OLT 578 Journal Entry 3

Understanding who the learners in a course are and comprehending their needs aids in designing a course that benefits learners. Learner analysis helps to identify the characteristics of the learners and what they need from the course. This analysis should take into consideration learners’ characteristics, prior knowledge, demographics, and access to technology (Fulgencio & Asino, 2021).

The learners that are being analyzed for this course design are those that were part of the end-of-course survey. This is a dual-credit course, so this set of students is a fair sampling of the learners who will enroll in the course in the future.

The learners are high school freshmen between the ages of 14 and 16 located in the southwest area of Dallas. This is a socioeconomically depressed area of the region. The learners are an even mix of male and female with a high number of Latino students.

The learners in the course do not have a lot of prior computer knowledge. Their knowledge comes from utilizing their smartphones and computers while at school.

While the analysis of the learners shows that the students are high school freshmen between the ages of 14 and 16, the level of the course must be considered in the analysis. The purpose of dual credit programs is to give high school students the opportunity to participate in college courses to motivate them to graduate high school and continue their college classes and earn a degree (Tinberg & Nadeau, 2011, p. 705). Content and rigor should match the level of the course, but does the curriculum offer too much of a challenge for where high school freshmen are developmentally? (Tinberg & Nadeau, 2011, p. 715).

Learner Analysis Worksheet

Demographic Characteristics	Learner Details
Size of target audience	19
Are there any subgroups that may participate?	No
Age ranges	14-16
Educational/grade level, or academic program year. How long have they been out of an educational setting?	High school freshmen with no gap in time out of an educational setting.
Gender breakdown	10 female, 9 male
Cultural backgrounds	15 Latino, 2 African American, 2 Caucasian
Primary language	English
Employment status	Not employed
Socioeconomic status	Disadvantaged
Traditional/non-traditional/first-generation learners?	Dual Credit students
Geographic location(s)	Southwest Dallas County
Internet connectivity?	Limited at home. Widely available at school
Access to technology?	Limited at home. Widely available at school

References

Fulgencio, J. & Asino, T. I. (2021). Conducting a Learner Analysis. In J. K. McDonald & R. E. West (Eds.), Design for Learning: Principles, Processes, and Praxis. EdTech Books. https://edtechbooks.org/id/learner_analysis

Tinberg, Howard, and Jean-Paul Nadeau. “Contesting the Space between High School and College in the Era of Dual-Enrollment.” College Composition and Communication 62.4 (2011): 704-25. ProQuest. Web. 6 Feb. 2022.