MillsFormativeEvaluation1a


 * “Discovering the Database”**
 * Formative Evaluation and Revision**

The goal of this Instructional Design Unit, “Discovering the Database” was to assure that students would be able to properly use online databases successfully and accurately to complete classroom assignments, reports, and projects. By teaching this simple database search process, the hope was to ensure that students could successfully and independently access factual and accurate information online line by performing a simple search on a subscribed to database resource.
 * I. Introduction**

“Discovering the Database” Instructional Design Unit was created to ensure that students could become independent information seekers using trusted database resources. The main goal of the lesson was to show students how to access an online database, how to use a username and password to get into the system, and how to perform a simple search within the database. This search strategy lesson was created so that students could independently search and access quality information for classroom assignments, reports, and projects. The students, in turn, would take this foundational skill and use it throughout their lifetime to help enhance future classroom assignments, reports, and projects.

The instructional unit being evaluated consisted of: an instructor manual, learn step-by-step worksheets, learner practice sheets, and a pre/post-instructional short answer test. The instructor manual provided instructions for the teacher to follow when performing and implementing the lesson. The learner step-by-step worksheets were created for learner use and exploration. Learners were asked to follow the step-by-step instructions while working with the instructor during the core lesson. The learner practice worksheet was created to allow learners the opportunity to practice a simple database search on their own with the help of step-by-step instructions (as a helpful reminder). The pre/post-instruction short answer tests were created to measure learner knowledge before the lesson and learner understanding after the lesson.

The goal of the lesson was to have learners perform a simple search with 90% accuracy when accessing an online database resource.

The “Discovering the Database” Instructional Design Unit was administered to three fifth grade students. For the lesson, two students were female and one student was male. All three students had prior experience with a computer and prior experience accessing information on-line. All three students have also been raised in the same school system and have all had the similar lower school learning instruction and experiences.
 * II. Methods**

//The Learner// Each learner was given the instruction individually, but at different times. The learners were given the same resources: laptop computer, learner username and password, computer projector and screen, access to the school computer network, learner copy of the: pre-instruction test, the learner step-by-step instructional sheet, learner practice sheet, and post-instructional test, and a pencil.

//The Environment// Each learner was given access to the same classroom space. The classroom was located in the Middle School building and away from other academic classrooms. Due to the time of year, there were no other students in the building so the working environment was very quite. Each learner was observed independently and in the same environment. The instructor watched their actions very carefully and made observations on an instructor pre-made worksheet.

//The Instruction// Learners were given the pre-instruction test one day before the actual lesson. Learners were asked to follow along as the instructor read the directions aloud. The learners were then asked to complete the worksheet to the best of their ability, understanding that the responses were to be short and were not going to be graded. The instructor asked the learner, when he or she was finished, to turn in the worksheet and to take a five minute break. The five-minute break would represent the time passed from one day to the next day.

The “following day” the learner was asked to come into the classroom and to read the board for additional instructions. The learners were asked to select a laptop from the laptop cart, to log into the system with a username and password, to open a webpage using the Firefox browser, and to type in the following URL – [|www.infohio.org] (pre-requisite checklist requirements). The learners were then asked to follow along, with the help of the step-by-step learner worksheet, as the instructor taught the lesson and performed an example search. Learners were encouraged, throughout the lesson, to respond to and to ask questions during the lesson instruction. After the instruction was finished, the learners were asked to take out their practice worksheet and perform a simple search (also with the help of the United States President list worksheet). The instructor walked around the room as the learners followed the step-by-step learner practice worksheet. Learners were asked to perform a simple search on their own with the help of the learner worksheet. Learners were encouraged to ask questions for clarification and for help if they got stuck. After the learners were finished, they were asked to raise their hands so that the instructor could come by to check their work to ensure that the instructions were followed properly.

//Post-Instruction// After the learners were done with the pre-instruction test, the lesson, and the learner practice activity, the learners were then asked to complete the post-instruction test. The instructor again read the directions aloud and asked if learners had any questions. The learners then completed the worksheet, with the understanding that their responses should be detailed, but brief and that the worksheets would be graded. The pre-instruction test and the post-instruction questions were the same, as the instructor wanted to ensure the students had a good understanding of information seeking behaviors and database resources. The following questions were used for both tests: 1. Where can you find information and resources online? 2. How do you assess the quality of online information? 3. What is a database? Why are they protected by usernames and passwords? 4. Explain the difference between an online resource and an online database resource. After the learners completed the worksheet, the instructor collected the worksheet to be graded.

The “Discovering the Database” Instruction Design lesson took place from 1:00 – 2:00 on three consecutive days with learner A on the first day, learner B on the second day, and learner C on the third day. At the beginning of the lesson (and the day prior), the instructor kept detailed notes on the pre-requisite checklist and the pre-instruction test to gauge the prior knowledge of the learners. During the lesson, the instructor wrote down detailed observations of learner attention, group search results, individual search results, and the learner search outcomes. The instructor also recorded detailed notes on the change from pre-instruction to post-instructional knowledge with the help of the pre/post-instruction short answer responses. The data and results from the assessments are provided below.
 * III. Results and Discussion**

//Data and Assessment Results//

Pre-Requisite Checklist Results Checklist Tasks: ** Logging into a Computer Network ****,** ** Opening a Webpage ****,** ** Typing In a URL ****,** ** Accessing Information Online ****,** ** Closing a Webpage ****,** ** Logging Out of a Computer Network. **
 * **Learner** || **Pre-Requisite Checklist Results** ||
 * **Student A** || 90% (had trouble accessing the computer network, username and password) ||
 * **Student B** || 100% accuracy ||
 * **Student C** || 100% accuracy ||

Pre-Instruction Results Questions 1-4: 1. Where can you find information and resources online? 2. How do you assess the quality of online information? 3. What is a database? Why are they protected by usernames and passwords? 4. Explain the difference between an online resource and an online database resource.
 * **Learner** || **Pre-Instruction Results –**
 * Question 1 Responses** || **Responses Question 2** || **Responses Question 3** || **Responses Question 4** ||
 * **Student A** || Websites, blogs || Website author || X || How the information is displayed ||
 * **Student B** || Websites, discussion board || X || X || X ||
 * **Student C** || Websites || Website author, date || X || X ||
 * “X” means that the learner left the question blank.

Student Lesson Observations:
 * Student A** – Student is able to successfully follow instruction directions and instructions. The student only asked one question during the lesson – “How do I sign onto the network – my username/password is not letting me on…” (The instructor helped student gain access)


 * Student B** - Student is able to successfully follow instruction directions and instructions. The student did not ask any questions.


 * Student C** - Student is able to successfully follow instruction directions and instructions. The student asked two questions during the instruction – “Why would we want to use a database instead of “Googling it?” and “Will we have to use databases in the future?”

Student Database Search Individual Practice Results and Observations:
 * Student A** – The student successfully followed the step-by-step instructions. The student was able to perform a successful search by typing in the name of a United States President, President James Buchanan. The student selected the resources that displayed the 100% accuracy mark, opened the resource, and gained access to the information. The student raised her hand and the instructor approved the search, the resources, and the overall process.


 * Student B** - The student successfully followed the step-by-step instructions. The student was able to perform a successful search by typing in the name of a United States President, President John F. Kennedy. The student got stuck when deciding which link to choose. The instructor guided the student and reminded her that she was to find the article that had the 100% accuracy mark. The student selected the correct resource and properly completed her online database search.


 * Student C** - The student successfully followed the step-by-step instructions. The student was able to perform a successful search by typing in the name of a United States President, President James Monroe. The student accessed the correct resource, matching 100% accuracy, but the instructor saw that the student quickly went back to the main search page. The instructor reminded the student that he was to skim the material to ensure that the information need was reached and that the information provided fulfilled his information search.

Post-Instruction Test Results Questions 1-4: 1. Where can you find information and resources online? 2. How do you assess the quality of online information? 3. What is a database? Why are they protected by usernames and passwords? 4. Explain the difference between an online resource and an online database resource.
 * **Learner** || **Pre-Instruction Results –**
 * Question 1 Responses** || **Responses Question 2** || **Responses Question 3** || **Responses Question 4** ||
 * **Student A** || Websites, blogs, and databases || Google it or use a database || Trusted information – not sure why they are password protected || Online resource, any webpage – Database, trusted information ||
 * **Student B** || Websites, discussion board, blogs, and databases || Select a database || Facts, information from professionals – protected by username and passwords, not everyone can use || Online resource – anyone can get, may be factual and may not – Database, protected information for students ||
 * **Student C** || Websites, blogs, and databases || Online database || Factual information and resources for students, protected because the school pays to use them – like our school network || Online resource – any website, everyone can use, may be fact and may be opinion, Database – gathered information for student use, protected by passwords ||

//Overview - Instruction Time:// 5 min || 5 min |||||| 10 min || 6 min || 2 min || 6 min || 12 min || 8 min |||| 54 min || 5 min || 5 min |||||| 10 min || 4 min || 3 min || 5 min || 10 min || 10 min |||| 52 min || 5 min || 5 min |||||| 10 min || 4 min || 4 min || 3 min || 15 min || 14 min |||| 60 min ||
 * **Learner** || **Pre-Requisite and Pre-Instruction Worksheet** |||| **Cluster 1** || **Cluster 2** |||| **Clusters 3 & 6** || **Clusters 4 & 7** || **Clusters 5 & 8** || **Clusters 9 & 10** |||| **Post Instruction Test** || **Total Time** ||
 * Student A || *,
 * Student B || *,
 * Student C || *,
 * All learners were able to complete the pre-instruction test the day before the “Discovering the Database” lesson. Learners were given five minutes to complete the pre-instructional worksheet. The time was totaled in the “Total Time” column, but was performed the day before. Also, the time it took for the student to perform the pre-requisite task is recorded in the “Cluster One” column (they were one in the same, as the instructor watched as students logged into the computer network system).
 * All learners were able to complete the pre-instruction test the day before the “Discovering the Database” lesson. Learners were given five minutes to complete the pre-instructional worksheet. The time was totaled in the “Total Time” column, but was performed the day before. Also, the time it took for the student to perform the pre-requisite task is recorded in the “Cluster One” column (they were one in the same, as the instructor watched as students logged into the computer network system).

//Conclusion// The main goal of the “Discovering the Database” Instructional Design Unit hoped that students would be able to properly use online databases successfully and accurately (performing simple searches) to complete classroom assignments, reports, and projects. Overall, students “B” and “C” seemed to have a good understanding of why information provided on database resources were more valuable than information provided on public websites. While it was disappointing that student “A” felt factual academic information could still be accessed on any webpage, it was encouraging to see that she had an understanding what database resources could provide. With time and practice, all students will begin to see why databases are beneficial and will continue to learn how to properly utilize the resources for future assignments, reports, and projects.