Are We There Yet?

 Are We There Yet? 

    We've managed to make it this far in the ADDIE model process, however, we are not quite at our final destination. We are now in the implementation stage, which serves almost like a Yelp review. During the implementation stage of the ADDIE model, you are receiving feedback (reviews) according to Piskurich (2015), from participants such as department managers, supervisors, trainers, trainees, and more. The type of participants you request to review your training will depend on whether you are carrying out a beta or pilot test. While the purpose of both the beta and the pilot test is to review the current stance of your design and determine what are the strengths and areas of improvement, both types of tests are used for different purposes. 

Beta Tests 

    Administrating a beta test is one of the first things one wants to do in the implementation stage because, during a beta test, the facilitator can receive feedback immediately by stopping throughout the training. The individuals one would want to invite to a beta test according to Piskurich (2015), include the following...
  • Department managers 
  • Supervisors 
  • Other trainers/instructional designers 
While this might seem as though all you are missing is the CEO to add to this list of imitating participants, there is a benefit to including all these individuals in the beta test. The benefit is that it allows them to see firsthand what the training is going to have. 
    One of the most important components of a beta test is the questions. The author provides a long list of different questions that can be incorporated, and the questions that you choose to ask, it is advised to display those questions to allow participants to keep looking back on them. One of the benefits of running a beta test is that you can go through a specific activity, stop, ask for participant feedback, then continue on. 
   To see where content may need improvement to better support learners, it is advised to administer pre/post tests. By administering a pre/post-test, it will allow you to see what information needs improvement to provide the desired results. 

Pilots

    Administering a pilot test is the next step one wants to take after a beta test. Pilot tests are like the rehearsal before the big performance. During pilots, it should run almost identically to how the real training will run. With that being said, if the training is going to be three days then the pilot needs to be three days as well, the participants involved during the pilot need to be participants that would be involved in the actual training. 

Pilots vs. Betas 

    As stated previously, there are similarities between pilots and betas, however, there are also some differences such as... 
  •  During a beta test you are more concerned with collecting feedback. One can collect feedback by first going through an activity, stopping, asking for feedback, and then carrying on. On the other hand, during a pilot you run from beginning to end, testing more for how the flow of the actual training will be, and if your training/activities will run within the desired timeframe.  
  • While beta tests allow you to ask for feedback whenever throughout the training, for a pilot test, you would ask for feedback at the very end of the training. 
  • For a beta test, it is advised to administer questions before the training or to display questions to allow participants to refer back to them, however, in the case of a pilot test, it is advised to not distribute the questions in advance. The reasoning for not administering the questions before a pilot test is that it could possibly, cause participants to only focus on those specific sections of the training where there are questions, rather than focusing on the training as a whole. 

Back-Up Plan 

    In an ideal world, everything would work the way it should, however, one can't assume that everything is going to work out the way one hopes. One can go through beta and pilot tests and everything works out perfectly, however, during the actual training, a lot of different things could happen. While technology is a great thing that can make learning more accessible, it can also cause the biggest frustration. Even though my training will be held in person, some portions require participants to use their laptops. One concern I do have is the lack of connection. In the case that there is no connection available and participants are not able to complete the activities digitally, I will need to ensure that I have a way for participants to complete activities physically. An outline of the training should also be provided, which bullet points the important concepts for both the participants and the facilitator. The facilitator must be comfortable enough with the information, in the case of a loss in connection, that they could still carry out the training without the presentation available. 
    

Resources: 

George M. Piskurich. (2015). Rapid Instructional Design: Learning ID Fast and Right: Vol. Third edition. Wiley.



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