Only at this point should she make her suggestions for improvements to Chef Reiner’s already successful, quality course. Which leads us to how she might go about doing that in Design Challenge 2 - the resolution of two methodologies of training.

Design Challenge 2 - Two methodologies of training:

Beth sees her primary role at the college as helping faculty members make the transition from traditional teaching methods to using a more constructivist approach. This is her expertise. It is clear that Chef Reiner’s behaviorist methodology of teaching is well thought out and relevant to on-the-job requirements. Though effective, this methodology may not be inclusive of all students. Assuming the enrollment numbers are dipping because of Chef Reiner’s behaviorist approach, Beth believes her constructivist methodology will help to resolve the issues of student retention, among other numerous benefits.

Reasonable solutions/recommendations

Design Challenge 1 - Conducting Evaluation and Strategic Assessment:

For Beth to deliver the result required by Dean Jacobs, she needs to concentrate on conducting an assessment of Chef Reiner’s culinary program to find out why the retention of students in his program is dropping (if that is indeed the case). The evaluation should be learner-focused and conducted with interviews and surveys that assess student reactions to the instructor, level of learning and degree of behavioral change. The result of this evaluation will give Dean Jacobs the information he needs to make informed as to how to implement any improvement or development plans he deems necessary. An evaluation of the return on investment would also be beneficial in order to determine whether this program can “stand on its own legs” (p. 126). Costs of running the program compared to the income generated by the student restaurant would also be important information for the Dean to have. It may be possible for the Dean to take advantage of the popularity and success of this program to supplement finances if needed.

Design Challenge 2 - Combining Two Teaching Philosophies (Behaviorism and Constructivism):

Much of Chef Reiner’s expectations are realistic, because they are relevant to the way kitchen jobs in the professional world operate. The validity of Chef Reiner’s method is evident in the placement and salary rates cited in the case. His daily evaluation checklist is an important part of setting performance objectives and specific criteria to meet professional standards, and should not be dismissed.

Beth can seek to add a more constructivist method by using feedback from customers in the dining room. Chef Reiner could use the feedback from the diners, along with the students’ previous experience to guide learning and behavioral change. If students can use this authentic experience (that they truly enjoy) in a way that helps them to learn, they will be “own” the knowledge, make informed decisions based on their personal experiences, and be motivated to continue demonstrating good behavior.

Both methods can be combined to create an enriching learning experience for the students. Student motivation will be increased which should naturally aid retention. By combining the two methodologies, Chef Reiner will be able to ensure professional behavior and hygiene, and at the same time, build motivation by rewarding students with their successes. A motivated student stays in class, so the retention rates will increase.

Final Recommendations

Beth needs to develop and implement an evaluation plan to conduct a strategic analysis of Chef Reiner’s culinary program. In the report presented to Dean Jacobs, Beth will make recommendations for improvements of the course that will aid in the retention of students. A plan would then need to be developed between the Dean, Beth and Chef Reiner to identify resources and implement such recommendations.

Assigned Readings

As Miranda (2009, p. 21) points out, behaviorism can actually foster constructivism! It was this philosophy that led me to construct the recommendations that I did. I think Beth can take a very productive and positive approach with Chef Reiner by realizing that there may not be a clear dividing line between constructivist and behaviorist philosophies (Miranda, p. 23). In fact, this combination of methodologies has the potential to address both the academic and motivational needs of the students. This combination of teaching methods keeps the students focused but engaged and improves involvement in class (Miranda, p. 27). I can see the lines between the two blurring (Ormrod (1998), as cited in the Miranda article on page 23) to create an enriching and effective learning experience for the students. The recommendation for using feedback from the diners for use as reference material for a guided learning experience comes from my belief that students “create meaning from experience” (Bednar et al., 1991, as cited in Ertmer p. 62). Using this real world, authentic experience will enable the students to create their own meaning, as opposed to just acquiring it (Ertmer, p. 62).

Final Thoughts:

Beth has been asked to study all of the programs in the school, of which Culinary Arts is only a small part. Beth could use this opportunity to set a precedent for analyzing the other programs within the Dean’s domain. If she can keep the big picture in mind, it will not only help to validate her actions to Chef Reiner (a good political move that may pave the way to a smoother transition), but will also help ease her workload for subsequent evaluations.

References

Dick, W., Carey, L., & Carey, J. O. (2009). The Systematic Design of Instruction (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Ertmer, Peggy A., & Newby, Timothy J. (1993). Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism: Comparing critical features from an instructional design perspective. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 6(4), 50-72.

Ertmer, P. A., & Quinn, J. (2007). The ID CaseBook: Case studies in instructional design (3rd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Merrill/Prentice Hall.

Miranda, Michael V. (2009). Creating the successful community college student: using behaviorism to foster constructivism. The Community College Enterprise, Spring, 21-38.