Online Blackboard Courses in Adult Basic Education

We are looking for someone to develop Blackboard Courseware for adult remedial education in reading, writing, and arithmetic.

## Deliverables

[url removed, login to view] requirements notice: As originally posted, this bid request does not have complete details. Should a dispute arise and this project go into arbitration "as is", the contract's vagueness might cause it to be interpreted against you, even though you were acting in good-faith. So for your protection, if you are interested in this project, please work-out and document the requirements onsite.

**Project Description and Overview**

Job Accommodations, Inc. (JAI) provides comprehensive rehabilitation engineering services to individuals with visual impairments. This includes individuals who are partially sighted as well as those who are totally blind. JAI has provided a wide range of services including job accommodation evaluations, computer technology engineering, assistive/adaptive computer technology engineering and training, and general and adaptive computer skills training for over 25 years. In 2008, JAI introduced a new Comprehensive Vocational Evaluation Service designed exclusively for individuals who have all levels of visual impairment. Company Website: [[url removed, login to view]][1].

JAI has recently launched a new initiative in an effort to increasingly meet the greatest needs of individuals with visual impairments. The current initiative is intended to help our clients whose goals and ambitions include pursuit of a college education. A large percentage of our clients who are starting or returning to complete their college education face at least two very formidable challenges.

First, because many of our clients in pursuit of higher education are young to middle-age adults who have been away from formal education for a while, and/or for various reasons many did not receive sufficient education in the basic and essential academic skills when they were last in school - i.e. reading, writing, and arithmetic (the "3-Rs) - we have found a great number need to brush up on the 3-Rs in order to succeed in college.

Secondly, nearly every course at nearly every college or university requires proficiency with the Blackboard Courseware System. Blackboard can be particularly challenging for those who have varying degrees of visual impairment. Inability to access and navigate the Blackboard system can prevent many such individuals from achieving success in college even if they are otherwise capable of successfully completing the course content itself.

This initiative aims to address these two needs simultaneously. That is to say, we will develop instructional courses in the 3-Rs - also known as Adult Basic Education (ABE) - which will be delivered via a Blackboard site. Clients will then learn to access and navigate the Blackboard interface in the process of building up their essential academic skills. For the most part, initial training and orientation to the JAI Blackboard Courses would be provided through individual onsite training sessions provided by the JAI trainers. In other words, the purpose of the orientation training will be to show the client the nuts and bolts of how to navigate and operate the Blackboard course. To further clarify, the on-site training by our trainers will not be for helping the clients with the content of the course but it will be to help them learn how to navigate and operate Blackboard site features so that the client is able to complete their lessons. This help might be on going throughout the course depending on the needs of the client. Clients would then engage in independent study in their selected 3-R courses in between the face-to-face training sessions. The targeted outcome for this initiative is clients who have gained increased proficiency and self-confidence in the 3-Rs and in their ability to interact with college courses delivered via Blackboard.

The ABE courses would be three separate studies - i.e. reading, writing, and arithmetic - and all client work would be completed via the Blackboard course system. Each course would include the instructional content, tests, submission of written assignments (e.g. essays) for at least the writing course, interaction in an online forum within the Blackboard course site, most likely a grading component and other elements as may be identified. Each course will be self- contained on Blackboard from start to finish. Each course will contain a set of lessons. Clients will not be able to move on to the next lesson until after successful completion of the current lesson. The courses will track where a client left off so that they can easily resume their lesson. Each course will track attendance. It is likely that there will need to be some option for clients to seek and receive assistance beyond that which is contained within each course online offering - i.e. additional instruction or support beyond that which is available within a Blackboard course alone. In other words, an on-line instructor will be involved for monitoring client progress as well as being available for answering questions about course material.

Although many clients who will participate in the JAI Blackboard Courses have earned a high school diploma or GED, each course will aim to provide instruction at a target level equivalent to successful GED completion in each of the course subject areas.

**Request for Contractor Applicants:**

In order to move this project forward, JAI desires to contract with a company or individual with a courseware development background who also has formal education and experience in developing Adult Basic Education via the Blackboard courseware system.

The company or individual selected for this project would be responsible for developing both, the instructional content and the Blackboard delivery system. Ideally, and so as to ensure continuity of content development and delivery across all three subject areas, we would like to contract with a single company or professional to develop all three courses.

The courses will be developed and launched one at a time. Arithmetic skills comprise the most common academic deficiency within the overall target audience for this project. The arithmetic course will be developed and launched first. Starting with one course will have two main benefits. First, it will start benefiting clients/participants as quickly as possible. Secondly, client/participant, contractor, JAI management, and JAI trainer experience with the first course offering will provide key feedback for refinement of the first course and will help guide additional course development and deployment.

The company or individual contracted for this project would be responsible for all "nuts-and-bolts" aspects of developing, assembling, and deploying the project within the JAI owned and managed Blackboard site or sites. The bid for this project will start with the submission of the cost for developing one course. That is, a Blackboard based arithmetic course. Overall project oversight would be provided by the president of JAI. Additionally, regular communication, collaboration and guidance would be available through a JAI senior evaluator and trainer with Ed. S. level education in vocational education, vocational evaluation, and adaptive computer technology in education.

JAI hopes to enter into a long-term relationship with the company or individual selected for this project. For example, depending on demand for and overall experience with the initial three course offerings, we may want to expand course offerings in other subject areas. In addition, there may be ongoing opportunities for the company or individual to remain in an "instructor" capacity with the Blackboard courses and respective client participants.

**Minimum Qualifications:**

The individual to provide the work described herein will meet the following minimal qualifications:

1. Master's degree in Education, or closely related discipline, with emphasis in adult basic education and/or courseware development.

a. If the individual's degree major is in a discipline primarily related to special education, adult basic education, or similar, then they will be expected to have substantial hands-on work experience in courseware development specifically within the Blackboard environment.

b. If the individual's degree major is in a discipline primarily related to courseware design and development, they will be expected to have substantial hands-on work experience and/or advanced knowledge in the concepts and practice of special education, adult basic education, or similar.

2. Actual work experience in one or both key areas - i.e. adult basic education and/or online courseware design and development. Depth and breadth of experience are more critical than length of such experience.

3. Ability to produce samples of current or previous work related to this project.

4. Three letters of reference from individuals with first-hand knowledge of the potential contractor's work.

5. Sufficient time available to commit to and serve the project.

**Application Process:**

All interested applicants should submit a bid for the cost for developing a Blackboard based arithmetic course along with a resume with cover letter explaining your interest, qualifications, and your visions concerning how and why you feel you could bring this project to fruition. Include the three letters of reference.

Odd Jobs

Project ID: #3542817

About the project