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Philosophy of ITCareer Goals

About Me

Hello, and welcome to my electronic portfolio.  My name is Elizabeth Bailey, and this project culminates my experience in the Masters in Instructional Technology (MIT) program at the University of North Carolina – Wilmington (UNCW).

Let me begin by explaining how I got here.  After obtaining my Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education at Abilene Christian University in West Texas, I began my post-student life in Austin.  I did not go into the teaching field at the time and instead enjoyed close to three years of Texas political and association work, being that I was in the state’s capital.  After working at the Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Republican Party of Texas, and the Texas House of Representatives, I found myself at the Texas Association of REALTORS (TAR).  In my position as Membership Coordinator at TAR, I earned technical experience such as using Microsoft Access and an Access-based membership management system.  I also expanded my skills of brainstorming ways to educate the local boards on the use of the management system, as well as actually conducting the training.

After working at TAR for a year, I was invited to interview for a Briefing Coordinator position at the IBM Tivoli Visit Center and I was offered the job.  As the Tivoli software brand became more assimilated into IBM’s Software Group, the Tivoli Visit Center morphed into the IBM Software Executive Briefing Center (SW EBC) in Austin.  I worked as a Briefing Coordinator with the SW EBC for three years where I learned to interact with the sales, product and executive teams, as well as to craft briefings which facilitated often-multi-million dollar deals. 

Unfortunately, in the fall of 2003, my position with the SW EBC was eliminated and I was forced to search for a new job.  I decided that I wanted to create a marriage between my Bachelor degree in education and the business, training, and technical experience I had received during my time at the Texas Association of REALTORS and at IBM.  

As I was making plans to seek an advanced degree in order to further my interests in business, education, and technology, I was hired as a contractor to work in the IBM Software Executive Briefing Center in Austin, again as the center’s Briefing Coordinator.  I was afforded the opportunity to continue my job remotely from North Carolina while seeking my Masters degree at UNCW.  I was able to continue my work experience while being a student, using my experiences at work for projects at school. 

Since beginning the MIT program, my own job as a contractor with IBM’s Software Executive Briefing Program has grown.  I no longer am a briefing coordinator for a single center; rather, I am part of the worldwide briefing operations team and have been afforded the opportunity to create and deliver training for IBM’s briefing centers around the world.  The UNCW MIT program’s business and industry track truly has combined the three elements I wanted so fervently to further in myself:  business, training/education, and technology. 

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Philosophy of Instructional Technology

As an instructional designer/technologist, I subscribe to constructivism theories of learning and instructional design. I also am influenced by Schank, Berman, and MacPherson’s “learning by doing” (1999) instructional design model.  I believe that each learner has unique needs because of his or her unique background and that we as human beings learn through our experiences.  I also believe in Dr. Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences (1983) which suggests that there are eight intelligences which go beyond what society traditionally views as IQ-based intelligence.

As an instructional designer, I strive to incorporate real-world activities into the instruction wherever possible.  I believe that hands-on activities are important in students’ mastery of learning objectives and that interaction with other students fosters learning.  I also believe it is important to encourage students to take responsibility for their own learning, as well as to assist the learner with connecting new material with his or her prior knowledge. 

The principles of instructional design and the steps in the ADDIE instructional design model (analyze, design, develop, implement, evaluate) are what I believe are the foundations of instructional systems design.  It is imperative to incorporate all five steps of the ADDIE model in order to create sound and thorough instruction.

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Career Goals

After graduating with a Master of Science in Instructional Technology in December of 2007, I plan to seek a position in business and industry which not only allows me to employ the enormous breadth of knowledge and skills I have gained while in the MIT program, but also to continue to learn and grow in the instructional technology field.  My interest strongly lies in developing computer-based and online instruction and exploring ways of delivering training to an audience which spans the globe.

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