Project Abstract
The Business & Finance unit of the Basic Camp Director’s Course (BCDC) has, until now, been delivered exclusively in a week-long training conference. The course is offered four times per year, but there is always a waiting list for sessions. Because the logistics and expense of a week-long training session are increasingly challenging, Dr. Gwynn Powell , a member of the ACA National Board of Directors, has asked to create an online version of the unit.
We will develop this module as a prototype that the ACA can then use to develop similar online versions of the other 13 units in the training session.
Client Profile
The client for our project is The American Camp Association as represented by Dr. Gwynn Powell and Kat Shreve. Dr. Powell is an Associate Professor in the Recreation and Leisure Studies Department in the College of Education at The University of Georgia. She is also a volunteer for the American Camp Association, specializing in curriculum development and research application. She will serve as the liaison between Genesis Learning and the American Camp Association. Ms. Shreve is an ACA national staff member with nationwide responsibility for training. She will provide content and ongoing input to help us design this unit in a way that will be most practical for the organization.
The ACA Web site describes the organization as follows:
“The American Camp Association (formerly known as the American Camping Association) is a community of camp professionals who, for nearly 100 years, have joined together to share our knowledge and experience and to ensure the quality of camp programs. Because of our diverse 7,000 plus membership and exceptional programs, children and adults have the opportunity to learn powerful lessons in community, character-building, skill development, and healthy living — lessons that can be learned nowhere else.
“As a leading authority in child development, the ACA works to preserve, promote, and improve the camp experience. Our association is committed to helping our members and all camps provide:
• Camp communities committed to a safe, nurturing environment
• Caring, competent adult role models
• Healthy, developmentally-appropriate experiences
• Service to the community and the natural world
• Opportunities for leadership and personal growth
• Discovery, experiential education, and learning opportunities
• Excellence and continuous self-improvement “
(
http://www.acacamps.org/about/profile.php)
Adapted with permission from
http://www.nov8tivedesigns.com/
We are so busy! In the last week we have finalized our screen design, task analysis and timeline. We have the second draft of our evaluation plan and hardware/software specs. We are running a brief learner survey in Dr. Powell's WebCT class site so we can get a little more information about learning styles and preferences.
I took on the responsibility for the Treatment Rationale and am way behind on that. Roman has prepared a really nice presentation for class Thursday night, so I think we'll perform well in that part.
Our Wimba meeting on Monday was fraught with problems and we wasted a lot of time dealing with connection problems, something that has become a regular occurrence. So, I have suggested that we log in at 6:45 to allow time for those problems and recognize that we cannot possibly sit down at the computer at 7 p.m. and still be on time for the meetings. Additionally, I have asked all of us to submit materials no later than 6 p.m. on the day of those meetings. We spend too much time together looking at things for the very first time.
We continue to move forward, though not at the pace dictated by the course plan. We're pushing to catch up now so that these issues don't snowball and give us real problems at the end of the semester. Then we'll start the development work which is, for several of us at least, the fun part!
