Agriculture and Agrifood Canada (AAFC)

AAFC Information Management (IM) Training Modules

Challenge: The AAFC IM Directorate was leading the development of a joint MGI/AAFC/NRCan funded IM Education Program that has the entire GoC as its target audience. The output of this exercise needed to be generic enough in content to apply across government yet simple enough in technology that it could be adopted and edited by any organisation. It also needed to meet all government standards for accessibility, and have the desired effect of raising awareness and knowledge of IM issues.

Approach: Systemscope focused on two areas in addressing the main challenges of this project: selecting the optimal technology for the delivery of the training materials and ensuring that the right training materials met target audience requirements. On the technology side, Systemscope performed an analysis of current e-learning products and ultimately selected Microsoft Producer and Microsoft Powerpoint to prepare and present the learning modules. This decision was based upon ease of use of the tool for the developer, the preponderance of licenced versions of MS Powerpoint across the government of Canada, and the possibility of later integration of the tool in a Learning Management System. On the training side, Systemscope consolidated existing best-of-breed IM training content from a number of departments, and in consultation with subject matter experts at AAFC and NRCan, developed additional content to fill gaps in the existing materials. By building each training module around a practical set of learning objectives, Systemscope ensured that training audiences received the appropriate content to meet learning objectives.

Outcome: The Systemscope team planned and developed an eight-module self-study, standards-based e-Learning program built upon sound pedagogical practices and achievable learning objectives. Topics included: Records Management, Effective Email Management, Copyright, IM and the Departing Employee, Privacy and Personal Information and Information Security. The modules were delivered in four formats to suit the preferences of different users: Microsoft Producer with audio narrative; Microsoft Producer without audio narrative; Adobe PDF for printing and native Microsoft PowerPoint. Additionally, Systemscope developed a Web site to house the training modules that was complete with rapid feedback self-assessment quizzes and additional information to support the modules. For all deliverables, Systemscope maintained a branded look and feel.