Running head: Building Relationships with School Site Staff 1

CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY

MONTEREY BAY

Building Relationships with School Site Staff

CAPSTONE REPORT

Submitted in partial satisfaction of requirements of the degree of

MASTER OF SCIENCE in

Instructional Science and Technology

Fatima Rodriguez

December 12, 2017

Capstone Approvals: (At least one advisor and capstone instructor should approve)

___________________________ ___________________________ _____________

Advisor Name Signature Date

___________________________ ___________________________ _____________

Capstone Instructor Name Signature Date
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 2

Table of Contents
Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 3
Introduction/Background .................................................................................................... 4
Problem Description ....................................................................................................... 5
Target Audience .............................................................................................................. 6
Literature Review............................................................................................................ 7
Goals ............................................................................................................................... 9
Objectives ..................................................................................................................... 10
Test Instruments ............................................................................................................ 12
Media Components ....................................................................................................... 13
Methods/Procedures .......................................................................................................... 14
Instructional Strategies and Activities .......................................................................... 15
Challenges ..................................................................................................................... 17
Resource ........................................................................................................................ 18
Technical skills ............................................................................................................. 18
Evaluation/Testing plan .................................................................................................... 20
Formative Evaluation .................................................................................................... 20
Formative Evaluation Feedback ................................................................................... 22
Formative Evaluation Pre/Post Test Results ................................................................. 22
Summative Evaluation .................................................................................................. 23
Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 26
References ......................................................................................................................... 28
Appendix A: Pre/Post Test................................................................................................ 29
Appendix B: Post-Questionnaire ...................................................................................... 31
Appendix C: Worksheets to Support Learners ................................................................. 34
My Weekly Goals Worksheet ....................................................................................... 34
Self-Evaluation Worksheet ........................................................................................... 35
Relationship-Building Self Evaluation Worksheet ....................................................... 36
Appendix D: Content from module Building Relationships with School Site Staff ..... 38
Appendix E: Slides from PowerPoint Presentation .......................................................... 39
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 3

Abstract
Monterey County United for Literacy AmeriCorps is an educational service that is
hosted by the Monterey County Office of Education. AmeriCorps provides one-on-one
tutoring to struggling readers throughout Monterey County. AmeriCorps members are
expected to become part of their school sites educational system. Members serve full
days at their assigned site, therefore having relationships with school staff is important.
The ability to build relationships with school site staff is an important component. It
allows members to have the support system that will help them have a less intimidating
experience. For this training, members will learn skills that encourage them to build
relationships with school site staff.
Why is relationship building important? Building relationships is not easy for all
members. There are members that are outgoing and can easily start conversations, but
there are also members who get nervous to start conversations with others. Therefore, it is
important that members learn skills that will enable them to build relationships. This
allows them to have access to resources and ask for assistance without hesitation.
Currently AmeriCorps members go through a series of trainings to prepare them
for their yearlong service at a school site in Monterey County. The training developed for
this project titled Building Relationships with School Site Staff will be included to
teach members the importance and skills that they need to build relationships with staff at
their school site. This training will help members to engage and pursue relationships with
staff. The goal is that by the end of the training members will understand the value of
having strong relationships at their school site.
This training will be instructor-led and have an eLearning interactive module that
shows members important skills they should have to build relationships at work. These
skills include developing people skills, identifying relationship needs, scheduling time to
build relationships, appreciate others, be positive, manage boundaries, avoid gossip, and
listening actively. Also, they will have access to deliverables that they can take with them
to their school site. These deliverables include a My Weekly Goals, Self-Evaluation, and
Building-Relationships Self Evaluation worksheet. These deliverables will encourage
them to set goals for themselves, evaluate their progress, and assess how they are
performing overall. For the My Weekly Goals and Self-Evaluation worksheets they will
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 4

be completing a week after the training. The Building-Relationships Self Evaluation

worksheet will be completed two to three months after the training.

Introduction/Background
The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) helps improve
lives through service. The CNCS invests in various non-profits such as AmeriCorps,
Senior Corps, and the Social Innovation Fund among others. AmeriCorps is one of the
programs that plays a major role in supporting schools across the United States.
According to the CNCS, in order for all students to succeed, the education system must
provide the academic support and encouragement at-risk children need to thrive (2017).
The AmeriCorps program along with Senior Corps serve nearly 12,000 schools
throughout the United States. Strategies used by the programs to help students include
tutoring, mentoring, and teacher support.
The AmeriCorps program partners with Monterey County United for Literacy
hosted by the Monterey County Office of Education. The AmeriCorps program is also
overseen by the California Volunteers and is sponsored by the Corporation for National
and Community Service. AmeriCorps partners with school districts throughout the
Monterey County to provide full time reading tutors to various elementary schools.
AmeriCorps National Service members serve as literacy tutors at these elementary
schools. Every year AmeriCorps National Service Members are placed at these schools to
provide struggling readers one-on-one tutoring services during the school day. Members
provide struggling readers in kindergarten through 4th grade the support needed to get
them up to grade level. Members are required to serve from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, and are
expected to become a part of their sites educational team. Throughout the day members
go into their assigned classrooms, and provide 30 minutes of tutoring time to students on
a one-on-one basis. Members are also required to serve their school sites after-school
program. For the after-school program members can tutor small groups of children.
Members are assigned to their school site per the area in which they live. The
program tries to provide more than one tutor to each school. There are instances when
four to two members are placed at one school site. However, there are instances when
only one member is at a school site. AmeriCorps members who are placed alone at a
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 5

school site are the ones who tend to struggle to build relationships and therefore end their
service year. Members need to have the support from staff at their school site so that they
can become part of their schools educational system.
A one-hour training will be developed for AmeriCorps members to teach them
skills that will help in building relationships with staff at their school site as well as the
importance of building relationships.

Problem Description

The problem/gap is that AmeriCorps members are lacking the skills necessary to
build relationships with staff at their school site. This causes members to have a difficult
service year and early service year termination. The program also experiences low
retention rates due to this. Members should be able to have skills that will help them
foster relationships with staff at their site. It is necessary that members have skills and
understand the importance of building relationships with school site staff. It is important
that this gap is fixed, for if members do not build relationships they will not have the
support from their school site staff. This causes members to feel left out, which affects
their performance as tutors. This performance gap is caused by both skills and attitudes of
the members. As mentioned previously members are expected to become a part of their
sites educational team. However, this is a hard to accomplish for some of the members.
Even though the program provides tutors on-going training and support throughout the
service year, there also needs to be that support at the school site. The AmeriCorps
program coordinator has asked for a one-hour training to be developed that will help
members learn the skills that are needed for members to be able to build relationships
with school site staff. By members having support at their site they are more likely to
enjoy their experience, and build long term professional relationships and mentorships.
By the end of the training it is expected that members will learn the skills necessary such
as listening actively, positivity, and managing boundaries to become confident in
building relationships.
To determine that this was a need, a meeting with the AmeriCorps program
coordinator of Monterey County was set. Upon meeting with the program coordinator, it
was determined that one of the major needs that the program was having was helping
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 6

AmeriCorps members build relationships with school site staff. The program coordinator
is the only person who has access to all AmeriCorps members, she was able to determine
that something had to be done in order to help members with this. Currently AmeriCorps
does not offer a training to its members on building relationships. This training will be
the first and not only will it benefit the members but also the Monterey County United for
Literacy AmeriCorps Program.

Target Audience

AmeriCorps members serving the term year of 2017-2018 are the audience for
this project. AmeriCorps members come from different educational backgrounds. These
include a General Education Development (GED), high school, bachelor, and Masters
degree. The age range for AmeriCorps members is from 18-60 years young. Some of the
members are returning members from past year terms, so these members are aware of the
different training that goes on throughout the year. Throughout the year members go
through different series of trainings that help them learn new skills. Some of these skills
include training members on best practices to tutor students, when it comes to reading,
writing, and pronunciation of words. Other trainings include those such as
cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), Mental Health, and professional development
trainings. This training will be included as a part of the training program. As previously
mentioned, all AmeriCorps members come from different educational backgrounds, and
not all members have experience working in the education field. Some of the members
have good social skills, but there are other members who need help in this area. All
members that are recruited by the AmeriCorps program must have the motivation to be in
the program, and have goals set for themselves. Some members look to get the
experience needed working in the educational system to advance professionally. This
learner analysis was completed by meeting with the program coordinator. The
coordinator provided the information necessary such as age, background, and education.
This instructional product will help members build relationships with their sites staff.
They will be required to do some activities during the training that they can apply when
they are at their sites. Activities for the training will take place as follows: Members will
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 7

take part of a discussion that requires them to share ideas/thoughts on why building
relationships at their school site is important, and what are best practices to build
relationships. There will also be an instructor-led portion covering information on the
importance of building relationships. They will also complete an online module that
covers relationship building skills. These activities will help them interact with staff and
help them build relationships that can benefit them greatly when they are in service and at
the end of the service year.
This training will be delivered at the Monterey County Office of Education
(MCOE) located in Salinas, CA. MCOE has several training rooms available throughout
the year that fit groups of thirty or more people. The training will take place at MCOE;
this location is already in use by AmeriCorps for training courses. Training rooms at
MCOE have the necessary equipment to accommodate the members and the training
materials. There are enough tables and chairs for the members. There is also a table at the
front of the room to place materials. There is also a white board, and an overhead
projector. Members will also have access to computers, which they will need to have
access to during the training.

Literature Review

According to Scott-Spaulding, forming relationships allows for successful

integration into the infrastructure of an organization. In this case, it would be the
members school educational system (2013). Building relationships allows for
partnerships to be formed; partnerships are built by trust. AmeriCorps members need to
build relationships in order to build partnerships that will foster guidance, support, and
trust. This will help them feel a part of their schools education system. Scott-Spaulding
also mentions encouraging networks. This encourages the exchange of ideas and offers
how to study and apply best practices at work. Relationship building allows for success to
occur in the work environment.
Along with building relationships, it is also wanted that members have a positive
experience throughout their service year. When members are having a hard time at their
school site they tend to terminate their service year early on, therefore causing the
program to have low retention rates. Studer and Schnubein present several factors
affecting volunteers. These factors were broken down into three clusters. Cluster one
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 8

considers the organizational attitudes towards volunteers. Cluster two determines crucial
factors affecting volunteers. Cluster three considers the structural feature that limit the
action space of volunteers and coordination of volunteers. Studer and Schnubein found
that there were positive effects when it came to volunteer satisfaction. They determined
this by investigating efficacy of volunteer management practices. Cnaan and Cascio
(1998) studied this and administered a bivariate analysis and regression analysis that
tested several effects of recruiting practices, training, supervision, rewards and
orientation. The positive effects that were found showed that training, on-going support,
and activities that contribute to personal benefits has a positive impact on volunteers.
Cuskelly et al. tested the effects of volunteer management practices on retention of
volunteers (2006). A Volunteer Management Inventory was developed to measure
planning, recruitment, training and support. It was found that recognition activities,
training, and volunteer development have significant positive effects on retention of
volunteers. It is important that along with building relationships at their school site,
AmeriCorps members have a positive experience throughout their service year. These
studies researched several factors having to do with volunteer management practices and
positive effects that impact volunteers.
The theory that will be used to support the relationship building component is the
Uncertainty Reduction Theory (URT) by Berger and Calabrese 1975. This theory was
first introduced as a series of axioms (axioms are truths that do not require much proof)
that describe relationships between uncertainty and other communication factors. This
theory was developed to describe interrelationships between seven important factors in
interactions between individuals. These factors include: verbal communication, nonverbal
expressiveness, information-seeking behavior, intimacy, reciprocity, similarity, and liking
(1975). To reduce uncertainty one must communicate with others. The reduction of
uncertainty follows a pattern of developmental stages which are the entry, personal, and
exit stage. Table 1 shows these stages in order. These stages go over what happens during
interactions of each stage. Berger makes a distinction between three ways that people
seek information about others, and these three ways are described as strategies. The first
is passive strategies; this consists of an individual being observed in environments where
another person may be self-monitoring for example a classroom. The second active
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 9

strategies; this is when one asks questions to others about people who one is interested in.
Because of this one sets up a situation where we can observe those people. The third
interactive strategies; is when direct communication with the person occurs. This theory
will help understand the process that people go through when building relationships with
others.
Moreover, training for AmeriCorps will be both instructor-led and have an e-
learning portion included. According to Training Today, Instructor-led training remains
one of the most popular training techniques (2016). Instructor-led training allows the
training to be personal, and allows for all learners to get the same information at the same
time. If a large body of material will be presented an instructor-led training is an efficient
method for large or small groups. There are several ways that interactive methods can be
included in instructor-led trainings. One of these ways that this is possible is by including
quizzes. One can administer brief quizzes based on the information that has been
presented. Letting learners know that there will be a quiz, trainees will remain engaged.
Small group discussions are also an interactive method. Giving trainees situations to
discuss in small groups allows discussion between one another, and allows
knowledgeable trainees to share experiences with newer trainees. Instructor-led trainings
give participants the opportunity to interact, provide feedback, and make the training
enjoyable. As mentioned previously an e-learning portion will be included into the
training. E-learning can be accessible online by the learners, and these courses allows
learners to take part of hands-on, interactive activities. Trainings that are web-based can
be linked to software that allows the progress of the trainees trackable. Having both an
instructor-led training and e-learning component to the training for AmeriCorps will
make the training personal, conversational and will allow them to take part of interactive
activities.

Solution/Description
Goals

1. AmeriCorps members will learn relationship building skills (identifying

relationship needs, schedule time, positivity, appreciation) that will help them
build relationships with school site staff.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 10

2. AmeriCorps members will be more confident and feel part of their school site.
3. AmeriCorps members will learn the value of building strong relationships by
taking part in a training that will teach them relationships building skills as well as
the importance of building relationships.

Objectives

1. Given a presentation on the importance of building relationships with school site

staff, AmeriCorps members will become aware of the importance of building
relationships with school site staff, to encourage the fostering of relationships.
2. Given an online module on Building Relationships AmeriCorps members will be
able to complete a practice activity, followed by a quiz that allows members to
identify scenarios on the skills presented. AmeriCorps members will be able to
apply these skills and initiate a conversation with staff at their school site.
3. Given a presentation on setting goals, AmeriCorps members will be provided with
a Setting Goals, Self-Evaluation, and Relationship-building Self Evaluation
worksheets to set measureable goals and evaluate/rate their progress and growth
on a weekly basis.
As mentioned previously AmeriCorps of Monterey County United for Literacy has
the need for its members to build relationships with their site staff. Building relationships
is not easy for everyone, therefore a training will be delivered to AmeriCorps members
that teaches them skills that they can use while they are at their site for them to feel part
of their schools educational system. These skills include identifying relationship needs,
scheduling time to meet staff, appreciating others, and staying positive. By the end of this
training it is hoped that AmeriCorps members will be more confident when it comes to
building relationships with staff at their site. As well as, willing to pursue relationships at
their site early in their service year.
The theory used to analyze this topic is the Uncertainty Reductions Theory by
Charles R. Berger, and Richard J. Calabrese. Berger and Calabreses Uncertainty
Reductions Theory proposes to explain the relationship between two individuals who do
not know one another. Per this theory two individuals who meet for the first time go
through stages to reduce levels of uncertainty between one another and then come close
to one another. This theory states the stages individuals go through in order to reduce
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 11

levels of uncertainty. These levels include the Entry Stage, Personal Stage, and the Exit
Stage. Table 1 below is an ideal model for these stages from Heath & Bryant.
Table 1. The table shows three stages that make up the Uncertainty Reductions Theory.
Mark L. Knapp is a professor whose work was based on nonverbal

communication research and evolving interactions, and developed the Knapps

Relationship Model. This model explains how relationships grow, last, and how they end.
This model shows the coming together and coming apart stages of a relationship.
However, for this project the coming together stages will be analyzed and applied.
Table 2 below shows how Knapps Relationship Model.
Table 2. This table shows Knapps Relationship Model, and shows the coming together
and coming apart stages of a relationship.

According to Knapp, the steps shown on Table 2 under coming together and
coming apart, can be skipped depending on the progression or deterioration of a
relationship. This project is intended to help AmeriCorps members build relationships
with staff therefore the five stages of Knapps model under the coming together section
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 12

will be used. The five stages are put in order from bottom to top; the first stage of this
section is the initiation stage; this stage is about making favorable impressions. The
second stage is experimentation; in this stage information shared is analyzed. The third is
the intensifying stage; in this stage relationships are strengthened through frequent
conversations. The fourth stage is integration; in this stage individuals will start making
their relationship closer. The last stage is bonding; in this stage relationships are
recognized and partnerships are built that can result beneficial.
The instructional design model I will be using to guide me while developing this
training for AmeriCorps is the ADDIE Model. ADDIE is the acronym for Analysis,
Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation.

Table 3. ADDIE Model

Test Instruments

Mastery of objectives will be determined as follows. Since there will be a

presentation on the importance of building relationships, members will take part in a
discussion in small groups to determine their perspectives and what they think are skills
one should have to build relationships. This will help learners share thoughts on what
they will be learning. After the groups are finished discussing they will share out with the
program coordinator. Learners will also be completing a module that teaches them
relationships building skills such as appreciation of others, and identifying relationship
needs among others. When learners begin the module, they will be given an overview of
what they will be completing on the module. After this they will be introduced to the
relationships building skills. These skills include the following: developing people skills,
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 13

identifying relationship needs, scheduling time to build relationships, appreciate others,

be positive, manage boundaries, avoid gossip, and listening actively.
In this module learners will be able to complete a practice section which will
determine their retention of information taught. It is important that learners understand
these skills, for these are skills that they can use at their site to help them facilitate the
process of building relationships with their school site staff. This practice will be a drag
and drop activity. If the learners get any of the answers incorrect they will be given
immediate feedback, and can retry. After the practice, they will be able to complete a
quiz which will show an example of each of the skills in a school setting environment. I
want the module to be relatable to the environment that they are a part of daily. Making
the scenarios a school setting will make this relatable to the learners. Members must
determine which of these scenarios goes with the skills or which scenario is missing a
component of the skill. For the practice section of the module learners will get
immediate feedback. They will have the opportunity to re-try for any that they get
incorrect. The quiz will also give them the opportunity to re-try if needed. A
questionnaire will also be completed by the learners at the end of the training to
determine the effectiveness of the training. The questionnaire is the appropriate testing of
the effectiveness of the training, for it will show feedback from the learners which will be
used to improve this training.
For this project the pre-test will be taking place before the training begins. The
program has given permission for this to happen during the training. This will allow for
the observer to test the skills, knowledge and attitude of the learners in person. This
method is appropriate based on the objectives for this project. Which include fostering of
relationships, present skills/ideas of building relationship, and rate learners growth.

Media Components

Based on the learner analysis and objectives it has been determined that this
training will be both an instructor-led training and have an interactive Captivate Module.
According to Ruby Spencer the Director of the Global Curriculum Development at Pulse
Learning Blending instructor-led training with eLearning provides a best of both
worlds training synergy (eLearning Industry, 2016). A blended learning solution
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 14

provides flexibility to learners and can help reduce costs that are associated with
instructor led training. Media that will be used are PowerPoint, and print materials. The
instructor-led portion of the training will include an introduction, ice-breaker were
learners can interact and share ideas, and a PowerPoint presentation which will cover the
importance of building relationships and setting goals section. The media that will be
used for the module is Adobe Captivate. Adobe Captivate is a tool that can be used to
create responsive eLearning. Captivate will be used to introduce the relationship building
skills, and will allow learners to practice and assess their knowledge of what they have
learned. Google Docs will also be used for this project. Monterey County United for
literacy AmeriCorps has access to America Learns which is a web page were members
access daily or bi-weekly to input service hours. On America Learns members have
access to a google document which contains all student/member worksheets that
members can have access to and print when needed. On this Google Doc the program
will make available the deliverables that will be created for the training. These include
the My Weekly Goals, Self-Evaluation, and Building-Relationships Self Evaluation.
These worksheets were developed on Microsoft Word. These worksheets will be part of
the training, which their purpose is to facilitate and help members set goals for
themselves when it comes to building relationships with their school site staff.
The reason why this delivery system was chosen was because it makes the
training personal to the learners. As mentioned previously they will have the opportunity
to share ideas amongst one another, and share experiences thus far in their service year
when it comes to building relationships with their school site staff. The module will
provide learning activities that will teach them skills, needed to build good relationships.
They will also have the opportunity to look at scenarios and determine which are good
interactions and which are not when it comes to the skills learned.

Methods/Procedures

This training will be in-person at the Monterey County Office of Education in

Salinas CA, it is important that members have access to computers and Wi-Fi to complete
the module. Members will have access to the eLearning module and will be guided
through the process during this part of the training. The subject matter experts will be
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 15

present through the training which will be the program coordinator who delivers most of
the trainings to the members and me. Current AmeriCorps members will take part of the
initial delivery of this training. AmeriCorps members will try out the product created on
captivate as well as take part of the other materials being developed for the training. After
the members have gone through the training, feedback on the training will be taken into
consideration to make any necessary changes to the product. It is important that members
find this training useful, therefore feedback is important.
For this training to be successful it is crucial that all resources are available per
the needs of the training. For instance, finding a room with access to computers for the
eLearning section of the training. It is also important to gather feedback from members
pertaining to the overall effectiveness of the training. If there needs to be changes that
will benefit the training they will be considered if any. Members will also have the
opportunity to evaluate the eLearning module created on Captivate.

Instructional Strategies and Activities

The major activities for this training will include a PowerPoint presentation, and
module that will present to members relationship building skills. The skills that will be
presented were adopted form Mind Tools. Mind Tools is a career and management
learning solution which provides resources to increase productivity, improve
management, and leaderships skills to many organizations (2017). As mentioned
previously Uncertainty Reduction Theory is a theory that explains the process of building
relationships. Using the Mind Tools building relationships skills will help facilitate the
process of this for AmeriCorps members. The training will consist of the following
activities which also show the duration of each activity. The following is an outline of the
training; it also contains an explanation of what each activity will consist of.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 16

Training Outline

Activity Duration
Time
Before beginning with the introduction participants will be given a pre- 5 minutes
test with questions pertaining to the training.
Introduction
During the introduction of the training the training facilitator will be
going over the objectives of the training and what activities will be
taking place.
Ice breaker 10 minutes
During the ice breaker learners will be getting into small groups and
discuss and answer the following questions?
1. Why is it important to build relationships with staff at their
school site?
2. What are the skills that one should have to build relationships?
Once groups have finished with the discussions they will share out with
the rest of the learners.
PowerPoint presentation Importance of Building Relationships 10 minutes
During this presentation learners will be made aware of why it is
important to build relationships. As well as, the positive outcomes that
come along with relationships building at their school site. This
presentation will be used to encourage the fostering of relationships.
e-Learning Module 15-20
On the learning module, the learners will take part in the following minutes
activities:
1. Lecture: Relationships building skills from Mind Tools. Learners
will be learning the following skills and their definition and how
they can apply these:
Developing People Skills
Identify Your Relationship Needs
Schedule Time to Build Relationships
Appreciate Others
Be Positive
Manage Your Boundaries
Avoid Gossiping
Listen Actively
2. Practice: During this practice learners will be matching the skill
to its definition. (Drag and Drop Activity)
3. Quiz: Learners will be taking a quiz that will test their
knowledge on what they learned. Learners will be shown
different scenarios per the above listed skills. They must
determine which scenario matches the skill based on the
scenario.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 17

Setting Goals
After learners have finished the module they will be given a
presentation on setting goals and they will be presented with worksheets 10 minutes
that will help facilitate the relationship building process with school site
staff. These worksheets consist of the following:
1. My Weekly Goals
This worksheet will enable members to set measurable
goals for themselves.
2. Self-Evaluation
This self-evaluation will help members evaluate their
progress and answer questions such as the following:
1. How many staff they have gotten to know this week?
2. What are the names of the teachers that I have gotten
to know?
3. What is something interesting I found out about
them?
4. Did I accomplish my goal/s for this week?
3. Relationship-Building Self Evaluation
This worksheet will help AmeriCorps members evaluate
their relationship-building progress two to three months
after the training was delivered.
These worksheets will be brought by AmeriCorps members to the
weekly team meetings. During this time, members will be sharing their
results with other members.
Conclusion 5 minutes
At the end of the training members will be completing a post-
questionnaire. This questionnaire will help determine the effectiveness
of the training. A post-test will also be given.

Challenges

There are challenges that may arise while developing and designing this training.
One of the challenges is making sure that the module being created for the training
includes all components that will help members learn the skills that will help them build
relationships. Making sure the expected goals and outcomes are reached is important.
Also, remembering Adobe Captivate and its features to create a successful eLearning
module can be quite challenging. To overcome these challenges, I must make sure I ask
for immediate assistance from a professor or someone who is knowledgeable that can
assist me. In the MIST program, I have come to learn that I should not be afraid to ask for
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 18

help when it is needed. For this project to be successful any doubts or help should be
discussed with a professor, advisor early on.

Resource
Monterey County United for Literacy AmeriCorps would like this training to be
delivered in mid-November. Mid-November is still early on in the service year for
AmeriCorps members, this is the time when members are still getting to know their
school site staff. Therefore, they will be able to take what they learn in the training and
implement it soon after. As previously mentioned Captivate will be used to create the
eLearning section of the training. Images needed for the module will be obtained in
Captivate or online sites with free image libraries. The Subject Matter Experts (SMEs)
will also provide the audio for the online module. Paper deliverables will be produced on
Microsoft Word and will be accessible through America Learns, which is Monterey
County United for Literacies website. At this moment, there are no costs for the training,
this may change as the project develops.

Technical skills

It is important to have the technical skills required to successfully create the

eLearning module on Captivate. The module will consist of a lesson, practice, and
assessment. These components need to be implemented successfully. To complete this
there are resources from previous courses that contain information needed to complete a
module on Captivate. If additional help is needed to complete this section of the project
SMEs on Captivate will be asked for additional support. When it comes to learners
completing the module it is important that they have basic computer skills to complete
the module. It will be taken into consideration the different technical skills that members
have to create a product that can be manageable to meet all learners technological skills.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 19

Timeline/Progress Report
Building Relationships with School Site Staff Training Timeline
Week Date Deliverable for Training Start Date Expected
Due Date
1 August 21-29 Develop training Outline August 21 August 29
2 August 30- Training Storyboard for August 30 September
September 5 Captivate 5
3 September 6- Captivate eLearning Module September 6 October 3
12
4 September 13- Training deliverables September 13 October
19 (continue working on module) 10
5 September 20- Continue working on module
26 and deliverables
6 September 27- Complete Captivate Module October 3
October 3
7 October 4-10 Complete training deliverables October
10
8 October 11-17 Training presentation outline & October 11 October
PowerPoint 24
9 October 17-24 Training presentation outline & October
PowerPoint 24
10 October 24-31 Meet with client October
31
11 November 1-7 Revise training November
(make changes if needed) 7
12 November 8- Deliver Training at Monterey November
15 County Office of Education 15 or 29
13 November 16- Analyze data collected December
23 5
14 November 24- Complete deliverables December
December 1 5
15 December 1-5 Complete Deliverables December
5
16 December 6- Submit all Deliverables December
12 12

The outline above shows the progression of when each major deliverable for the
training was completed. Dates varied depending on changes needed to be made.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 20

Evaluation/Testing plan
Formative Evaluation

Before moving towards completing the training, it was important to conduct a

formative evaluation to determine if any changes needed to be made to the module on
building relationships. Because the presentation portion of the project was still being
developed only the module was part of this formative evaluation. To conduct this
evaluation on the module three individuals completed the module online. These
individuals came from different educational backgrounds. They were also given a
pre/post-test containing questions having to do with the content in the module. It was
important for this formative evaluation to be completed, to determine the effectiveness of
content. It is crucial that when this material is delivered to AmeriCorps, learners master
the skills that they will be presented and that they can apply them at their school site. To
make sure that the course is accurate frequent communication between the client was
helpful. The client is the one that wanted members helped in this area therefore, showing
the client the progress of the project is useful as they provide feedback on what is missing
or if what is put together so far is great. Making sure that the content of the training
aligns with the objectives is important. Therefore, content is being put together to target
the objectives and meet eachs expectations.
The module at the moment of the formative evaluation included each of the
relationship building skills mentioned previously as well as the practice drag and drop
activity and a quiz at the end. The tables below show some content included in the
module.
Table 4. This slide shows the relationship building skills presented in the module.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 21

Table 5. The slide below shows the practice drag and drop activity on the module.

Table 6. The table below shows a quiz question included in the module.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 22

Formative Evaluation Feedback

The feedback gathered from the three learners was given via email. Changes that
needed to be made included the following:
1. Closed Captioning needed to be included.
2. The quiz section of the module needed to be fixed. As Table 6 shows the text for
the question and title of the slide were overlapping. There were a couple of other
slides that needed to be fixed with the same problem.
3. The back button did not take the learner to the previous page, instead it went to
the next page.
Based on the feedback given by learners there were a few changes that needed to be
made to the module. This feedback was important and all the changes necessary were
made.

Formative Evaluation Pre/Post Test Results

As previously mentioned a pre/post-test was given to the learners to be taken

before and after going through the module. The questions included on the pre/post-test
included the following shown on Table 7 below.
Table 7.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 23

Table 8. The table below shows results from the pre/post-test.

Results of Pre and Post-test

Question 5
Question 4
Question 3
Question 2
Question 1

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5

Number of Learners who Answered Correctly Each Question

Post-Test Pre-Test

Summative Evaluation

The summative evaluation is made up of content included in both the presentation

and the module for the training. To conduct this evaluation five learners were gathered.
A pre-test was given to learners before the training began that tested them on content that
would be on both the PowerPoint presentation and the module. The same questions were
asked for both the pre/post-test. In total, there were nine questions, the pre/post-test can
be found on the appendix section. A post-questionnaire was also given at the end of the
training which consisted of statements and questions that would help determine the
effectiveness of the training overall. The pre/post-test and post-questionnaire were
completed in person and were paper based. In addition, to further test the effectiveness of
the training as well as provide progress of AmeriCorps members when building
relationships, supporting materials were included. The materials included were
worksheets that will be used after the training and two to three months after the training is
delivered. For instance, both the My Weekly Goals and Self-Evaluation worksheets will
be given to members at the end of the training. The Relationship-Building Self
Evaluation will be given two to three months after the training delivery. These
worksheets are titled as follows: My Weekly Goals, Self-Evaluation, and Relationship
Building Self-Evaluation. These worksheets can be found on the Appendix section.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 24

To determine the effectiveness of the training a paired t-test was conducted. The
test would determine if there was a significant change in number of correct answers after
the training was completed on the pre-test and post-test. This test was completed using
Microsoft Excel. To complete the paired t-test the questions for the pre/post-test were
calculated out of nine points. Meaning each question was worth one point, since there
were nine questions the amount of total correct answers was nine out of nine. The
following charts show results for the paired t-test.
Table 9. The tables below show the descriptive statistic results for the pre-test and post-
test.

Table 10. Results for Paired T-test two sample

BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 25

Table 11. The following table shows the difference of results on the pre-test and post-test.

Difference in Results: Post/Pre-test

Pre-test Post-test

Table 12. The table below shows the number of correct answers for the pre-test and post-
test. Also included is the percent of increase from the pre-test to post-test.

Pre-Test Post-Test Percentage (%)

of Increase
Question 1 3 5 0.67
Question 2 3 5 0.67
Question 3 5 5 0.00
Question 4 2 5 1.50
Question 5 3 4 0.33
Question 6 2 5 1.50
Question 7 2 5 1.50
Question 8 5 5 0.00
Question 9 2 3 0.50

Based on the results of the paired t-test, it can be concluded that there was a
difference in results from the pre-test and post-test. We reject the null hypothesis that
there is no difference between the pre-test and post-test. When looking at the feedback
from the five learners on the post-questionnaire the following was concluded:
Question 1: Three out of five learners (60%), agreed that the module was easy to
navigate, while two out of five (40%) strongly agreed.
Question 2: All learners agreed that the visuals were appropriate for the lecture.
Question 3: All learners agreed that the audio of the module was clear and
understandable.
Question 4: Four out of five learners (80%) agree that the length of the module was
appropriate, while one out of five (20 %) was undecided if the length was appropriate.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 26

Question 5: Three out of five learners (60%) agree that the skills presented provided
enough information while two out of five (40%) were undecided.
Question 6: All learners agree that the skills presented in the module were
understandable.
Question 7: All learners agree that the practice activity in the module allowed them to
define each of the skills presented.
Question 8: All learners agree that the quiz adequately tested their understanding of the
skills presented.
Question 9: All learners responded Yes when asked if the instructor-led portion of the
training provided enough information to understand the importance of building
relationships with staff at their school site.
Question 10: Two out of five learners (40%) strongly agreed that they can apply what
was learned during the presentation at their school site when building relationships, while
three out of five agree (60%).
Question 11: One out of five learners (20%) strongly agreed that they can apply the
skills learned in the module at their school site, while four out of five agree (80%).

Conclusion

AmeriCorps Monterey County United for Literacy had a need to help members
build relationships with staff at their school site. This need was brought up by the
program coordinator who had access to all AmeriCorps members throughout their service
year. To complete this capstone several face-to-face meetings and emails were exchanged
between the coordinator and the designer/developer. Along with meeting with the
coordinator different sources were studied that would help fill this gap. It was determined
that the best solution to fill this gap was to develop a training for AmeriCorps. This
training would be an hour long. According to the program coordinator, it was important
that members become aware of the importance of building relationships with school site
staff, and a training would be the best option. Gallup a performance-management
consulting company mentions that people who have a support system at work are more
likely to be engaged in their work (Gallup, 2016). Not only would this benefit
AmeriCorps members and help them have a support system at their school site, it would
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 27

also provide their students with the best tutoring services. This capstone project was
developed and designed using the skills learned in the Masters of Instructional Science
and Technology program (MIST) at California State University Monterey Bay (CSUMB).
This training was both instructor-led with an online module included. Having both
approaches for the training would allow members to interact with one another as well as
give the opportunity to complete a task on their own.
The instructor-led portion of the training included a presentation that covered
several different materials including theory, that helped support the importance of
building relationships. A summative evaluation was completed during the development
of the training to determine any necessary changes. After the training was completed and
implemented, data collected from the pre-test and post-test determined that the module
was effective. The post-questionnaire also helped determine that the training was
effective. A paired t-test was used to determine the effectiveness of the training by
comparing the results from both pre/post-tests. Both the pre-test and post-test contained
questions and statements from the instructor-led portion and module.
AmeriCorps Monterey County United for Literacy provides members with on-
going training throughout their service year to provide support, skills, and professional
development. The Building Relationships with School Site Staff training will be part of
AmeriCorps training. This training will be delivered to AmeriCorps members at the
beginning of their service year.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 28

References
Culatta, R. (2013). Instructional Design Models. Innovative Learning.
Communication Theory. (2010). Knapps Relationship Model. Available from:
http://communicationtheory.org/knapps-relationship-model/

CULLAJ, S. (2015). BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH PARENTS. Educational

Horizons, 93(3), 22-23. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/24635473

Gallup. (2016). Building Strong Relationships in the Workplace. Gallup Inc.

Grossman, J., & Furano, K. (1999). Making the Most of Volunteers. Law and
Contemporary Problems, 62(4), 199-218. doi:10.2307/1192273

Heath, R.L. & Bryant, J. (2000). Human Communication Theory and Research. Concept,
Context and Challenges. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

MindTools. (2017). Building great work relationships: making work enjoyable and
productive. [Online]. Available from:
https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/good-relationships.htm
Scott-Spaulding, M. (2013). Partnering for success: advice on building collaborative
work relationships. Health Facilities Management, 26 (5).
http://go.galegroup.com.library2.csumb.edu:2048/ps/
Spencer, R. (2016). 5 ways to maximize instructor-led training. eLearning Industry.
Studer, S., & Von Schnurbein, G. (2013). Organizational Factors Affecting Volunteers: A
Literature Review on Volunteer Coordination. Voluntas: International Journal of
Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 24(2), 403-440. Retrieved from
http://www.jstor.org/stable/42629816

Training Today. (2016). The most effective training techniques.

Turner, M. (2008). Administrative Science Quarterly, 53(1), 192-193. Retrieved from
http://www.jstor.org/stable/20109960

University of Twente. (2000). Theories Micro Level: Uncertainty reduction theory.

Available from: https://www.utwente.nl/en/bms/communication-theories/sorted-
by-level/micro
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 29

Appendix A: Pre/Post Test

Pre/Post Test
The following questions will be used to test your knowledge on material covered on the
Building Relationships with School Site Staff training. Please answer all the questions
to the best of your knowledge. Thank You.

1. Identifying relationship needs is important When building relationships. Which of

the following statements is an example of a need?
a) I already know everything that the students that I am working with need, so I do
not need to ask their teacher.
b) I am missing a couple of materials/supplies to support my tutoring, I need to
speak with Mr. Joe, the school janitor, to get me these materials/supplies.

2. Scheduling time to build relationships is important. Which of the following can be

an outcome of doing so?
a) It can help build the foundation for good relationships.
b) Too much time is wasted throughout the day to do this.
c) Both A and B

3. Which of the following can affect relationships, can cause distrust, animosity, and
prevent effective communication?
a) Managing boundaries
b) Listening actively
c) Gossiping

4. Paying attention, showing that you are listening, responding in an appropriate

manner, and giving your opinion respectfully can help with which of the
following?
a) Listening actively
b) Managing boundaries
c) Being positive

5. Ana seems to be spending too much of her time at her school site talking to staff,
although it is good that she is talking to staff, she must remember the reason why
she is at her site. She must not let these relationships and interactions come in the
way of her tutoring time. Which of the following skills must Ana work on?
a) Appreciate others
b) Identify relationship needs
c) Manage her boundaries

6. Building relationships with staff at your school site is important. Which of the
following are benefits of building relationships?
a) Mentorships
b) Accessibility
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 30

c) Future job opportunities

d) All of the above
7. This skill not only keeps you staying happy and optimistic, it also creates value in
ones life. Which of the following is this statement stating?
a) Accepting others
b) Guidance
c) Being positive

8. Which of the following does a good relationship consist of?

a) Mutual respect
b) Gossiping
c) Unaccepting of diversity

9. Setting goals can help with which of the following?

a) Guidance
b) Motivators
c) Show progress
d) All of the above
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 31

Appendix B: Post-Questionnaire

Post-Questionnaire: Building Relationships with School Site Staff

Your responses to this questionnaire are anonymous and confidential. Please answer each
question to the best of your knowledge. This questionnaire will be used to determine the
effectiveness of the training on building relationships with staff at your school site. Your
responses will also help with making improvements to the module you have completed.
Thank You.

1. The module titled, Building Relationships with School Site Staff was easy to
navigate.
a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree

2. The visuals of this module are appropriate for this lecture.

a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree

3. The Audio was clear and understandable.

a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree

4. The length of the module was appropriate.

a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree

5. The skills presented in the module provided enough information.

a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 32

6. The skills presented in the module were understandable.

a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree

7. The practice activity on the module allowed me to define each of the skills.
a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree

8. The quiz adequately tested my understanding of each of skills presented.

a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree

9. Did the instructor-led portion of the training provide enough information for you
to understand the importance of building relationships with staff at your school
site?
a) Yes
b) Somewhat
c) No

10. I can apply what I learned during the presentation at my school site when building
relationships with staff.
a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree

11. I can apply the skills that I learned on the Building Relationships with School
Site Staff module at my school site when building relationships with staff.
a) Strongly Agree
b) Agree
c) Undecided
d) Disagree
e) Strongly Disagree
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 33

12. What did you like about this module? Please provide your response below.

13. What would you like to see in future trainings like this one? Please provide
your response below.

14. Do you have additional suggestions/comments about the training on

"Building Relationships with School Site Staff"? If so, use the space below to
add your suggestions/comments.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 34

Appendix C: Worksheets to Support Learners

My Weekly Goals Worksheet
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 35

Self-Evaluation Worksheet
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 36

Relationship-Building Self Evaluation Worksheet

BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 37
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 38

Appendix D: Content from the module Building Relationships with School Site Staff
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOL SITE STAFF 39

Appendix E: Slides from PowerPoint Presentation