Lecture3: 2. First story - Apprenticeship simulation

Summary

The video script discusses the development of a 'simulated apprenticeship' method for teaching modeling techniques in various courses, including business and enterprise modeling. Initially, students struggled to translate textual descriptions into formal models, as real-world scenarios involve gathering information through interaction and observation. To address this, the team created an artificial environment simulating a company, but faced challenges in implementation. They pivoted to recording interviews with stakeholders and presenting information through various formats like fake websites and documents. This approach was tested and positively received, leading to the creation of a method for designing business cases for different courses, enhancing students' ability to learn modeling through a simulated apprenticeship experience.

Takeaways

• 📚 The project aimed to create a method for teaching modeling, particularly conceptual modeling, in a simulated environment due to the impracticality of textual descriptions in real-world scenarios.
• 🔍 The initial challenge was that students could not effectively learn to model from incomplete textual descriptions, which are common in practice but not fully representative of real business environments.
• 💡 The idea was to simulate an organization within a computer environment, allowing students to explore and learn how a company operates, thus bridging the gap between theory and practice.
• 🎥 The team decided to record interviews with stakeholders to provide a more dynamic and interactive way of presenting information, instead of relying solely on text.
• 🌐 They created a fake website for the company, including details about its departments, employees, and economic situation, to make the simulated environment more realistic.
• 📊 Information that was previously in the textual description was transformed into different forms such as interviews, links to real sites, and management meeting notes.
• 📈 The method was tested in a first-year course on 'ID in Urbanization', which included teaching various modeling methods like goal modeling and process modeling.
• 📝 The transition from a text-based to a simulated apprenticeship approach was positively received by students and teachers, as evaluated through surveys and interviews.
• 🔄 The project evolved from a generic simulation of a company to a specific simulation of an apprenticeship situation, which was more effective for teaching modeling courses.
• 📋 A method for designing business cases for different courses was developed, allowing for a mix of artificial and real-world elements to be used in teaching scenarios.

Q & A

What is the simulated apprenticeship method?

The simulated apprenticeship method is a teaching approach used in several courses, particularly for modeling, where students learn to extract information and create models based on real-world scenarios instead of just textual descriptions.

Why was the traditional text-based approach insufficient for teaching modeling?

The traditional text-based approach was insufficient because it did not replicate real-world conditions where students would need to interact with people, documents, and observe work processes to gather information for modeling.

What was the main problem identified with the text-based teaching method?

The main problem was that students were not learning how to gather information themselves, as in practice, they would need to find information from various sources like people, documents, and observations, rather than relying on complete textual descriptions.

How did the team attempt to solve the problem of large class sizes and lack of practical experience?

The team started a project to create an artificial environment in the computer that would represent a company, allowing students to explore and learn how it works, simulating the process of gathering information for modeling.

What was the initial idea for the simulated environment?

The initial idea was to create an environment where students could go around and learn how a company works, simulating an organization to provide a more realistic learning experience.

Who was the team member that suggested recording interviews with stakeholders?

Stuart Kovansky was the team member who suggested recording interviews with stakeholders as part of the simulated apprenticeship method.

How did the team transform the textual business case into a more interactive format?

The team transformed the textual business case into interviews, linked real sites, created a fake company website, and used Excel sheets to present information in different forms, removing the need for the original text.

What was the feedback from students and teachers after implementing the simulated apprenticeship method?

The feedback was positive, with students and teachers appreciating the new way of presenting the business case, which included the simulated apprenticeship method.

How does the simulated apprenticeship method differ from the initial simulation of a company?

The simulated apprenticeship method focuses on simulating the process of learning through observation and practice, rather than just simulating a company. It involves students in the process of gathering information and creating models as if they were apprentices working with a master.

What was the final outcome of the project and how was it implemented in courses?

The final outcome was the creation of a method for designing business cases that could be presented in various interactive forms. This method was then implemented in several courses, providing a more effective way to teach modeling and information gathering skills.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Simulated Apprenticeship in Teaching Modeling

The paragraph introduces a teaching method known as simulated apprenticeship, utilized in various dsv courses focusing on modeling concepts such as business process and enterprise modeling. The method was initially developed over 10 years ago to address the challenge of teaching conceptual modeling in a database course. Traditionally, students were given textual descriptions to create conceptual models, but this approach was found lacking as it did not reflect real-world scenarios where complete textual descriptions are rarely available. Instead, real-world modeling requires gathering information through interaction and observation. The paragraph discusses the evolution of the teaching method to bridge this gap, including the use of Information Delivery (ID) and the creation of an artificial environment to simulate a company for students to explore and learn.

05:01

🎥 Creating a Simulated Learning Environment

This section details the process of creating a simulated learning environment to replicate the experience of gathering information in a real company. The team, led by the speaker, initially aimed to develop a computer-based simulation of an organization but faced challenges in finding a suitable environment. A breakthrough came when a team member, Stuart Kovansky, suggested recording interviews with stakeholders to simulate real interactions. The team adapted a course text description, creating interview scripts for various roles and recording the dialogues. They also utilized real websites and created fake sites to present company information, moving away from relying solely on text. The information was restructured into various forms such as interviews, links, and management meeting notes, ultimately removing the need for the original text.

10:02

🌐 Simulated Apprenticeship: A New Approach to Learning

The paragraph explains the shift from simulating a company to simulating an apprenticeship situation, where students learn by observing and assisting a 'master' in real-world tasks. The team created a project site with all the necessary information presented in various forms, including interviews, links, and documents. This approach was tested in a first-year course on ID in urbanization, which introduced students to different modeling methods. The method was evaluated positively by both students and teachers, leading to its adoption in other courses. The paragraph also outlines the method for designing business cases for different purposes, which can be entirely artificial or based on a real organization with some modifications.

15:04

🔄 Iterative Development of the Simulated Apprenticeship Method

The final paragraph reflects on the iterative process of developing and refining the simulated apprenticeship method. It started with an explicit problem and the initial attempt to design a generic simulation of a company. However, this approach was abandoned due to cost and complexity, leading to the creation of a specific artifact for a particular course. The team then evolved the approach to design a method that could be applied to various courses, focusing on how to present information and create project sites. The method was tested and validated through its implementation in several courses, marking a successful shift from a generic simulation to a practical, adaptable teaching method.

Keywords

💡Simulated Apprenticeship

Simulated Apprenticeship refers to a teaching method that mimics the real-world experience of learning a trade or skill under the guidance of a master. In the context of the video, it is used to teach students how to model business processes by simulating the environment and interactions one would encounter in a real company. The video describes how this method was developed to overcome the limitations of traditional text-based teaching, where students learn the formal aspects of modeling but lack the practical experience of gathering information.

💡Conceptual Modeling

Conceptual Modeling is the process of creating a simplified representation of aspects of the real world for the purpose of understanding and communication. In the video, it is mentioned as a part of the database course curriculum where students learn to build models based on textual descriptions of business cases. The challenge highlighted is the translation of text into formal models, which is a crucial skill in database design and systems analysis.

💡Enterprise Modeling

Enterprise Modeling is a discipline that involves creating models of an organization's structure, processes, and systems to support decision-making and business strategy. The video discusses the use of simulated apprenticeship in teaching enterprise modeling, emphasizing the importance of understanding how to gather and interpret information from various sources within an organization.

💡Textual Description

Textual Description in this context refers to the written case studies or scenarios provided to students to analyze and model. The video points out the limitations of relying solely on textual descriptions for teaching modeling, as they do not fully represent the dynamic and interactive nature of real-world information gathering.

💡Information Gathering

Information Gathering is the process of collecting data and insights necessary for decision-making and problem-solving. The video discusses the importance of teaching students how to gather information in the absence of complete textual descriptions, which is a key aspect of the simulated apprenticeship method.

💡ID (Instructional Design)

Instructional Design (ID) refers to the systematic process of creating instructional experiences to improve learning and performance. In the video, ID is mentioned as a tool used to design the simulated apprenticeship method, aiming to create an effective learning environment that simulates real-world scenarios.

💡Stakeholder Interviews

Stakeholder Interviews are a form of primary research where stakeholders are questioned to gather their perspectives and requirements. In the video, the creation of interview scripts for different stakeholders is discussed as a way to simulate the real-world process of gathering information for modeling purposes.

💡Fake Sites

Fake Sites, as used in the video, refer to the simulated web presence of a company created for educational purposes. These sites are designed to provide students with a realistic source of information that they would otherwise find on a real company's website, contributing to the immersive experience of the simulated apprenticeship.

💡Management Decisions

Management Decisions are the strategic choices made by a company's management team. The video describes how management decisions are presented to students through meeting notes and other documents to simulate the decision-making process within an organization, which is a crucial part of understanding the business context for modeling.

💡Project Site

A Project Site in this context is a centralized online location where all the resources, assignments, and information related to a course project are organized and made accessible to students. The video explains how a project site was created to host the various forms of information and assignments for the simulated apprenticeship, facilitating a structured learning experience.

💡Artifact

In the context of instructional design, an Artifact refers to a tangible product or deliverable that is used as part of the learning process. The video describes the evolution from designing a generic simulation artifact to creating a specific artifact for a particular course, and eventually developing a method for designing artifacts that can be applied to multiple courses.

Highlights

Introduction of the simulated apprenticeship method for teaching modeling in DSV courses.

The challenge of teaching conceptual modeling based on text descriptions in large classes.

The need for students to learn how to gather information from real-world scenarios, not just text.

The initial project idea to create a simulated company environment for students to explore.

The discovery of an existing case study used for company analysis and its adaptation for the project.

Stuart Kovansky's proposal to book a studio for creating interviews with stakeholders.

The decision to test the artifact in a first-year course for Beethoven on ID in urbanization.

The creation of interview scripts based on stakeholder issues mentioned in the course text.

The transformation of text descriptions into various forms such as interviews, links, and fake websites.

The development of a fake company website to present economic and departmental information.

The creation of Excel sheets and management meeting notes to simulate real company documents.

The successful testing of the simulated apprenticeship method in a real course setting.

Positive feedback from students and teachers on the new method of presenting business cases.

The evolution from simulating a company to simulating an apprenticeship situation for learning.

The development of a method for designing business cases with different levels of realism.

The introduction of the simulated apprenticeship method in several courses across the department.

The process of iterating from a general simulation idea to a specific course artifact and back to a general method.

The final outcome of the project and its impact on teaching modeling courses.

Transcripts

now we will start with the first story

it is a story of creating a method of

teaching and it is called a simulated

apprenticeship

and it is used in several dsv courses

where we teach some kind of

modeling it can be a concept of modeling

business process modeling Enterprise

modeling

and so on it is also partially used in

this course

so of course is not about modeling

the project was started more than 10

years ago

I joined this department and in 2012 and

I started teaching

the database course which had

a part of conceptual modeling

of reality so that we can build database

based on their model

and what I discovered is that

uh the only partially

teach our students to model

the

basic activities for

learning modeling was the project

the project described a business case it

was a text one two three pages and

students who are supposed to

model creative conceptual model based on

this text and this approach is used not

only in the database course database

course it is used in other courses as

well

so what happens when we use txtual

description it means that students can

translate text

into formal model in some form of

language

the main problem is that

this text doesn't exist

in practice

in practice you have people who are

working you have some documents

you can talk to people you can observe

how they work and so on and you need to

get the information yourself

so nobody will present you a good text

with description some description can

exist but they are not full so you need

to

find information

so what we taught

in many courses is

a formal part of language syntax

semantic and how you translate

text into model but how to get the

information we couldn't teach because

you need to practice it and

it's not possible in large classes

so the problem

existed in a number of courses in the

department it also exists in early

University it's a general problem

if you can't send your students to

practice to get information then they

don't learn how to get this information

so we started a project how to

uh

solve this problem

in the situation when we have large

classes and

naturally we were looking into

possibility of using ID for this purpose

and

the main idea in the beginning was to

create an artificial environment in

the computer which will represent a

company and students can go around and

learn how the company work

and it means we simulate an organization

and

we found one case where it was used

and it was used in

connection to the book

about

using

how to analyze company and they actually

created an environment where you can go

look at the company look

at different

[Music]

people and so on so this was the first

idea and I was trying to

find a good environment that will allow

me to create quickly simulate an

organization so the students and go and

investigated

I could find it so I was stuck we had a

group of a team working on this

project and I was

in the role of leaders so I was defining

what to do and I was stuck in it

until

uh

one of the member of our team came to us

and said it was Stuart kovansky he said

now I booked a

facility a studio where we can

create interviews with stakeholders

and from the beginning we already have

chosen a course

to test our artifact it was the first

year course for Beethoven it is called

ID in urbanization it has

it introduces several modeling methods

for the students and including

a goal modeling and process modeling and

so on

so we wanted to test our artifact in

this case and still suggested that we

record interviews

this course use the project is text

description of the case

and

in this description there were

some problems

um

mentioned by different stakeholders

CIO

and

other stakeholders so we took this part

of the text and created

scripts for interviews so

for each stakeholder roles we have two

person one person was interviewer and

the other person was a stakeholder

once's equations

so the

um

recorded this interviews and

removed some text from the description

and

so so as part of the text went to

interviews they were alive

but part was still there and the spot

concerned economic situation of the

company concern which systems they use

which systems they should use and so on

so we needed a way to remove this text

and present it in some other way and we

did it in different forms

here we have cell phones

[Music]

they may

links to

um software tools and vendors

which

were used or were supposed to used

the faked economic situation of the

company like

it could be presented on a site that

exists in Sweden and

can you can find any company and get

some information for example for the

last three years

so we face this information and and so

on and then the decisions from

management of the company in the

business case what they want to do and

we just create a

meetings notes from the management

meetings where they made decision and

put it as a document

so we could

move information from the text

to different

forms partly interviews it was recorded

and its video partly it was

linked to real site we created

a fake site for the companies so the

company was defined

in its website including which

departments they have and who works in

these departments they created Excel

sheets that they use and so on so in the

end we could remove

um

the whole text

and

we created a site I will show you an

example of this essential site where we

put all the information

in different forms

connected and put assignments on it

so it was all

uh created before the course start so in

1910 years ago we could test this

artifact

in reality we run the course

and then

the

evaluated it

um based on interviews with the students

how they like the presentation of the

case and we made

survey these teachers and this survey

included

teachers who were

teaching this course before and after we

introduce a new wave of presenting

business case and the result we are

positive

so we decided that this is a right way

to

[Music]

um

teacher

to teach

[Music]

modeling courses how to model and we

call it simulated apprenticeship because

the idea was that in apprenticeship

situation you have a master and you have

several

students that

help the master and learn at the same

time mostly is going

to a company and makes interview finds

documents and assigns some small parts

of work

to

students and they do it and they also

look how the master ask question which

documents he

select and how he analyze them

and

this is what we have got in our case

so they can

be present at interviews by Masters and

they were given links they were given

which type of information they need and

they were given assignments to create

different kind of models so it was not

simulating of a company as we

as I had at least sought in the

beginning it was simulating of an

apprenticeship situation

so after

we successfully finished our

test we created uh a method how to

design

a business case for different purposes

it describes

um

what kind of information can be

presented as interviews regular

interviews as links as

fake sites and so on it included also

variance the whole case can be totally

artificial so we create everything

artificially or it can have a prototype

a real organization we talk with real

people but

we change a bit their names and change

the name of the company and create

faked

websites for the company so it's

almost real but because you have a

prototype so we created a method and

based on this method we introduced

apprenticeship simulation in

several courses and some of you

maybe already

had this kind of courses were going to

have it in in in in the future

so let's go back to

our ideal picture

about the process and have a look

how this project went

so this started in this

explicate problem

and we explicated because they were in

our heads and we try to design artifacts

as simulation of company or organization

as it gets stuck here

and instead of Designing generic

artifacts it could be instantiated for a

specific course you went to

a case chosen for demonstration and

somehow created and artifact which was

only what is course

and we evaluated it

so this was abandoned

so we went from program

to defining very specific artifacts with

this course

and then Evolution whether

[Music]

it solves a problem or not after it was

evaluated being went back to designing

an artifact and design a completely

different artifact not simulation of

recognization but simulation of

apprenticeship it includes it's a method

in fact it's a method how to create a

project site

how to choose

to present different kind of information

so as you can see

they didn't follow this part

uh actually we abandoned it here because

we were stuck couldn't find

a way which is not very expensive to

simulate an organization we went to

great

um

specific artifact for specific course

and then went back to design the method

that we will work for

other courses and we tested

[Music]

this method for several courses

so this is

almost all about the first story

I will break here and I will just show

you a bit more on

this artifact in the specific size that

we have