Proposal Content Guidelines for Capstone Project

The proposal for the capstone project will consist of 10 parts given below. The Capstone Proposal needs to be in APA format 5th edition (review the APA Manual for format features). References to support the project must also be cited in APA format and included under a References section. Use a Running Head in the proposal along with the page number. Capstone Proposals tend to be between 13-16 pages long. For an example of a Capstone Report, please click here. This document is in PDF format, so you will need Acrobat Reader to view the example.

• Abstract
• Introduction
• Instructional Goal(s) and Objectives
• Rationale and Needs Assessment
• Target Audience
• Medium
• Project Components
• Instructional Technology skills demonstrated
• Concept map
• Signature block

Abstract: A 50 to 75 word abstract that discusses the main purpose of the project, its audience and educational value, medium(s) used, and its overall significance. The Abstract should be on a page of its own apart from the remaining content.

Introduction: The introduction will be a narrative description of the project including:

• A brief overview of the project's structure
• Reason(s) why the project is being developed
• Who will be using the completed project
• The medium that the project will assume (CD, Web-based, etc.)

Instructional Goal(s) and Objectives: Give the overall instructional goal of the project (e.g., this project will provide high school mathematics teachers in the school district with a centralized Web site to obtain curriculum materials, tutorials, on-line resources, and participate in discussion forums for networking and troubleshooting purposes).

Rationale and Needs Assessment: Explain how you came about identifying the problem (current state of affairs) and what you would like to see happen (desired state of affairs). Discuss how your project will help your school/institution/organization achieve this "desired state of affairs." Also, explain how the CD-ROM or Web-based project differs from another form of instruction such as a textbook or regular classroom instruction/training.

Target Audience: Identify the "main" target audience and any other populations that might benefit by using your project. Explain the target audience in detail such as age, grade level, content area, gender, ethnic background, geographic location, etc. Finally, describe the audience's current level of skill/knowledge with the topic area and how the audience will use the project to advance their skills/knowledge.

Medium: Describe the format that the project will assume (e.g., Web-based tutorial, CD tutorial, centralized Web site with templates and resources, CD tutorial with Web-based supplements). Identify all of the hardware and software you will use and explain why these hardware/software are used for the project.

Project Components: A narrative with detailed description of the project's components. A bulleted list may be used to list the subcomponents.

Example: This project will include the development of an Instructional Web site to teach _________. The Web site will include:

• Five different Internet tutorials that will explain the procedures of ________.
• A page that contains links to other Web sites to serve as resources.
• Multimedia elements such as video, animation, and sound to demonstrate processes and procedures.
• Java or other scripts to illustrate key points.
• Handouts that can be downloaded (preferable in PDF format).

Instructional Technology Skills Demonstrated: A list of the Instructional Technology skills you are demonstrating in this project (either in narrative or bullet format). These skills equate to the objectives listed in the syllabi for the Instructional Technology courses (please review these).

Example: The following Instructional Technology skills are demonstrated in this project:

• Needs assessment to identify the content needed to bring students (or learners) up to optimal skill level.
• Principles of Instructional Design to develop course materials, lesson plans, and modules.
• Working with subject matter experts to prepare task, learner, and context analyses.
• Mastery of HTML coding to develop Web pages.
• Use of scripting to develop animated sequences for the on-line tutorials.
• Compression techniques for digital video.

Concept Mapping: Include a concept map (otherwise known as a flowchart) of your intended project. This should include:

• Main Topic (or main menu) – objectives and the general purpose of project could be given here.
• Subtopics (or units) - branch out the several areas that you intend to discuss.
• Sub-subtopics (or lessons) - describe each area that follows under the subtopics.
  

Signature Block: A space for student and advisor's signatures, including the date.

Submit two hard copies of the Capstone Proposal to both Dr. Steve Yuen and Dr. Taralynn Hartsell. E-mail Proposals will only be accepted by those who are located out-of-state and cannot come to campus to hand-deliver the proposals.

NOTE: Everyone will have three weeks after the deadline date to make revisions to the proposal. If this requirement has not been met after the third week, the student will not be able to defend his/her Capstone Project that term.

Presentation Guidelines for the Capstone Defense

At the time the Capstone Project is due, a draft of the Capstone Report must also be submitted along with the Capstone Project. The following items need to be addressed in the Capstone Report:

Background and rationale of the project (include the needs assessment).
The final product and the targeted users/audience (e.g., This is an educational Web site designed for teachers to learn about technology planning at an international school).

• Goals and objectives of the project.
• Medium used.
• Project components.
• IT skills and knowledge demonstrated in completing the project.
• Lessons learned from designing and developing the project.
• How the project was tested and the feedback received from the pilot test(s).
• Strengths and weakness of the project.
• Add or change anything in the project if more time was allotted.
• Final comments concerning the capstone project.
• Concept maps of the project.

The Capstone Report follows a similar style to the proposal so please review the Format Guidelines for the Capstone Project. You will also need to complete the Capstone Portfolio with the following Capstone Title Page. The entire portfolio needs to be bounded with the following materials: Capstone Report, Capstone Presentation, printed pages of the Capstone Project, and the resume/vita.

As for the Capstone Presentation/Defense, students are allotted thirty five minutes to present the project. The format of the presentation is as follows:

The first 5 minutes should consist of an electronic presentation (e.g., PowerPoint) of the items addressed in the Capstone Report.
Students should then spend about 25 minutes demonstrating the project.
The final 5 minutes will be reserved for questions and answers.

Capstone Portfolio for Final Completion

After you have successfully defended your Capstone Project and made all of the necessary changes, you will need to turn in a copy of the Capstone Portfolio to your advisor for final approval. Once this is received (and everything is in order), your advisor will forward the recommendation for graduation to the Graduate College.

The contents of the Portfolio is the following:

• White-colored card stock for the cover page using the Capstone Title Page template. Use color print for the cover.
• Table of Contents for the 4 major areas of the portfolio (report, presentation/handout, slides of project, vita).
• Four Title Pages indicating each of the 4 areas (Capstone report, Capstone presentation/handout, Slides of project, Vita). These Title Pages will come before each section.
• Plastic sleeve (or another medium) that includes the CD-ROM of the project. Use a CD-ROM label for your project. Do not just write on the disk with a marker.
• White-colored card stock for the back cover page.

All of these materials need to be bounded using the flat plastic/ribbon binding (not the plastic ring binding). Examples can be seen in the department.

A copy of the student's Capstone Project will be kept by the department for
review by other students.

This page is maintained by Dr. Hartsell