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Currently, the project taking most of my time is the planning of a return trip to Hawaii in December. The purpose of this trip is to attend my sons wedding, with the main goal being a successfully completed marriage ceremony and a secondary goal of taking my family to see the new visitor center at Pearl Harbor, where my parents donated money toward the remodel. The activities that will be performed in this project are: TRAVEL - obtaining airline reservations, car rental reservations, housing, maps; WEDDING ceremony site permit, liability insurance, flowers, reception, clothing; and OAHU meeting with director of development at Pearl Harbor, visiting WWII historic sites, and tourist sites. The expected outcomes of this project are smooth transportation and housing experiences, making a personal connection with Pearl Harbor and WWII in general, celebrating marriage, adding a daughter-in-law and grandchildren into our family, and a safe return home. The reason to evaluate this project is two-fold: (1) to compare the travel costs to a previous Hawaii trip for the same length of time plus determining the success of the arrangements, and (2) to note comparative wedding costs in economic preparation for our daughters wedding. Given the two definitions of evaluation, the evaluation of this project will actually fall within both. It will be important to determine whether and to what extent objectives were achieved, as well as using what was found to determine whether or not to repeat the experience with the same transportation, housing, and Oahu activities at another time. Successful elements of the wedding itself may be used again at our daughters wedding. In general, both definitions of evaluation can be used in tandem to decide if a project was worthwhile and to decide if it is worth repeating or changing. The tandem approach would seem to provide the best overall picture of the projects success. Mesler EdTech 505: Week 2 Evaluation Scenarios 2/1/11 Part B Why Evaluate? pp. 34-35, Exercise The project detailed in Week 1 is a travel plan for a return trip to Hawaii. I have made the trip to Hawaii twice in 2010 and will be traveling again in December 2011 for my sons wedding and to visit the new visitor center at Pearl Harbor, now entitled WWII: Valor in the Pacific. During the project, the activities will include planning for travel, planning for wedding details, and meeting with the director of development for Pearl Harbor, along with visiting tourist sites on Oahu. This planning project will be evaluated by comparing travel costs to a previous Hawaii trip for the same length of time and determining the success of the arrangements, and to note comparative wedding costs in preparation for our daughters wedding. The benefit of this evaluation will be to give us an economic plan for a return trip and/or wedding, to establish business contacts on Oahu, and to be able to share our evaluations of trip details
with others headed to Oahu that ask for advice. The limitations of the evaluation of this project include Oahu area limits, due to the proximity of the Honolulu Marathon. (My sons wedding is to take place at the finish line of the marathon. Yes, my son and new daughter are running in the race, and NO, I am not.) Housing and transportation needs are tied to the racecourse. The bride is making some island activity decisions, so the planning must go along with her wishes, which is limiting. I do not foresee any worries about scrutiny, since it will be my decision as to future planning for a return trip to Oahu. This evaluation will include price points and quality, but mostly about advertised descriptions versus our expectations. The expected outcomes of this project are smooth transportation and housing experiences, making a personal connection with Pearl Harbor and WWII in general, celebrating marriage, adding a daughter-in-law and grandchildren into our family, and a safe return home. Information gained through the evaluation of this project will determine whether we will again use a specific business, visit specific tourist sites, and if there are places on Oahu we would like to explore in the future. Kris Mesler EdTech 505 Week 3 Assignment Figure 3.1 Program Cycle In terms of the Figure 3.1 program cycle, the needs analysis for the project involved determining what was needed after finding out our son was planning to travel to Hawaii to be married in December. Since we had traveled to Hawaii previously and records from those travels were kept on file, they will be used to help with the decision-making efforts of travel plans, wedding coordination, and Oahu tourist sites. The goals for the trip are economical travel costs, determine a baseline of costs for our daughters wedding in the future, and determine the trip success. Activities include: travel planning for airplane, car rental, housing, and maps; wedding planning with site permits, liability insurance, flowers, reception, and clothing; and travel while on Oahu to WWII historical and tourist sites. Planning this trip requires access to online data sources, membership in frequent flyer, car rental, and hotel agencies (if required for a better experience), and contact with the Arizona Memorial (now called WWII Valor in the Pacific National Monument at Pearl Harbor). Due to previous travel experience to Hawaii, formative evaluation of this trip will include a vendor comparison from previous trips, a determination of wedding costs, and measuring the success of the trip through these items, as well as from input from the stakeholders (in this case, participants) in the project. However, flexibility is key if the bridal couple wants to change part of the trip. The summative evaluation will occur through the input of the project participants, and also by the economic impact (aka best bang for the buck). Input given by participants during the project will be duly noted, but the real impact of the project will be vocalized on the long plane ride home, and seen in the countenance of each participant.
Kris Mesler EdTech 505 Week 4 Exercise III, paragraph 1 pg. 67 Evaluation questions and planned activities Evaluation Question 1. Has the design of this trip included travel costs that are economical, when compared to average prices? 2. Have the costs for the wedding provided a baseline to determine future wedding costs on the mainland? 3. Was the trip measurably successful? Program Objectives/Goals To design a trip to Hawaii with economical travel costs To ascertain a baseline of costs for our daughters wedding in the future To determine the success of the trip Activity(ies) to Observe Travel planning with airline, car rental, housing, and historical and tourist site reservations Wedding planning with site permit, liability insurance, flower, reception, and clothing costs Measuring the economical impact and participant input regarding travel, wedding, and tourist plans after the trip is complete
Kris Mesler EdTech 505 Week 5 Evaluation Model Choice The project described in week 1 is a planned trip to Honolulu, Hawaii for my sons wedding. Activities include travel, the wedding, and touring Oahus historical and other tourist sites. Expected outcomes of the project include smooth transportation and housing experiences, making a personal connection to Pearl Harbor and WWII, celebrating marriage, adding members to our family, and safe travel home. Reasons to evaluate this project are (1) to compare travel costs to previous trips, and (2) to note comparative wedding costs in preparation for our daughters wedding. In looking at the evaluation models mentioned in chapter 5 of our textbook, I compared the goals of my project with the types of goals for each model. Then I asked myself, Why am I evaluating this project? My vision is to create a successful trip this time, but to use the information gained through evaluation to create an even more successful trip the next time we vacation in Hawaii, and to be prepared for wedding costs when our daughter decides to marry. The two closest models to my project are the decision-making model and the systems analysis model. The decision-making model focuses on decisions that need to be made for future use, and is considered to be a summative evaluation. A summative evaluation would give me a direction for future trips and activities. Data collection can be made using quantitative or February 21, 2011
qualitative
methods,
so
it
is
open
to
the
various
experiences
we
would
be
having
on
Oahu.
The
description
that
would
cause
me
pause
is
you
are
less
concerned
with
hot
the
program
is
performing
presently.
Instead,
you
are
concerned
with
its
long-range
effects
(pg.
89)
Since
my
project
will
be
a
weeklong
program,
there
will
be
time
for
some
adjustments
along
the
way,
so
it
doesnt
seem
to
match
with
this
evaluation
model.
The
systems
analysis
model
looks
at
a
program
systematically
by
using
the
three
stages
of
input,
throughput
and
output.
The
input
in
my
project
would
be
the
participants,
the
airline,
the
car
rental
company,
the
vacation
home
landlord,
the
Honolulu
Marathon
race,
the
wedding
site,
and
the
WWII:
Valor
in
the
Pacific
Historic
Parks
memorial
at
Pearl
Harbor.
The
throughput
will
include
the
activities
during
the
week:
travel,
the
wedding,
and
touring
Oahus
historical
and
other
tourist
sites.
These
activities
have
many
components
that
will
be
part
of
the
throughput
as
well.
The
output
will
show
participant
satisfaction
if
the
project
went
smoothly,
the
success
of
the
activities,
the
effectiveness
of
vendors
used
in
the
project,
and
participant
satisfaction
if
the
project
went
smoothly.
The
system
analysis
model
looks
at
how
efficient
the
process
is
in
a
project
and
how
well
the
goals
are
achieved.
After
comparing
the
systems
analysis
model
to
my
project,
I
believe
that
it
will
achieve
a
more
satisfactory
evaluation
result
than
the
decision-making
model.
Kris
Mesler
EdTech
505
Week
6
Choosing
Data
Sources
Project
Recap
The
project
described
in
week
1
is
a
planned
trip
to
Honolulu,
Hawaii
for
my
sons
wedding.
Activities
include
travel,
the
wedding,
and
touring
Oahus
historical
and
other
tourist
sites.
Expected
outcomes
of
the
project
include
smooth
transportation
and
housing
experiences,
making
a
personal
connection
to
Pearl
Harbor
and
WWII,
celebrating
marriage,
adding
members
to
our
family,
and
safe
travel
home.
Reasons
to
evaluate
this
project
are
(1)
to
compare
travel
costs
to
previous
trips,
(2)
to
note
comparative
wedding
costs
in
preparation
for
our
daughters
wedding,
and
(3)
to
determine
the
success
of
the
trip.
The
data
sources
that
will
be
used
are
surveys,
observations,
previous
trip
data,
and
an
interview.
The
table
below
lists
the
goals
(both
intermediate
and
outcome),
indicators,
benchmarks,
and
measures
for
this
project.
GOALS
All
participants
will
have
smooth
transportation
and
housing
experiences
INDICATORS
1.
Participants
will
have
cost-efficient
experiences
in
their
travel
BENCHMARKS
1.
All
participants
will
save
at
least
25%
in
travel
costs
when
compared
to
full
price
2.
There
will
be
less
than
5
instances
of
poor
customer
service
MEASURES
1.
Trip
cost
comparisons
to
previous
and
current
travel
costs
2.
Investigate
and
compare
recommendations
(stars)
of
travel
accommodations
from
2.
Poor
customer
service
will
be
at
a
minimum
on
the
trip
All participants will have a personal connection with Pearl Harbor and WWII
1. Participants will demonstrate an increased desire to return to Pearl Harbor with other to visit WWII sites
1. At the end of 5 years, at least 50% of the participants will revisit Hawaii 2. All participants will visit at least one WWII historical site during the trip
2.
Participants
will
celebrate
the
new
family
1. At least 60% of participants will send anniversary greeting on the couples first anniversary 2. Over the next year, at least 70% of participants will include the couple as a family in a gathering
The family experience will improve for the new daughter-in-law and grandchildren as they are integrated into the established family
1. The daughter-in-law and grandchildren will feel they are a part of the family
2. The daughter-in-law and grandchildren will desire to spend more time with the established family
1. During the next 6 weeks, the new family will be invited to a total family gathering 2. The new grandparents will attend at least two of the grandchildrens functions in the next 3 months
trusted sites (i.e. AAA, Trip Advisor) to survey of actual trip experience 3. Complete survey questions regarding customer service 1. Mail survey in 5 years to find out how many revisited Hawaii 2. Quantify Pearl Harbor and WWII historical site visits 3. Collect narrative descriptions of participant comments (using prompts for sentence completion) 4. Complete survey of WWII attitudes 1. Collection of greetings on the first anniversary 2. Count the number of family gatherings in the past year 3. Listing of wedding costs with comparison to previous information 4. Success survey of the wedding party (ranked by each person) 1. Number the family gatherings and grandchildren activities over 6-12 weeks 2. Use unobtrusive observational analysis to gather information on the family experience 3. Attitude survey completed by the
Participants will have a 1. All participants will safe trip home to arrive safely at their Idaho, Arkansas, and destinations Texas
2.
All
participants
will
enhance
relationships
with
the
other
participants
3.
All
participants
will
have
a
positive
trip
experience
1. Participants will have at least 70% on- time plane departures and arrivals on the trip home 2. There will be less than 4 bags delayed for pick up and no bags lost 1. Participants will be able to list at least 5 new facts they learned about WWII and/or Pearl Harbor 2. All participants will be able to list at least 10 positive experiences from the trip 3. Participants will display a positive attitude throughout scheduled group activities
new and established families 1. Take a survey of all participants regarding departure and arrival times and baggage information
1. View created lists of new WWII information gained 2. Collect lists of positive trip experiences 3. Semi-structured interview to assess trip effectiveness
Whats the Best Way to Collect My Information? Worksheet Answers 1. The possible measures in my project are listed above in the table. 2. Previous travel costs, current costs for travel and wedding, and information from previous visits to Hawaii have already been collected and are readily available. 3. The constraints to this project include: (1) the time until the event in order to prepare, (2) the money to allocate for travel and wedding costs, and (3) at this time, an unknown number of trip participants. Assess Quality of Measures 4. I believe that the variety of measures that are used will give me the information needed to complete a full evaluation. Even with the time and financial constraints, the measures will be completed in a suitable manner. 5. I dont see a need to sample, since the trip participants will number fewer than 25. 6. Since the goal of this project is to measure improvement from pre-trip to post-trip experiences, using comparison groups of those who went on the trip to those who did not, does not seem applicable. The project evaluation will be including two groups of participants, the wedding party and the guests, so there will be a comparison of sorts when the two groups responses are likened to each other.
7. The measure types have been used in many other programs, but the specific surveys, interview, and observations for this project have not. Instead of pilot testing, I will be using peer review of the evaluation measures to prepare an improved set of non-biased questions before they are administered. 8. Statistical knowledge that will be required to analyze the data includes probability, ratios, graphing, and measures of central tendency. 9. Problems that still need to be resolved before the project can be evaluated include final decisions on wedding items and costs, and the final number of trip participants. Kris Mesler EdTech 505 Week 9 Evaluation or Research? ABCs of Evaluation, Exercise pg. 150 My personal evaluation project is the evaluation of a completed trip to Oahu, Hawaii, where we (our family) will experience the Honolulu Marathon, tourist activities, and a wedding. Though some of the activities would not be repeated in a future trip to Oahu (like the wedding), the basics could be the same, such as housing, transportation, and food options. Since my husband and I plan to visit Hawaii again in the future, it is all about getting the best quality for the least amount of money, and making worthwhile contacts. This is why I would be using the decision-making evaluation model. The trip we will be taking involves a small set of participants, so the sample will be the entire group. While the future trips will not necessarily include the same group of participants, they may include subsets of the same participants, so all of their attitudes about the trip accommodations and travel are important to me. The sampling method I will use is the nonprobability purposive sample, which with our restricted population is the informed group that I need.