Course = Adult learning in the workplace.
Technology and Innovation in Adult Learningby Kathleen P. King, John Wiley & Sons
Instructions;
This paper is building block approach to assignments in the courses, in that each assignment builds on the next one and will be compiled into a comprehensive final paper. So by the time we get to assignment 4 you will have completed most of it already. In other words, Assignments #1-4 will be combined at the end and edited to flow as one document. Until then, each paper will look and feel like a stand-alone paper. So let’s get started on the directions for Assignment 1.
- The first step is to choose a topic of interest to you from our assigned reading, the suggestions below, or from the area of adult learning. Consider researching a topic that will also be of some use to you, either personally or professionally. This will allow you to yield some personal benefit from your research outside of class. Also, keep in mind that in a latter section of the final paper (assignment 3) the focus will be about the application of your topic in the real world, so allow that to also guide you in your choice.
Suggested topics might include:
- A specific topic within adult learning
- Digital learning
- Learning management systems
- Online learning
- What is Instructional design?
- Workplace or organizational training and learning
- Choose a specific training methodology
- What is a “learning organization” as defined in modern organizational and business literature?
- Knowledge management
- Evaluation of learning
- Connection between organizational effectiveness and learning
- A specific learning theory such as cognitivism, behaviorism, constructivism, connectives, etc. (“adult learning” itself, is not a theory but a concept)
- Return-on-investment (ROI) calculating the effectiveness of learning
- Adult motivation and learning
- Needs assessment for learning and training
- The relationship between organizational learning and successful companies
Note ;Always include a title page, abstract, and reference section with each assignment (appendices if needed). Again each assignment will look like a stand-alone paper. However, when you combine them for the final paper (Assignment 4) you will do some final editing to make it all flow as one paper with one title page, reference section, appendices, etc.
Assignment 1(Introduction) 4 pages
It is the first major section of the final paper, but for the purposes of this paper, it will read like a stand alone paper about your chosen topic from the assigned reading chapters. This assignment will cover an Introduction and Current State of your topic and will be the first component and first phase of your research paper.
For this assignment you will:
– Introduce the topic you have chosen and why this topic is important to adult/organizational learning
– Discuss the topic itself and how it is relevant to adult education and its application within the workplace
– Describe what the topic is in detail to give the reader a solid foundation and understanding
– Analyze the current state of this topic at the present time: in other words, what is your chosen topic look like today, as opposed to what it looked like 10 or 20 years ago. Perhaps you may want to discuss the evolution of your topic in recent decades. You may want to discuss what has been discovered about this topic over the years or what it looks like now. You have some creative leeway here to discuss the current state.
Assignment 2 (Literature review) 4 pages
This part of your research paper is going to add depth and credibility to the discussion of your chosen topic. Part of the university experience is being able to combine both scholarly research with practical application. Whether it’s business or in the helping professions, we should always be making decisions based on relevant data. If we don’t then many of the decisions were going to make will be arbitrary or based on emotion, and ultimately lacking credibility. The same is true in scholarly research. The conclusions you make about your chosen topic should be based on relevant data, both from the real world and from academia. This adds credibility to what you have to say. To that end, your literature review of your topic will encompass the scope of this paper (Assignment 3). So that your paper is based on good information, you will need to limit your research to academic textbooks, scholarly journal articles. Professional research journals are sometimes published as e-journals, which would be okay. Another acceptable source would be trade journals produced by professional organizations such as the American Psychological Association or American Counseling Association because they are written by scholars/experts. Be sure that the majority of sources you use are from the last 10 years or so.
If you have never written a literature review before, you may want to do a general search of the web (there’s a lot of “how to” help out there) to get a general idea. However, keep in mind that a literature review can be a large paper in itself. Therefore, the literature review for this section of your final research paper would probably be considered, by most standards, a miniature literature review (Approx. 4 pages). The overall point of doing a literature review for this research paper is to educate the reader on what experts say about your topic and thus provide a solid foundation. Your literature review is probably going to have the most parenthetical citations in the body of your paper.
Assignment 3(real world application) 5 pages
Now that you have introduced your topic and researched it thoroughly, this is your time to make the connection to the real world through a case study. Choose an organization that has applied your topic. This could be a private company, non-profit, church, department, or a government agency. Be sure to briefly introduce the organization and some background information about it. Discussing background information for describing the company is a great way to provide context for what you will be writing about in this paper. (approx. 5 pgs.)
Again, the point of this section is to bridge the gap between the research (literature review) and real-world application. As such you will likely cover the following areas, as well as, others you want to add:
– Brief background information on the organization and industry
– How your topic is uniquely applied within a specific organization
– Rationale or the “why” behind its need and it’s application
– The results or outcome regarding how it is applied
Like before, cut and paste the same abstract from the previous assignment into this one. This will reorient me to your project.
Assignment 4 (2 pages)
Pros and Cons– What are the benefits and shortcomings of your chosen topic?
Challenges- What are potential roadblocks and challenges to applying your topic in real-world organizations? These could be potential internal challenges or perhaps certain industries make it difficult? Think through this section like a consultant would.
Future Implications– What does the future state of your topic look like going forward in the next 5-10 years?
Conclusion– Bring all of your data, case study, and discussion to a close for the reader.