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eLearning Consulting Group (eLCG)The eLearning Consulting Group is staffed by consultants with many years of experience in the areas of eLearning, strategic planning, business planning, centralized infrastructure and workforce development. Contact information is provided below. eLearning Implementation Distance learning is a hot topic in all levels of education these days. Some schools are interested in learning more about it and how to get started, and others want to fine tune or expand their existing distance learning operations. Through the AN-MSI, ECF has worked for three years with Charlene Douglas, an expert in eLearning design and implementation, centralized infrastructure, creation of a help desk and faculty development centers, and strategic planning. Charlene is the eLearning Director of the eLearning Consulting Group and can be contacted at douglasc@execpc.com or 208.476.5751. eLearning is much more than content - it encompasses the following essential components:
Hidden costs involved in eLearning include technology upgrades (hardware and software), increased network traffic, human resource services and benefits, administrative time, evaluation services, office space, program plan development, problem tracking, and so forth. For any institution to get involved in eLearning, it is wise to create an action plan or business plan for eLearning. eLCG can assist institutions in preparing such a plan. Additionally, eLCG can assist institutions through the needs assessment, design, implementation and evaluation of their eLearning program. eLCG can also assist an institution in outlining possible eLearning solutions and their consequences, and recommend ROI metrics for the proposed solution. Needs assessment is the most important part of any action/business plan, for if there is a need, the plan can continue; if there is no need, there is no need for a plan to solve a non-existent problem. An eLearning needs assessment is designed to answer these questions: Can we do this? If we can do this, how are we going to? What are the outcomes and how do we measure them? eLearning can be an enormous undertaking and will require significant preparation due to its increased scope, higher interdependence and visibility. Additionally, eLearning includes much more than true distance education courses/programs; it also includes web-enhanced courses/programs and blended or hybrid courses/programs. An additional step, if not already identified in the action plan, is to develop the requirements for the particular eLearning program. This detailed list of requirements will become the specifications needed for an initial Request for Information, to be followed, possibly, by a formal Request for Proposal or Bid. For any eLearning program to be successful, two support structures need to be put in place….an enhanced faculty development center and a centralized 24x7 (eventually) help desk. eLCG can assist in development of such a center and help desk. The faculty development center assists faculty and teaching staff and assistants in their efforts to use instructional technology to enhance teaching and learning. This assistance has to be designed to help instructors become independent users and developers of eLearning resources that improve teaching and learning. This center should offer pedagogical consultation, instructional software workshops, web and other eLearning resources, specialized equipment in a lab setting and, most importantly, "just in time" support delivered through email, telephone calls, and in-person assistance. Workforce Development Having a centralized help desk is imperative for a successful eLearning program. The Student Technology Services model, developed by the staff of eLCG, can assist in providing this help desk. Briefly, STS is a work-based learning organization that provides campus technology support and service. Additionally, it is a value-added student experience that is student managed and staffed. STS can provide all face-to-face service delivery for information technology while providing professional and personal development and real work experience for the students. Strategic Planning Additionally, the experienced staff of eLCG can assist with strategic planning for a campus, an entire system or a consortium of educational institutions at the university, community college, technical college, or PK-12 level. Areas covered in a strategic plan include funding, staffing, sustainability, maintenance, security, policies and procedures, implementation of ERPs, communication, upgrading of equipment, accessibility for people with disabilities, authentication, integration, repositories, implementation of standards, computer labs, copyright and intellectual property. eLCG will show a campus how to develop a general culture that fosters the expansion of its information technology infrastructure, systems and usage in general. Campuses all over the world are full of passionate people who want to do positive, good things, but often they face too many challenges and frustrations every day to be very effective. Careful needs assessment, design, timeline establishment and implementation of a clearly defined strategic plan can go a long way towards changing that.
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eLearning Consulting Group |
