Feasibility Study

Prepared by
OMDE606 9040
Group 2 Committee
Jack Boeve
Joanne Deitsch
Joyce Reitor
Katie Skillrud
Mariam Mukhni
Mary Anne Llorin

A Mythical High School

(AMHS)
1234 School Lane
Anytown, CO 12345

Agenda
Group 2 Committee Feasibility Study

Introduction
Course Related
Course Overview
Course Details

Cost Related
Cost Ingredients
Cost Analysis

Media Justification
Conclusions

Introduction

Introduction [1 of 2]
Background

A Mythical High School (AMHS) convened a

committee to analyze offering an online Advanced
Placement Chemistry course
Per U.S. Census Bureau in 2013 (File & Ryan,
2014)
84% have a computer
74% have Internet access
73% have high speed connection

Can an online offering break even or be profitable

with a year of development, a year of
maintenance and six years of presentation?

Introduction [2 of 2]
Committee Members

Narrative
Jack Boeve
Mariam Mukhni
Cost Analysis
Mary Anne Llorin
Katie Skillrud
PowerPoint Presentation
Joanne Deitsch
Joyce Reitor

Course
Overview

Course Overview [1 of 4]
Target Study Population

Students with disabilities

Homeschooled students
Students who experience bullying
Future offerings: Districts that do not offer such
programs

Course Overview[2 of 4]
Course Basics

Course development: Year One

Course delivery: Years Two through Year Seven
Course maintenance: Year Four concurrent with
original curriculum presentation
12 week course with eight units offered three
semesters per year

Course Overview [3 of 4]
Learning Management System (LMS)

Blackboard offers a reduced fee for small

institutions consisting of fewer than 1,000
students (Trotter, 2008)
Cost share of $1,000 per annum

Course Overview [4 of 4]
Learning Management System (LMS) Benefits

User friendly
Collaborative and student-centered
One location for course documents and
communications
Electronic assignment submission, tests, and
grade book
Web-based tools built in
Peer and self-assessment
Technical support available

Course Details

Course Details[1 of 2]
Course Materials

30-minute video to orientation to online

learning/course
30-minute video orientation to Blackboard
30-minute slideshow presentation per unit
Open Educational Resource (OER) virtual lab
https://phet.colorado.edu/

30-minute virtual seminar per unit

High-quality OER textbook
OER supplemental readings

Course Details [2 of 2]
Student Assignments/Assessments

Set of practice problems per unit

30-minute quiz per unit
60-minute midterm exam
120-minute final exam

Cost
Ingredients

Cost Ingredients [1 of 7]
Assumptions

T1 line treated as a sunk cost

Administrative support $5000 per annum
Development team
Instructional/graphic designer, instructor, web
media developer
Presentation team
Instructor, Blackboard, administrative team,
teaching assistant, and advisors
Media costs taken from OMDE 606 coursework
(Huelsmann, 2015)

Cost Ingredients [2 of 7]
Ingredients: Overheads

Administrative/Technical
10% of per annum salary ($50,000) = $5,000 per
annum

Learning Management License

10% of annual license fee ($10,000) = $1,000 per
annum

Instructor
100% of per annum salary ($15,000) = $15,000 per
annum

Total Annual Overhead Cost: $21,000 per annum

Cost Ingredients [3 of 7]
Ingredients: Development Costs

One-Way Presentations
Orientation to Online AP Chemistry, Orientation to
Blackboard LMS, Lessons

Multi-Way Presentations
Virtual Seminar

Text-Based Content
OER Textbook, Supplementary Readings

Assignments/Assessment
Quiz, Practice Problems, Midterm and Final Exams

Total Development Costs: $76,915

Cost Ingredients [4 of 7]
Ingredients: Maintenance Costs

Maintenance will begin in year four of the course

offering
OER textbook
Supplementary readings
Lessons

Total Maintenance Costs: $4,770

Cost Ingredients [6 of 7]
Ingredients: Presentation Costs

Materials
Virtual Labs will be curated from OERs, PhET
Interactive Simulations available through the
University of Colorado. There will be no cost
incurred.

Student Support
Assignment Grading: 16 units at $10 = $160
Advising, per hour and group of 10: 24 units at $15
= $12
Given a class of 30 students

Variable cost per student: $172.00

Cost Ingredients [7 of 7]
Income: Tuition

Two classes for both Fall and Spring semesters

30 students per class

One class in Summer semester

20 students per class

Student fee is $700.

Total Anticipated Annual Enrollment: 140 students
Total Anticipated Enrollment: 840 students
Total Anticipated Income ($700 x 840 student):
$588,000

Cost Analysis

Cost Analysis [1 of 6]
Ingredients: Annualization

Initial Development Annualization Costs

Spread through the seven years of the project at 5%
$13,292 per annum

Maintenance Annualization Costs

Spread from maintenance year to end of the project
at 5%
$1,345 per annum

Cost Analysis [2 of 6]
Total Costs

Cost Analysis [3 of 6]
Total Cost Calculations

Cost Analysis [4 of 6]
Break Even Calculations

Cost Analysis [5 of 6]
Average Costs

Cost Analysis [6 of 6]
Average Cost Calculations

Media
Justification

Media Justification [1 of 4]
Media Types

Multimedia
Computer-based resources
Interactive computer-marked assignments
Instructor graded assignments
Computer-based tools
Blackboard learning management system

Media Justification [2 of 4]
SECTIONS Dimensions

Students
Ease of Use and Reliability
Costs
Teaching
Interaction and Interactivity
Organizational Issues
Novelty
Speed

Media Justification [3 of 4]
SECTIONS Model

The SECTIONS model covers the use of media in

campus based as well as distance education (Bates,
2005).
Using a technology selection model is important as it:
Applies to a variety of learning contexts
Addresses operational and educational issues
Enables decision making on various levels, i.e.,
institutional, tactical and strategic
Addresses various media and technology based
differences, affords hybrid usage of media for different
learning contexts
Is cost effective and pragmatic
Allows for the implementation of new emerging
technologies

Media Justification [4 of 4]
SECTIONS Model

Our specific targeted audience contains a unique

demographic and various educational needs. The
SECTIONS framework meets this need.
The goal of this course is to foster and develop
skills in the student population groups that
otherwise would not be able to take advantage of
such courses.
The use of the SECTIONS model to analyze the
rich media choices and the costing exercise would
be most beneficial to our study.

Conclusions

Conclusions [1 of 2]
Student Outcomes

This AP Chemistry course is fully online and

serves demographically diverse and
geographically dispersed high school students.
The course will help students gain skills which
include:
Chemistry concepts, comprehension, and
understanding
Computer literacy
Critical thinking and analysis
Time management
Multimedia and technologies used in future
workforce
Understanding of e-learning and distance education

Conclusions [2 of 2]
Financial Feasibility

The course is financially feasible:

140 students per annum for six years = 840
total students
Aggregate unit cost is $172
Average cost per student starting at $1,925
and declining to $464
Costs will be offset by revenue of $700 per
student totaling income of $588,000 in year
seven
The break even point is 465 students occurring
in year five
Total profit is $198,096 in year seven

References

References [1 of 3]
Bates, A.W. & Poole, G. (2003) Effective teaching with
technology in higher education. San Francisco: Jossey Bass.
Bates, A.W. (2005). Technology, e-learning and distance
education (2nd ed.). London, UK: Routledge.
File, T., & Ryan, C. (2014). Computer and Internet use in the
United States: 2013. American Community Survey Reports
(ACS-28). Retrieved from
http://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publicat
ions/ 2014/acs/acs-28.pdf

References [2 of 3]
Huelsmann, T. (2015). Module 5: Costing educational technologies II: Elearning [Course module discussion]. Retrieved from University of
Maryland University College:
https://learn.umuc.edu/d2l/le/content/56877/Home
Rainie, R., & Cohn, D. (2014, September 19). Census: Computer
ownership, internet connection varies widely across U.S. Retrieved
from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/09/19/censuscomputer-ownership-internet-connection-varies-widely-across-u-s
Trotter, A. (2008, June 13). Blackboard vs. Moodle: Competition in
course-management market grows. Education Week. Retrieved from
http://www.edweek.org/

References [3 of 3]
U.S. Census Bureau. (2014, September 18). Census
bureaus American community survey provides
new state and local income, poverty, health
insurance statistics [Press release]. Retrieved
from http://www.census.gov/newsroom/pressreleases/2014/cb14-170.html