Source: NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIV submitted to
EXPANDING ACCESS TO FAMILY AND CONSUMER SCIENCES STUDIES: DEVELOPING AN ON-LINE FCS MASTER`S PROGRAM
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
TERMINATED
Funding Source
OTHER GRANTS
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
0226348
Grant No.
2011-38821-30898
Project No.
NCE-2011-02637
Proposal No.
2011-02637
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Program Code
EP
Project Start Date
Sep 1, 2011
Project End Date
Aug 31, 2015
Grant Year
2011
Project Director
Giddings, V.
Recipient Organization
NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIV
1601 EAST MARKET STREET
GREENSBORO,NC 27411
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
To meet the demands and challenges of the 21st Century, higher education professionals must creatively adapt computer technologies to their area of specialization and expertise in the classroom setting. This method of providing a Masters of Sciences (MS) degree in higher education will update and expand a program that will provide nontraditional students or students working full or part time access to courses necessary to fulfill requirements for license and or obtain a Masters of Art in Teaching (MAT) degree. On-line programs fill a niche for the students who are not living on campus and for whom commuting is not a practical option. Not only do they permit individuals to obtain a degree but they provide costs savings to institutions in terms of lowering demand for classroom space, parking, and a number of on campus services. In addition, on-line courses are usually provided at a higher payment rate than traditionally on-site taught classes. The higher tuition rate is easily justified when taking into account that students do not have to travel to campus (avoiding transportation costs) and frequently courses are offered at times that an employed person cannot accommodate within his/her work schedule. With Family and Consumer Sciences enrollment generally low in undergraduate programs across the country and decreasing number of individuals entering the field as teachers there is a great need to develop new and better ways to attract more individuals into the profession.There are many individuals in North Carolina areas and the nation who have degrees in a specialized area of Family and Consumer Sciences and would like to become certified to teach in the public schools, but because of family, finances, or other personal reasons preventing them from returning to the University for full time study. This program is designed to meet all requirements for licensure and will prove a coherent and complete curriculum that meets the highest standards. The MAT is planned for the college graduate of the respective areas who seeks licensure and graduate level licensure and graduate studies in teaching grade 7-12. The primary design of the MAT program is two tiered. The first tier includes all the course work needed for "A" licensure, including internship requirement and passing the appropriate examinations of Praxis II. The second tier includes a research requirement and other courses that complete requirements for the advanced master's degree and will qualify the candidate for the advanced "M" licensure if desired.There also is a need at the MAT level globally. Recently, NCA&T State University was contacted by a Caribbean school in search for an on -line MS program in Family and Consumer Sciences Education. In this proposal, we propose to offer the on-line masters degree in Family and Consumer Sciences with licensures available and assist college instructors. This online degree could be accomplished by developing and restructuring seven current courses for distance delivery. The other courses for the degree have already been developed and approved for distance delivery.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
90360993020100%
Knowledge Area
903 - Communication, Education, and Information Delivery;

Subject Of Investigation
6099 - People and communities, general/other;

Field Of Science
3020 - Education;
Goals / Objectives
The goal of the projectis to develop an on-line graduate degree program. Six objectives have been identified specific to achieve this goal and are presented below. 1. To create an online MAT degree program in Family and Consumer Sciences. 2. To develop an internship manual for those who will serve as site supervisors for graduate interns. This is a necessary part of the class FCS 702. This course requires that there be a mentor and principal, observations, and evaluations while taking the course. These are required documentation for those students who wish to have a teaching certification. 3. To develop seven on-line courses that will be included in the degree program. 4. To develop and implement the collaboration between Shortwood College in the Caribbean and NCA&T State University 5. To develop a plan for recruitment and marketing of the program. 6. To establish an advisory board for the Project
Project Methods
Year 1- Collaboratively plan the online (Master of Science) MS Program in Family and Consumer Sciences. 1. Establish an advisory committee. (Project Director, Associate Directors, Distant Learning Director, and two classroom teacher) 2. Investigate the technical considerations related to offering a program online. Determine the procedures necessary for delivering a course using this technology. (Project Director, Associate Director, and Instructional Design Consultant). 3. Develop policies for enrollment, tuition, grading, etc. to facilitate the offerings. (Project Director and Associate Directors). 4. Visit Shortwood College to determine technology access, and conduct workshops with coordinators for the online class offering. 5. Design and restructure courses to be offered as a part of the on-line program. (FCS staff). 6. Recruit and enroll at least ten to twelve students with at least six coming from Shortwood College. Year 2- Deliver the collaboratively designed courses online. 1. Offer the courses online. (FCS staff, CDL staff, Directors, and Technicians). 2. Conduct student impact evaluation. 3. Respond to any issue students may have about the program 4. Conduct total project evaluation. (Project Team) 5. Reward students by continuing to provide financial assistance Year 3- Marketing of program 1. Offer the courses online 2. Develop marketing materials. (FCS staff and CDL) 3. Distribute materials about the program through out the country and in the Caribbean. 4. Write abstracts and presentations for delivery at professional meetings 5. Conduct a final evaluation of program progress 6. Develop a continuation plan for the program in the Caribbean Evaluation Plans: The project will be evaluated two ways, first, the advisory committee will be asked to evaluate a general plan for this program after its development and before the first year offering. Secondly, the program will be evaluated to determine the effectiveness of the project in reaching the major objectives of recruiting and retaining students in the program. The effectiveness is based on the number of individuals who enroll in the online MAT program and also those who receive their license to teach. The first year of the program it is anticipated that there will be 8 to 12 individuals enrolling and they will remain in the program through completion of a Masters degree. Evaluation of the curriculum and the site supervisor manual will be performed by the Family and Consumer Sciences state department consultant and two other Family and Consumer Sciences teacher who have received an advanced degree and two who would be enrolled in the Masters degree program. The effectiveness of working with Shortwood College and the ability to retain their teachers through completion of their MAT program will also be assessed.

Progress 09/01/11 to 08/31/15

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience reached included university faculty, current and prospective students, and family and consumer sciences teachers. Changes/Problems:One major challenge related to recruiting teachers at Shortwood College in Jamaica to enroll in the program. Although there was great interest in participating, the value of their dollar made the cost to enroll prohibitive for the time being. Therefore, those teachers were not able to take advantage of the online offerings. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project facilitated training of five faculty members in developing online courses. Faculty received training in how to manage online courses in Blackboard; understanding best practices to use in teaching online courses; selecting the appropriate technology to facilitate student learning; and how to apply Quality Matters Standards to assess online courses. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The project results and the availability of the online program have been shared with prospective students and family and consumer sciences faculty and administrators at the state and national levels. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Educators at all levels operate in a climate filled with rapidly evolving technology and must take advantage of the available technology to create opportunities for students to become critical and analytical thinkers. To meet the demands and challenges of the 21st century, higher education faculty must creatively adapt computer technologies to facilitate preparation of future professionals. The national shortage in family and consumer sciences teachers and the growing demand to fill vacant positions to prepare students for the plethora of careers in the field support the need to make degree completion and licensure convenient and accessible. Therefore, funding provided through this capacity building grant was used to create an online master's degree in Family and Consumer Sciences Education with the opportunity for licensure to teach in the public schools. The project focused on transforming the courses in curriculum from the traditional face-to-face format to effective online delivery. During the scope of the project, the degree was developed and approved for online delivery and twelve students were provided scholarships towards the completion of their degree requirements. As a result of this project, working students and lateral entry teachers have an accessible and convenient option for obtaining an advanced degree and completing licensure requirements. The availability of the program will facilitate credentialing of Family and Consumer Sciences teachers to help fill the vacancies prevalent in the North Carolina schools for certified FCS teachers. Objective 1: The online Master of Arts in Teaching in Family and Consumer Sciences was approved by the University of North Carolina General Administration for establishment in December 2014. Objective 2 A draft of the internship was developed. Objective 3 Seven courses within the curriculum were developed for online delivery to complete the availability of all courses in the online format. Objective 4 The project director and staff from the university's Office of International Affairs met with faculty at Shortwood College in Jamaica to establish strategies for a collaborative relationship and to establish a plan to credential teachers. Objective 5 Marketing and recruiting materials were developed for the program and have been posted online. The program is marketed by the Office of Distance Learning. Objective 6 An advisory committee was created and used for guidance in carrying out the various phases of the project..

Publications


    Progress 09/01/11 to 08/31/12

    Outputs
    OUTPUTS: During this reporting period the following objectives were implemented. The objectives of the proposed project were: 1. To develop an online graduate Family and Consumer Sciences degree program: In order to carry out this objective a Request to Plan must be submitted to the University of North Caroilina System making such a request. A Distance Education Degree Program request to plan was submitted. The request was approved and now we must work on completing a request for Authorization to Establish a new Distance Education Degree Program. We are currently in the process of working on that task. 2. To develop seven online courses to be included in the degree program. With the assistance of the Center for Distance Learning we have been able to complete three of the seven courses. These courses are now ready to be included in the program. 3. To establish an advisory board for the project. An initial advisory board has been established to work with this project. Currently, working in this capacity are, The Dean of the School, Department Chair of Family and Consumer Sciences, Director of International Programs, Graduate School Dean, Director of Continuing Studies and the Director of Distance Education. 4. To develop and implement the collaboration between Shortwood College in the Caribbean and NC A&T State University. We have had the opportunity to communicate with the Principal of Family and Consumer Sciences in Jamaica on several occasions. We have developed a Memorandum of Understanding which has been sent to Shortwood College for their signiture. We are currently awaiting for the return. PARTICIPANTS: Individuals to work on this project include the following: Project Investigator, Department Chair Family and Consumer Sciences,Dean School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Dean of Graduate School Director of International Programs, Director of Continuing Studies, Director of Distance Education TARGET AUDIENCES: Not relevant to this project. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.

    Impacts
    At this point in the project the following activities have been completed: three onlines courses have been developed,a request to the University of North Carolina to plan an Online program in Family and Consumer Sciences was submitted and approved, an advisory board has been established and a Memorandum of Understanding has been developed and submitted to Shortwood College. Funds from the project allowed us to complete the three courses.

    Publications

    • No publications reported this period