October Monthly Summary

Jennifer Warrner commented on Group 3 and Group 4 for the October Monthly Summary. 
Sarah Smurr commented on Group 1 & 3

631 October Monthly Summary

The process of your project (what each of you have done, and what you have learned/changed) (Carrie Clymer)

During the month of October, our group’s goal was to compile a paper on unique programs. Our first decision we had to make as a group was to decide on the programs we would like to research which were a program in New York and South Carolina. Nina research the program in New York while Carrie research and compiled the information about the program in South Carolina. After the research, Nina and Carrie emailed their information to Sarah who compared and contrasted the information. Jennifer analyzed the information that Nina and Carrie collected about the two organizations. After all the information was gathered, Sarah combined and edited the unique programs paper and submitted the final copy.

One thing that our grouped learned through the process this month is to begin earlier and to communicate instruction better with all the members of the group. Since this is all online communication, the members have to be exact with the instruction on how they want the information completed because we do not have the outside communication to receive other information by. 

Your group plans for the next month. (Nina Monstwillo)

We will divide the tasks into two people doing the research for the two different organizations in the Introduction.  One will do the Roles and Responsibilities, and the last will do Discussions.   Nina will compile everything this time and do the Table.  Carrie may help. 

  I guess what I got out the last assignment is an appreciation for the knowledge other group members bring to the assignment.  The experiences and expectations each individual brings with them makes for an interesting dynamic to the group.  The challenges of working together have proven to be a great learning experience.  This learning process is teaching me that by listening to other peoples perspectives can help me to broaden my point of view and give me insight into topics I would not have thought of otherwise.  I am also learning that communication is essential and can be challenging when trying to work out ideas through email.  

What are the challenges you had this month? And how did you deal with them? (Sarah Smurr)

I was more of coordinator this month than on the last essay.  Previously, I just sent my piece to Jen and never saw what putting the pieces together would look like.  This month I was supposed to compare the two programs, so I needed pieces from two of the group members first.  The challenges were in communication this time.  When we originally divided the work, I thought the tasks were clear.  However, I got an email later saying the first two group members “were confused on how you would like for us to get the research to you.”  I was really surprised.  I thought it was clear what the tasks were, but it wasn’t.  To deal with this problem, I emailed my team members to clarify their tasks and give them new due dates.  I also emailed the next person to let them know there would be a delay and to make up a plan B if needed.  Furthermore, I asked other Grad students about group writing projects they have done and asked for advice.  I actually learned some great ideas for how to use those kinds of group writing assignments in my own teaching.  

But the biggest take-away was no matter how comfortable I am with my team, I always need to check explicitly to make sure we all know what we are doing.  I also need to always be supportive and take ownership of confusions as part of a team so that it builds positive results in the future rather than negativity.  It was an excellent learning experience.

How do you think your learning this month can be applied in your professional life or how do you think it will affect your professional life? (Jennifer Warrner)

One of the keys to being successful in any industry is having knowledge of that industry. The second group paper increased our knowledge about different adult and community education programs. Adult education programs do not have to be created from scratch, and learning about various programs can give adult education professionals ideas about how to structure programs, how to market programs, and what to include in those programs to make them successful.

The importance of communication was a primary lesson our group learned this month. According to research done every year by NACE, the National Association of Colleges and Employers, communication is the number one skill employers look for in employees. Strong communication skills are key both professional and personal relationships, and working through our team miscommunication this month will help all of us to be better teammates and professionals in the future.

What I gained from this assignment

The key information I gained from this assignment was information about two unique adult education programs. Coursehorse, the website our group researched in New York City, connects adults to adult education opportunities and programs throughout the city. CourseHorse has also developed websites for Los Angeles and Chicago. I think CourseHorse is a brilliant idea! I’m sure more adults would participate in adult education if they knew what programs were available to them and had more information about those programs. Having a site like CourseHorse for Muncie might be a lofty goal, but it would be great if a similar resource made its way to Indianapolis. Perhaps a resource like that already exists for Indianapolis, and I just don’t know about it!