Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) Template



Work Breakdown Structure

(WBS)

Google Classroom Implementation Project

Elisa Goins Harris

AIL 630

Dr. Benson

June 26, 2015

Work Breakdown Structure

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Project Name: Google Classroom as Student Learning Management Tool

Department: Hartselle Junior High

Focus Area: Faculty and Students

Product/Process: Google Classroom Adoption Project

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Prepared By

|Document Owner(s) |Project/Organization Role |

| |Project Manager |

| | |

| | |

Project Closure Report Version Control

|Version |Date |Author |Change Description |

|1.1 |6/24/15 | |Created document. |

|1.2 |6/28/15 | |First Revision |

| | | | |

|Work Breakdown Structure Purpose and Limitations |

|The purpose of this worksheet is to: |

|Identify the work to be done. |

|Identify the types of resources required for the work. |

|Develop estimates for each work element. |

|This worksheet does not address: |

|When the work will be completed. |

Introduction

I began with implementing the basic or necessary functions required to implement the use of Google Classroom in Hartselle Junior High. Adding too many features at the beginning would be overwhelming for most teachers and could cause them to reject this innovative tool. Teachers need to master these basic functions of Classroom before moving on to more advanced features.

The Work Breakdown Structure presented here represents all the work required to complete this project.

Outline View

1. Google Classroom Implementation

1. Project Initiation

1. Create Project Planning Team

2. Design Training Materials

3. Design Evaluation Materials

2. Training

1. Faculty Training

1. Access Google Classroom

2. Manage Classes

2. Administrator Training

3. Student Training

3. Faculty Use

1. Uploading Class Themes

2. Adding Classes

3. Uploading Documents

4. Assigning Grades

4. Student Use

1. Accessing Documents

2. Submitting Assignments

3. Using Apps

5. Administrator Use

1. Adding Additional Teachers

6. Providing Support

1. Ongoing Training

7. Project Evaluation

Hierarchical Structure

|Level |WBS Code |Element Name |

|1 |1 |Google Classroom Implementation |

|2 |1.1 |Project Initiation |

|3 |1.1.1 |Create Project Planning Team |

|3 |1.1.2 |Design Training Materials |

|3 |1.1.3 |Design Evaluation Materials |

|2 |1.2 |Training |

|3 |1.2.1 |Faculty Training |

|3 |1.2.2 |Administrator Training |

|3 |1.2.3 |Student Training |

|2 |1.3 |Faculty Use |

|3 |1.3.1 |Uploading Class Themes |

|3 |1.3.2 |Adding Classes |

|3 |1.3.3 |Uploading Documents |

|3 |1.3.4 |Assigning Grades |

|2 |1.4 |Student Use |

|3 |1.4.1 |Accessing Documents |

|3 |1.4.2 |Submitting Assignments |

|3 |1.4.3 |Using Apps |

|2 |1.5 |Administrator Use |

|3 |1.5.1 |Adding Additional Teachers |

|2 |1.6 |Providing Support |

|3 |1.6.1 |Ongoing Training |

|2 |1.7 |Project Evaluation |

Tabular View

|Level 1 |Level 2 |Level 3 |

|1 Google Classroom |1.1 Project Initiation |1.1.1 Create Project Planning Team |

|Implementation | |1.1.2 Design Training Materials |

| | |1.1.3 Design Evaluation Materials |

| |1.2 Training |1.2.1 Faculty Training |

| | |1.2.2 Administrator Training |

| | |1.2.3 Student Training |

| |1.3 Faculty Use |1.3.1 Uploading Class Themes |

| | |1.3.2 Adding Classes |

| | |1.3.3 Uploading Documents |

| | |1.3.4 Assigning Grades |

| |1.4 Student Use |1.4.1 Accessing Documents |

| | |1.4.2 Submitting Assignments |

| | |1.4.3 Using Apps |

| |1.5 Administrator Use |1.5.1 Adding Additional Teachers |

| |1.6 Providing Support |1.6.1 Ongoing Training |

| |1.7 Project Evaluation | |

Tree Structure View

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WBS Dictionary

|Level |WBS Code |Element Name |Definition |

|1 |1 |Google Classroom Implementation | |

|2 |1.1 |Project Initiation |Google Apps for Education are already in place. Choose a |

| | | |planning team, selecting the implementation schedule, secure|

| | | |training location, gather training materials, and create |

| | | |evaluation materials |

|3 |1.1.1 |Create Project Planning Team |IT Staff which includes Technology Coordinator, |

| | | |Superintendent, and IT Facilitators will implement the |

| | | |training session |

|3 |1.1.2 |Design Training Materials |Create the lesson plans (video tutorials, demonstrations) |

| | | |for faculty training |

|3 |1.1.3 |Design Evaluation Materials |Create survey for faculty to access the quality of this |

| | | |innovation, it use, concerns, and rate the effectiveness |

|2 |1.2 |Training |Training for all stakeholders on all of the basic features |

| | | |of Google Classroom |

|3 |1.2.1 |Faculty Training |Training for faculty on basic navigation, management, and |

| | | |features of Google Classroom |

|3 |1.2.2 |Administrator Training |All of the faculty training as well as training for teachers|

| | | |and administrators on how to add additional teachers to a |

| | | |class |

|3 |1.2.3 |Student Training |Training for students on how to access Google Classroom and |

| | | |how to log into their account |

|2 |1.3 |Faculty Use |Faculty use training to create each of their classes |

|3 |1.3.1 |Uploading Class Themes |Faculty will create unique class themes and upload to |

| | | |Classroom |

|3 |1.3.2 |Adding Classes |Faculty will add each of their classes to Classroom and add |

| | | |students to each class |

|3 |1.3.3 |Uploading Documents |Faculty will attach documents (announcements, syllabus, |

| | | |assignments) and uploading to appropriate classes |

|3 |1.3.4 |Assigning Grades |Faculty will assign grades to submitted student work |

|2 |1.4 |Student Use |After initial student training, students will access account|

| | | |and documents |

|3 |1.4.1 |Accessing Documents |Students will access assignment |

|3 |1.4.2 |Submitting Assignments |Students will submit the first assignment to the teacher |

|3 |1.4.3 |Using Apps |Faculty will lead students through downloading appropriate |

| | | |mobile apps for Google Classroom to their devices |

|2 |1.5 |Administrator Use |Administrators will not have their own class. They will |

| | | |have been through faculty training and understand how to |

| | | |navigate the site. They will access a certain teacher class|

| | | |in order to use |

|3 |1.5.1 |Adding Additional Teachers |Faculty members will add additional teachers |

|2 |1.6 |Providing Support |IT department will be a resource for additional support as |

| | | |the year progresses |

|3 |1.6.1 |Ongoing Training |Ongoing training will be necessary to expand the use of |

| | | |other features offered by Classroom |

|2 |1.7 |Project Evaluation |Survey of faculty about use, concerns, and effectiveness of |

| | | |Google Classroom |

Work Breakdown Structure Dictionary

Work ID |Work Name |Description |Include (Completion Criteria) |Stakeholder Group(s) |Complexity |Estimated Effort |Skill Required |Dependency | |1.1 |Project Initiation |Project planning |Creating project planning team, training materials, and evaluation materials |Faculty, Administration |Low Level |Two days |Management skills |1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.1.3 | |1.1.1 |Create Project Planning Team |Implementation team is created |Superintendent, Technology Coordinator, IT Facilitators will form the team to provide faculty training |Faculty, Adminisration |Low level |Half day |Knowledge of Google Classroom | | |1.1.2 |Design Training Materials |Selection of materials for training |Selection of tutorials, demonstrations, and other training materials for faculty training |Faculty, Administration |Low level |Preparation should take one day |Knowledge of Google Classroom | | |1.1.3 |Design Evaluation Materials |Create faculty survey |Faculty survey on usage, effectiveness, and concerns |Faculty |Low level |Preparation should take approximately two hours |Knowledge of Google Classroom |1.7 | |1.2 |Training |Training for all stakeholders on all of the basic features of Google Classroom |IT department will lead training. Each participant will have a computer and will access their Google Account |Faculty, Students, and Administrators |There is not a high level of complexity to the training in basic tools |The training should require a three hour session |Basic computer skills are required |1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.1.3 | |1.2.1 |Faculty Training |Training for faculty on basic navigation, management, and features of Google Classroom |IT department will lead training. Demonstration of all how to use the basic features of Google Classroom, how to navigate the site. IT will model how to upload themes, add classes, upload documents, assign grades, use apps, organize student work in folders |Faculty |There is not a high level of complexity to this training |Training should require a three hour session |Basic computer skills required | | |1.2.2 |Administrator Training |All of the faculty training as well as training for teachers and administrators on how to add additional teachers to a class |Adding additional teachers to a class |Administrators and Faculty |Low level complexity |Training can take place in the same three hour session held for faculty |Basic computer skills necessary | | |1.2.3 |Student Training |Training for students on how to access Google Classroom and how to log into their account. |Demonstration of how to view announcements, view assignments, and how to submit assignments. Also, how to access Classroom via mobile apps |Students |Low level of complexity |Training will take place in 3 one hour class meetings |Basic computer skills required | | |1.3 |Faculty Use |Faculty use training to create each of their classes |Faculty will set up each class in Google Classroom for the 2015-16 school year |Faculty |Low level complexity |This task can be completed in one-two hour time period |Basic computer skills and navigating a website |1.2.1,1.2.2, 1.2.3, 1.2.4 | |1.3.1 |Uploading Class Themes |Faculty will create unique class themes and upload to Classroom |Faculty will choose a class theme or individual class themes and upload for each class |Faculty |Low level complexity |Should be completed in 15 minutes |Basic skill of uploading documents to the internet | | |1.3.2 |Adding Classes |Faculty will add each of their classes to Classroom and add students to each class |Faculty will use class rolls to create classes for 2015-16 and generate student accounts within the appropriate classes |Faculty |Low level complexity |Should be completed in 30-45 minutes |Basic computer skills and keyboarding | | |1.3.3 |Uploading Documents |Faculty will attach documents (announcements, syllabus, assignments) and uploading to appropriate classes |Documents need to be prepared in word processor prior to uploading to site. It is best to create these in Google docs in order to have access from any computer in the future |Faculty |Low level complexity |Initial task will take approximately 30 minutes; however will be ongoing as the year progresses and documents are added |Computer skills and skills associated with adding attachments to documents | | |1.3.4 |Assigning Grades |Faculty will assign grades to submitted student work |This will take place once students submit the first assignment. This practice activity will take place during the first week of class. |Faculty |Low level complexity |This task should take approximately 15-20 minutes per class but will only occur after assignments have been sent to students and students submit their finished work. A start of school activity will take place the first week of classes | | | |1.4 |Student Use |After initial student training, students will access account and documents |Students will access Classroom with their usernames and passwords |Faculty and Students |Low level complexity |This should take no more than 15 minutes |Basic computer skill |1.3.1, 1.3.2, 1.3.3 | |1.4.1 |Accessing Documents |Students will access assignment |Students will access the first assignment delivered from the teacher. They will complete this assignment and save the document |Faculty and Students |Low level complexity |This will be a short assignment to give students and teachers practice using Classroom. It should take approximately 20 minutes to complete |Basic computer and keyboarding skill | | |1.4.2 |Submitting Assignments |Students will submit the first assignment to the teacher |After saving the completed assignment, students will attach the saved document and upload to the teacher |Faculty and Students |Low level complexity |This should take approximately 10 minutes |Computer skill and skills associated with browsing the computer to attach a document | | |1.4.3 |Using Apps |Faculty will lead students through downloading appropriate mobile apps for Google Classroom to their devices |Faculty will model for students how to access the appropriate app in the app store, download, and navigate through the mobile version of the site |Faculty and Students |Low level complexity |This should take approximately 20 minutes depending on download speed |Ability to download apps and use devices | | |1.5 |Administrator Use |Administrators will not have their own class. They will have been through faculty training and understand how to navigate the site. They will access a certain teacher class in order to use |Administrators will access desired classrooms as an additional teacher, and monitor that each teacher has entered each class and is using Classroom |Faculty and Administrators |Low level complexity |The process of accessing one teacher class and navigating should take approximately 15 minutes; however, this will take much longer to visit each teacher’s classes and monitor. I anticipate this use being as needed by the administrators |Basic computer skill |1.4.1 | |1.5.1 |Adding Additional Teachers |Faculty members will add additional teachers |Faculty will add consulting teachers as well as administrators as needed for each class in order to view teacher classes |Faculty and Administrators |Low level complexity |This should take approximately 5 minutes to add additional teachers |Basic computer skill | | |1.6 |Providing Support |IT department will be a resource for additional support as the year progresses |IT will provide support for teachers as well as the Google Classroom site where tech support is available. There is also a Classroom blog where teachers can make suggestions for improvements in the tool as well as look at frequently asked questions and announcements of new features that will be added |Faculty and Administrators |Low level complexity |This will be an ongoing process as faculty and administrators use Google Classroom |Basic skills unless there is technical difficulty requiring IT to solve |1.5.1 | |1.6.1 |Ongoing Training |Ongoing training will be necessary to expand the use of other features offered by Classroom |IT and Google Classroom website will offer additional training as new features are added and teachers become confident with their use of Classroom |Faculty and Administrators |Low level complexity |Ongoing |No additional skill necessary | | |1.7 |Project Evaluation |Feedback from faculty on quality of project |Survey faculty concerning effectiveness of Google Classroom, concerns, and usage |Faculty and Administrators |Low level |30 minutes |Basic understanding | | |

Glossary of Terms

WBS: Work Breakdown Structure.

Level of Effort: Level of Effort (LOE) is how much work is required to complete a task.

WBS Code: A unique identifier assigned to each element in a Work Breakdown Structure for the purpose of designating the elements hierarchical location within the WBS.

Work Package: A Work Package is a deliverable or work component at the lowest level of its WBS branch.

WBS Component: A component of a WBS which is located at any level. It can be a Work Package or a WBS Element as there's no restriction on what a WBS Component is.

WBS Element: A WBS Element is a single WBS component and its associated attributes located anywhere within a WBS. A WBS Element can contain work, or it can contain other WBS Elements or Work Packages.

Google Classroom: A free student learning management tool for school systems.

Level: The level that the task falls in the WBS.

Faculty: HJHS teachers

Administrators: HJHS Principal, Assistant Principal, and Instructional Partner

IT: Technology Coordinator, Assistant Technology Coordinator, and Instructional Technology Facilitator

Apps: Mobile Google Classroom apps

Students: HJHS 7th and 8th graders

This free WBS Template is brought to you by

WBS Reflection

The process of creating the WBS was involved analyzing all of the small components required to implement this project. It was difficulty to narrow some topics down and choosing broad categories for the major levels of work. I created several rough drafts of the organization of tasks before I chose the final levels and sublevels of work to be completed. I am glad that my project was not one that stretched over a long period of time and included several essential tasks in order for the user (teacher) to begin using with a student. There are other more advanced tasks that can be added over time; however, they are not required for the basic level of use.

I did not encounter problems creating the tree structure due to using the smart art feature in Microsoft Word. I have used this tool in the past and it is fairly easy to understand. Although it was not difficult, I found the tab view, outline view, and hierarchical structure to be repetitive. It was very helpful to have one of these, but I do not see a purpose in using all of these with the tree structure.

The dictionary was slightly challenging due to deciding between using the work breakdown structure dictionary from one template and the WBS dictionary from the other template. One template included much more detail than the other; therefore, I chose to complete both. By completing both of the templates, I had a more detailed view of the project. It would probably be helpful to have one template to follow instead of two. Some of the components of the detailed dictionary required significant analysis and thought. The level of complexity had to be considered as well as the effort or time necessary. Considering the time frame at this stage helped when completing the Gantt Chart. There were parts of the dictionary that were also repetitive. I would recommend using the more detailed dictionary template since it requires the project manager to consider more details than the simpler version.

I included all of the views and structures from both templates as well as including both dictionary templates. I was not clear as to whether we should be using one of the templates or a combination of both. I chose to use both and will revise if necessary. The work breakdown process is very useful in designing a project. It forces the project manager to have a vision of the overall task and time frame to complete the project. This is a useful tool for large projects, especially projects consisting of larger teams. My project was small in comparison to many. There are not a lot stages required to implement the basic project. There is, however, the opportunity to expand this project. It would not be a wise choice to expand the implementation of Google Classroom to include more advanced features at this time. Adding more features would likely be overwhelming to the majority of the faculty. The project will be more widely accepted if it is developed and implemented in stages, allowing faculty to achieve success with the innovative technology tool before adding more complex features.

Revised Product Assessment and Project Overview Statement

Adoption of Google Classroom at Hartselle Junior High

Product Name/Description

Google Classroom is a blended learning platform available to schools that have the Google Apps for Education domain. Google Apps for Education includes Google Drive, document, calendars, and email for those in education as well as offering other Google apps. Google Classroom serves as a learning management system at no cost, making it attractive to public K-12 school systems. The addition of Classroom, will allow teachers to access many time-saving features such as paperless assignments, organization tools such as drive folders for each student, an assignments page, and provide a means for easy communication. Our school system has transitioned to the Google Apps for Education domain which will allow for the faculty to begin using Google Classroom at the start of the 2015-2016 school year. The product assessment will focus on the change to Google Classroom at the junior high school.

Students and faculty will be issued Gmail accounts and will have access to all of the Google apps that are available to the public. Using Google Apps will create a uniform platform for our school system and provide experience with apps that students can use after leaving our school system. Google Apps for Education and their apps are free and Google offers tech support and teacher training. Google Apps are available on all devices, both Apple and Android phones and tablets as well as Apple computers and PC’s. Since Google Apps is the foundation for using Google Classroom, students and teachers have access to all apps, not just Classroom. Classroom can allow teachers to post assignments, receive uploaded assignments from students, monitor student assignments, and provide feedback on these assignments. Students can easily collaborate with these apps as well as receive class communications from teachers. Classroom can serve as a means to differentiate instruction, allow students to work at their own pace, and allow for teacher convenience and quality instruction to take place when students have a substitute teacher.

Environmental Requirements

Ely’s Conditions of Change Model can provide a method to analyze the environmental requirements of our junior high school before making this technology adoption and implementation. Ely has included eight conditions when considering the receptiveness to change (66). These eight conditions include: dissatisfaction with the status quo, knowledge and skills exist, resources are available, time is available, rewards or incentives exist for participants, participation is expected and encouraged, commitment by those involved, and leadership is evident (p.76-77).

Dissatisfaction with the Status Quo

Our school system is beginning to be dissatisfied with the status quo. The superintendent has made an attempt to improve the technology resources in our school system. He has required that wireless networking be installed in all schools and additional computer labs and mobile labs are being added to schools. Most of the junior high faculty is becoming accustomed to student use of devices in their classrooms and are in search of a method to help with organization and time saving.

Knowledge and Skills Exist and Resources are Available

Due to our failed experiment with the system wide use of Edmodo this past school year, our faculty has been introduced to a learning management system and the premise of what Google Classroom can offer. This experience has given teachers more knowledge and skills necessary for using Google Classroom. They can transfer their knowledge of Edmodo to Classroom and it should make the transition smoother than when they started with no knowledge of Edmodo last year. Our school resources have also increased since last year. Our school now has two iPad carts, one laptop cart, and each teacher has an iPad. Having these resources will assist the implementation due to the ability to check out devices for students who do not have their own. Having the Google Apps for Education in place prior to implementing Google Classroom is a great and necessary resource. This allows teachers to become familiar with Google Apps over the summer and add Classroom to these skills.

Time is Available and Rewards/Incentives Exist

Having the necessary resources available will aid in the time factor. As stated above, teachers can become familiar with Google Apps before the beginning of school and add the additional tool, Classroom, prior to the start of school. Another issue related to time, is the time it will save once teachers begin using Classroom proficiently. It should eventually be a time saver. Rewards and incentives will help promote the use of Classroom. The time saving feature is an incentive for most teachers. Another reward will be to direct summer and pre-school year professional development days, toward training teachers on Classroom. This will result in teachers not having to use as much of their personal time to learn the tool.

Participation is Expected, Commitment by Those Involved, and Leadership is Evident

Participation in this technology tool is required by our school system. To continue to encourage the use, will involve Instructional Technology Facilitators and the Director of Professional Development to visit teachers during their planning periods in order to deliver personal professional development on Classroom features. The commitment of those involved is demonstrated through training during the school day, as well as the movement to Google Apps for Education as our domain. This transition to Google Apps has demonstrated leadership in the technology implementation. This effort was coordinated by Administrators and allows teachers to see that there is support and expectations in using Classroom.

When using Ely’s eight conditions to evaluate the environment to assess the junior high faculty, we see that there is a greater chance of success than when the previous implementation was attempted. After evaluating our environment where the implementation will take place, we will use Rogers Diffusion of Innovation Model in order to evaluate the technology innovation, Google Classroom. The five components: relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trialability, and observability are analyzed below in the stakeholder product assessment.

Stakeholder Product Assessment

|Features

Functions |Relative Advantage |Compatibility |Complexity |Trialability |Observability | | |Features provided by Google Classroom |“Is it better than what we had?” |“Is there a conflict with my values, experiences or needs?” |“Is it too difficult to use or understand?” |“Can I try it out?” |“Can I see the tool in use by someone?” | |Stakeholder

Group 1

(Faculty new to Google)

|Create assignments;

Review student work;

Provide grades;

Email students and teachers;

Add other teachers to class;

Create announcements; design class theme;

Use android and iOS Classroom mobile apps; organizing student work in folders;

Export grades. |A discussion area and ability to provide grades was available in Edmodo but the other features are better than the old technology. The app is a big advantage over the Edmodo app. Edmodo had limited capability. |Classroom is compatible with values, experiences, and needs among our faculty. It can be used on PC’s as well as Apple computers, droid and Apple devices. It also is cloud based so can be accessed when working from home. |Due to prior use of Edmodo, Google Classroom is not complicated. There is also monthly blog entries and FAQ’s to offer tips. |Now that the school system has moved to a Google App for Education domain, anyone in our school system can begin using Google Classroom and try it for free. |There are a couple of teachers in the school system with experience using Google Classroom and other faculty can observe them. | |Stakeholder

Group 2

(Faculty familiar with Google)

|All of the above features plus the ability to sync other Google Apps and share other docs in drive such as calendar, sheets, slides.

|All of the above as well as the capability to share documents, calendars, sheets, and slides, rather than emailing as attachments.

Also, collaboration for group projects can occur here. |There is compatibility with faculty values and needs as well as prior experience. It is a valuable tool compatible with all devices and there is also the ability to use Classroom when offline. |Google Classroom is less complicated to use than Edmodo and it also does not have the technical difficulties many experience with Edmodo. |Those who are experienced with Classroom, can begin using it during the summer prior to trainings. Since it is a free tool, it is much more desirable than trying a tool that we have purchased and finding out that we do not like it. |Our IT facilitators and a few Google certified teachers are available for observations. | |Stakeholder

Group 3

(Students)

|Receive assignments; submit assignments; receive class announcements; receive feedback on assignments; receive grades on assignments; email teacher and other students; collaborate with classmates; discuss class assignments; use Classroom mobile app to do assignment on device;

and organize assignments into folders |The ability to share documents between other Google apps is unique to Classroom. The ability for the teacher to monitor assignments before turning in is better than Edmodo. |Parents sometimes have issues with the social media aspect of having a student account; however, administrators can block the ability to access some Google apps if deemed appropriate. |There is better compatibility among devices with Classroom. The mobile apps are much better for Google Classroom than Edmodo. |Students will not have the ability to try it out until classes have been set up by their teachers. They will begin when school starts. |Students will observer teacher demonstrations as well as observing other students. | |Parents |Student usernames and passwords will need to be given to parents in order for them to monitor |It is better than Edmodo although there is not a feature for parent accounts to monitor their child. |The only issue could be if students change their password with their parents knowledge |This is not difficult for parents to understand |Parents do not have access to try this tool |Parents can observe their children and we are hoping to offer tech nights to update parents on how to use | |Administrator |All of the Faculty features and administrators will need to be added as an additional teacher to each class by the teacher |Classroom is better than Edmodo. Neither Edmodo or Classroom allow administrators to view teacher accounts but Classroom does allow teachers to add additional teachers to a class and this is where an administrator can be added |No issues with administrators |Less complicated than Edmodo. Less glitches than Edmodo |Administrators can create their own trial class in order to practice navigating the site |Administrators can observe through being assigned to classes, what is going on in classes in their schools | |

Works Cited

Berger, D. W. (2011). The Diffusion of Innovation. CHIPS Magazine, 29(2), 42-44.

Ellsworth, J. B. (2000). Surviving Change: A Survey of Educational Change Models. Syracuse: ERIC Clearinghouse on Information & Technology.





Project Overview Statement

Google Classroom

Problem Statement

We have a small school system that has experienced a failed effort to implement Edmodo as a learning management system to manage student learning. We have recently added wireless networking to our school system which allows teachers to implement more technology in the classroom. With the implementation of wireless technologies and students bringing devices to class, it is desirable to find an appropriate technology to help teachers and students manage learning. There are some faculty that use very little technology in the classroom and this may provide a way to encourage more technology use in their classes. Once accustomed to using Classroom, teachers will discover that it can save time and create a lighter workload by students uploading assignments. Our school district has laid the foundation to add Google Classroom as a learning management system. The requirement for using Google Classroom is that the school system use Google Apps for Education as a domain. That transition has occurred and it is time to begin the next phase.

Project Goal

The goal of this project is to establish Google Classroom as the learning management system within each school. Classroom will serve as the LMS by all teachers and students in the junior high school beginning Fall 2015. Classroom will provide faculty with time saving tools to manage their classrooms at no cost to the school system. It is a user friendly program that provides tech support.

All other schools will be implementing the use of Classroom as well. The continuity of the entire school system using the same LMS promotes parent and student support of the innovation. Students can begin learning how to use the technology in the elementary school and know that their account will be the same until they graduate. There are features of Classroom that can be used offline. There are also mobile Classroom apps for both Android and iOS devices. This can allow students to work on assignments anywhere that they have their device.

Project Objectives

The objectives for successful implementation of this project will begin on August 6, 2015 and be completed by August 21, 2015. The objectives are as follows:

• Faculty will begin using Gmail as school system email;

• Students will begin using student Gmail as school email;

• Faculty will set up each class in Google Classroom accounts;

• Faculty will create classroom themes;

• Faculty will upload syllabus and announcements to each class account;

• Faculty will demonstrate how to access Classroom to students;

• Faculty will issue login information to students;

• Faculty will monitor student assignments and submissions;

• Faculty will deliver grades using Classroom;

• Faculty will demonstrate to students how to access the mobile apps for Classroom;

• Faculty will create student folders to organize student assignments;

• Faculty will monitor the Classroom blog announcements for added features;

• Students will retrieve assignments provided by teacher;

• Students will upload (turn in) assignments using Google Classroom;

• Parents will log in to their child’s account (using their child’s password) in order to monitor;

• Administrators will join each teacher’s class as a teacher.

Success Criteria

Successful completion of this project involves 100% of the junior high faculty using Classroom by August 21, 2015 with students. Faculty will continue with training on added features of Classroom throughout the year and will demonstrate continued use throughout the entire school year. Faculty will access their class folders in May in order to provide student work samples required by principals for gifted services monitoring. As use increases and teachers become more comfortable using Classroom, more features will be added by faculty.

Assumptions

The following assumptions have been made for this project:

• Our school system will not choose a different LMS;

• Parents will not object to student access to Google drive and its features;

• Google sites remain available and function properly;

• Wireless network is not overloaded.

Risks and Obstacles

There are some risks and obstacles that we need to consider. The biggest obstacle involves how to deal with the students who do not have internet in their homes. A recent survey in the junior high concluded that twenty two of our four hundred eighty students, did not have internet in their home. Another obstacle is the student who does not have a device. Some teachers have a few devices for student use in their classrooms but there are occasions when students forget to bring their device or do not have one at all. There is also a risk involved in students bringing devices to school. Parents want the school to be responsible when damage or loss of devices occur when they are necessary to do assignments in school. This liability has to be dealt with regularly; however, students do need to learn more responsibility.

Gantt Chart

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Smartsheet Reflection

Smartsheet subscription will expire on July 26, 2015

I began using Smartsheet by watching the YouTube video. I encountered a problem right from the start. When I chose my template in Smartsheet, I choose the project sheet rather than the Basic Project Plan with Gantt. On my second attempt, I once again chose the wrong sheet and created my Gantt chart using Gantt Project with Hard Deadline. I was able to complete the project breakdown using the Gantt Project with Hard Deadline and my chart appeared to look similar to those in the examples. When attempting to use the project sheet I could not create levels, even after watching several videos. After talking with a classmate, I discovered that I had the wrong template and tried again.

Even though my second attempt was once again with the wrong template, it appears to have worked unless I discover during our peer reviews that something is incorrect. It was after reading all instructions for the project for about the tenth time and after saving my Gantt Charts and adding screen shots of the charts to my WBS document, that I realized I had used the wrong template again. I made an attempt to start over a third time but decided that I seem to have a similar looking chart produced as those found in the class examples. I will recreate this document if I discover from peer reviews that there are missing items.

Smartsheet seems like a very useful tool in creating a checklist and timeline for completing a project. I tend to make lists when working on any project primarily because I enjoy marking things off of my list and seeing progress. It would be rewarding to see the Gantt Chart as progress is made toward the completion of a project.

There were many videos and suggestions in the Smartsheet sight; however, it remained difficult to use some of the features. Through trial and error, I was able to display levels using the indent tab but occasionally had problems getting a higher level added. I was able to manipulate the rows but deleting rows, adding rows, and copy and pasting formatting in order to get the results I desired.

I assume the purpose of the Gantt Chart is to show the progress of the project through completion and provide the timeline. I do not know if it would be worth the time it takes to create the chart, to create this document for a small project. Projects with many components and levels would take even longer to enter the data; however, it would be useful as a project manager, to observe so easily, where the progress should be for each component. Especially if there are many more people involved in implementing the project.

I was also confused at first about where to attach my documents to the Gantt Chart. There is the attachment option for a row and later I discovered the attachment section at the bottom of the page. I am not quite certain about the use of the attachment at the row unless it is to attach supporting documents necessary to complete a particular level. If this is the purpose, I can see this being a huge advantage to a project manager. If plans for construction or special instructions apply to a task, those could be uploaded at the appropriate task. This can help tremendously with organization as well as sharing necessary information with others implementing the project that may be at a different location (city, state, etc.).

I feel better about using Smartsheet after overcoming my errors in choosing the wrong templates. I hope that I find, I have completed this task correctly. I do see the value in using Smartsheet to manage a project; however, I feel it would be most useful for larger projects.

Peer Review Reflection

After completing the peer reviews, I find the use of smartsheet much more appealing. The discussion feature was so helpful. After I overcame the obstacles of using the correct template and realizing what actions resulted in creating levels I was able to maneuver the site much more efficiently. This could be a valuable tool for a large project. The discussion feature was so easy to use. I was very unsure as I was sharing my Gantt Chart with others if I was doing it correctly.

It was so helpful to finally see what my classmates had created. Surprisingly, my chart did not look a lot different than my classmates even though I had chosen a different template. I was very relieved to see this. I was able to move back and forth between my classmates’ sheets and my own with ease.

I hope that I was able to provide helpful feedback for those in my class. The comments I received were extremely helpful. It was reassuring when Ericka liked that I had broken my training down by stakeholder. One of the most helpful comments I received came early in the discussion when Lori noticed that I had mistakenly left part of the template instructions in my WBS introduction. I still cannot believe that I overlooked this. I remember clearly thinking that I would go back and delete that when I did my final edit and then I never went back to the beginning. After correcting that huge mistake, I was able to attach my corrected WBS document to the Gantt Chart.

Tammy also provided feedback that I found very useful. I had neglected to include a project initiation stage in my work breakdown. She pointed out that I had included support at the end of the project but needed to include anything before the initial trainings and some form of evaluation. Dr. Benson’s feedback was related to Tammy’s. She was more explicit when asking when the training materials would be developed as well as evaluation materials. As a result of Dr. Benson and Tammy’s comments, I revised my entire WBS structure and dictionary to include a Project Initiation component where the project planning team was identified as well as the creation of training and evaluation materials. I also added an evaluation component in the form of a faculty survey at the end of the project to determine the project quality.

It was very helpful to receive the valuable feedback and in some cases confirmation of the structure of my project. I had expected this to be a long process of evaluating each project and discussing but for the most part all suggestions were made by the afternoon. I checked back in to the discussion periodically until Sunday afternoon and decided that I was ready to make my corrections and create this final reflection. There was one member of our shared group that I did not see a project shared with me, nor did I receive any comments from that classmate. I also neglected to comment on the discussion board regarding Beth’s project until Sunday because we had corresponded on the phone about what she needed to revise. Once I realized I had not made this comment on the discussion board, I visited the site again. This was a valuable part of this project and I will keep smartsheet in my resources if I am in need of working on a project with group members who are not nearby.

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