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PowerTrain Proposal to ProvideCourse Development Services for Veterans Services Office 3 August 2016

PowerTrain Proposal to Provide Course Development Services for Veterans Services Office

Client Agency:Jennifer M. VassalloManagement Analyst/ Administrative OfficerU.S. Office of Personnel Management Employee Services202-606-5064

Kelly WoodallU.S. Office of Personnel Management Veterans Services(202) 606 – [email protected]

Prepared for:William Peratino Director, USALearning®U.S. Office of Personnel Management1900 E Street, NWWashington, DC 20415

Prepared by:Courtney Cox PowerTrain, Inc.8201 Corporate Drive, Suite 580Landover, MD 20785

3 August 2016

Prepared Under IDIQ#: OPM2615D0001

This document contains technical and cost information that is proprietary to PowerTrain and should not be released outside of the Federal government. This document should only be used for evaluation of the proposal.

PowerTrain Proprietary Information of 15


PowerTrain Proposal to ProvideCourse Development Services for Veterans Services Office

Purpose

The Veterans Services Office in the Employee Services Division of OPM provides Government-wide leadership and direction to improve the Federal employment opportunities for veterans, transitioning military service members, military spouses, and their families. The purpose of this project is to develop two new courses that will overhaul the existing training. The new courses will reflect legislative, policy and practice changes while providing a redesign for both courses using instructional design principles to maximize audience engagement.

While the content for both courses already exists, OPM will provide updates to the existing courses. Then, in a 3-day design meeting, USALearning and OPM will totally redesign the courses into more engaging E-learning applications with, as appropriate new animation, engrossing interactions, and gamification strategies to better engage and meet the needs of the audiences. While the course names may change to reflect a more creative title, in this proposal the two courses to be designed and developed are:

Transitioning to Federal Employment E-learning Application: This up to one-hour (approximately 50 screens) innovative, highly engaging, and interactive E-learning application will be developed for Service Members, Veterans, and certain Family Members who may pursue a Federal career upon separation from the military. The training will be mobile-friendly and highly interactive with gamification and animation. The final E-learning application will be hosted on the Feds Hire Vets website and presented as part of the DOL Employment workshop component of the Department of Defense (DoD) Transition Assistance Program (TAP). Below is the link to the existing course. Note: It is NOT hosted on HRU: https://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/edu/training/Continuing/menu.htm

Veteran Employment Training for Federal Hiring Managers and Federal Human Resource Professionals WBT: This up to one-hour (approximately 50 screens) on-line learning course will be targeted for Federal human resources professionals and hiring managers. The course will provide instruction on practices regarding veterans’ employment including veterans’ preference and special hiring authorities. PowerTrain will design and develop learning modules that offer a high level of interactivity and incorporate visually interesting features, humor and creativity to keep learners engaged and assure learning transfer.

This training will meet the standards for mandatory training as mandated by Executive Order 13518. This effort involves creating a one hour course by combining these two courses on HRU into one: Veteran Employment Training for Federal Hiring ManagersVeteran Employment Training for Federal Human Resource Professionals


http://hru.gov/Course_Catalog.aspx?cid=43&mgr=false

http://hru.gov/Course_Catalog.aspx?cid=42&mgr=false

https://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/edu/training/Continuing/menu.htm


Tasks

CLIN 1004: Course Development for the Transitioning to Federal Employment E-learning Application

Description of Services: PowerTrain will design and develop an e-learning application of the Federal employment process for veterans. The e-learning application will be integrated with DoD‘s Transition Assistance Programs (TAP) workshop. The course will be programmed using HTML5 and have responsive design so it may be used on newer browsers, tablets, phones, and most mobile devices. The e-learning application may incorporate, as appropriate, the following:

Training module or modules with interactive exercises Gamification Graphics Audio Real-life scenarios Multi-media elements such as editing existing videos (if source is provided by OPM) Multi-media elements such as creating new video animations, including animated video

vignettes, whiteboard animation, Live Animate, and waist-high (not 3-D) animated figures. High-level training and micro-learning videos Note: The use of camera-shot live video is

generally more expensive than creating animation. Also, animated characters are always available while actors may not be available in the future when an edit is needed or may look different than the original footage. Live video includes costs such as the filming and lighting equipment and costs to hire out premises, props and actors. OPM and PowerTrain will need to weigh the need for and value of multi-media elements in the design process.

Bookmarking Embedded knowledge checks Assessment tools Resource libraries Performance support tools

Note: Please refer to the note about gamification and multi-media use in the design section of this proposal.

The objectives for the course are as follows: Topical Areas:

o An overview of the Federal employment process and mythso Identifying Careers in the Federal Government o Linking Transitioning Service Members, Veterans, and certain Family members skills to

Federal occupations and competencies o Explaining the differences between the Competitive, Excepted, and Senior Executive

Serviceso Outlining key tips for Transitioning Service Members, Veterans, and certain Family

members to find Federal jobs and to navigate the Federal employment processo Acquainting Transitioning Service Members, Veterans, and certain Family members with

resources to support them in obtaining work in the Government,o Including Veterans Employment Program Offices, skills translators, resume builders, and

more.



Module will be an interactive, web-based training application that will be presented as part of the DOL Employment Workshop component of the Transition Assistance Program. OPM will provide details on these integration needs during the design meeting.

Module will be steeped in instructional design so it is engaging to Transitioning Service Members, Veterans, and certain Family members

Develop a 5 to 10 page course overview for Workshop Facilitators in MSWord and PDF format https://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/veterans.aspx is an excellent source of information.

PowerTrain will: Be responsible for developing and working with OPM to deploy the e-learning application(s) on

training delivery sites as selected by OPM. Hosting and Help Desk services are not currently included in this proposal but can be added at OPM’s request.

Work with the OPM Veterans Services Office and its partners to ensure all appropriate content is included and learning and performance objectives are achieved.

Work with a Federal Learning Team in testing the deployed interactive e-learning applications, ensuring they meet all standards for operation an e-learning environment for the audience. In addition, there may be a need to program the E-learning application so that it can deploy on other learning management systems within Federal agencies. Parameters for these items will be discussed and determined at the design meeting. (See Browser note in this proposal. Hosting is not included in this proposal.)

Deliver the online training package using published standards-conformant formats including, as appropriate, SCORM 1.2 or SCORM 2004 higher, and compliant with Section 508 standards.

Use an authoring program and/or any other E-learning development program that is approved by USALearning. It is anticipated the courses will be custom coded in HTML5.

Develop the course in web-based language(s), not by a proprietary authoring tool or a tool that requires programs or plugins to be installed on client machines for running courseware (with the exclusion of flash plug-in). HTML5 is the proposed programming solution.

Make sure the course is compliant with Federal regulations and standards, including Section 508. OPM understands that this may limit some functionality, but PowerTrain will develop alternate exercises and accessible links, as needed that satisfy OPM’s goal of interactive training and OPM’s need to provide training that meets Section 508 Compliance standards.

Develop all paper-based deliverables using the Microsoft Office Suite unless otherwise determined by OPM.

Deliverables: PowerTrain will deliver one mobile-friendly e-learning application, approximately 1 hour (50 screens) in length, for deployment in FedsHireVets.gov, other Federal websites, and in an LMS (Note: The LMS parameters will be defined at the design meeting. See note about browsers at the end of this proposal.)

PowerTrain will deliver all source code for the final product to OPM; OPM’s Veterans Services will then own all source code so that they can update and maintain the course in the future.


https://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/veterans.aspx


Cost: The cost for Course Development services is shown in the table below.

CLIN Supplies/Services Units Quantity Cost1004E Course Development - Interactive Games and

Simulations, xxxxx for one one-hour approximately 50-screen course

1 course 1 course, apprx 50 screens

xxxxx

1004G

Project Manager hours201

xxxxx

1004H Lead Instructional Designer hours 298 xxxxx1004I Instructional Designer hours 98 xxxxx1004J Graphic Artist hours 421 xxxxx1004K Programmer hours 300 xxxxx

Proposed PowerTrain Cost xxxxx

Note: Tasks build on the work that is reviewed and approved at each step. If changes are required to previously approved deliverables, there will likely be a cost and schedule impact.

CLIN 1004: Course Development for Veteran Employment Training for Federal Hiring Managers and Federal Human Resource Professionals WBT

Description of Services: PowerTrain will develop a SCORM-compliant online training course approximately 1 hour (50 screens) in length for Federal human resources professionals and hiring managers on veterans’ employment. The course will:

Offer high-level online training on veterans’ preference, derived preference, special veterans hiring authorities, retention and reintegration of veterans, non-competitive appointment of military spouses and other laws, policies and regulations enacted since the signing of EO 13518.

Use appropriate instructional system design and adult learning methodologies in the development of the interactive e-learning application.

Use humor and creativity where appropriate as a way of achieving learning transfer. Be designed to be hosted on HRU and created so that HRU can easily create a cross-domain

version for agencies to download onto their own LMS. HRU and each agency’s LMS has the ability to make reports on those individuals completing the training and track specific test items, if used.

Have responsive design so it may be used on many mobile devices.

Note: Please refer to the note about gamification and multi-media use in the design section of this proposal.

The e-learning application may incorporate, as appropriate, the following: Training module or modules with interactive exercises Gamification Graphics Audio Real-life scenarios



Multi-media elements such as editing existing videos (if source is provided by OPM) Multi-media elements such as creating new video animations, including animated video

vignettes, whiteboard animation, Live Animate, High-level training and micro-learning videos Note: The use of camera-shot live video is

generally more expensive than creating animation. Also, animated characters are always available while actors may not be available in the future when an edit is needed or may look different than the original footage. Live video includes costs such as the filming and lighting equipment and costs to hire out premises, props and actors. OPM and PowerTrain will need to weigh the need for and value of multi-media elements in the design process.

Bookmarking Embedded knowledge checks Assessment tools Resource libraries Performance support tools

PowerTrain will:

Be responsible for developing and working with OPM for OPM to deploy the online training(s). Hosting and Help Desk services are not currently included in this proposal, but can be added at OPM’s request.

Work with the OPM Veterans Services Office and its partners to ensure all appropriate content is included and learning and performance objectives are achieved.

Work with a Federal Learning Team in testing the deployed interactive online training, ensuring they meet all standards for operation an online training environment for the audience. In addition, there may be a need to program the online training so that it can deploy on other learning management systems within Federal agencies. Parameters for these items will be discussed and determined at the design meeting. (See Browser note in this proposal. Hosting is not included in this proposal.)

Deliver the online training package using published standards-conformant formats including, as appropriate, SCORM 1.2 or SCORM 2004 higher, and compliant with Section 508 standards.

Use an authoring program and/or any other online training development program that is approved by USALearning. It is anticipated the courses will be custom coded in HTML5.

Develop the course in web-based language(s), not by a proprietary authoring tool or a tool that requires programs or plugins to be installed on client machines for running courseware (with the exclusion of flash plug-in).

Make sure the course will subscribe to Federal regulations and standards, including Section 508. OPM understands that this may limit some functionality, but PowerTrain will develop alternate exercises and accessible links, as needed that satisfy OPM’s goal of interactive training and OPM’s need to provide training that meets Section 508 Compliance standards.

Develop all paper-based deliverables using the Microsoft Office Suite unless otherwise determined by OPM.

Use the following websites that contain relevant resource information: https://www.fedshirevets.gov/hire/index.aspxhttps://www.fedshirevets.gov/hire/hrp/index.aspx

Deliverables: PowerTrain will deliver an online training course approximately 45 minutes to one hour in length. The course will have responsive design to be mobile-friendly to maximize device access. The course will be deployed in the USALearning environment, HRU. (Note: The LMS parameters will be


https://www.fedshirevets.gov/hire/hrp/index.aspx

https://www.fedshirevets.gov/hire/index.aspx


defined at the design meeting. See note about browsers at the end of this proposal.) PowerTrain will deliver all source code for the final product to OPM; OPM’s Veterans Services will own all source code.

Cost: The cost for Course Development services is shown in the table below.

CLIN Supplies/Services Units Quantity Cost1004E Course Development - Interactive Games and

Simulations, xxxxx for 1 apprx 50-screen course1 course 1 course,

apprx 50 screens xxxxx

1004G

Project Manager hours151 xxxxx

1004H Lead Instructional Designer hours 199 xxxxx1004I Instructional Designer hours 52 xxxxx1004J Graphic Artist hours 253 xxxxx1004K Programmer hours 240 xxxxx

Proposed PowerTrain Cost xxxxxx

Note: Tasks build on the work that is reviewed and approved at each step. If changes are required to previously-approved deliverables, there will likely be a cost and schedule impact. OPM’s Veterans Services will be the owner of all source code; PowerTrain will provide all source code for the final product to OPM.

Design, Development Process, and Review Cycles (for both courses)

Project Review Site: The development process and review cycles may be modified as needed. The anticipated steps are listed below. In order to have all products in one place and make project management easier for the team, PowerTrain will create and maintain an online course review site. This site provides all of the course content and deliverables in one place and supplements the standard email file delivery of interim products.

Note: Tasks build on the work that is reviewed and approved at each step. If changes are required to previously-approved deliverables, there will likely be a cost and schedule impact.

Course Design: The project will start with a 3-or 4-day design meeting so that we can walk through the courses together to clarify the exact changes that are needed to the content in the existing courses, identify where content may be reused across courses, and to create new course designs that will engage each audience. Note that OPM will be providing all content updates and revision material and that the course design meeting will be scheduled once OPM has these materials ready. Delays in obtaining material from OPM will impact scheduling.

During the design meeting and process, PowerTrain and OPM will brainstorm new animation, video edits, and new interactions. In order for PowerTrain to edit any existing video, OPM must provide the original video and audio files. If they are not available, PowerTrain and OPM will explore alternatives that will work in the new design.



Using animation and video and gamification techniques eliminates users who have older technology: It is important to consider the user audience’s needs during the design phase so that courses can be designed that function correctly for the broadest range of users. Many animation and video components in a course may not operate correctly in older computers and can affect a user’s bandwidth. HTML5 programming features, animation, video components, and video players can operate differently in different LMSs and in different browsers; in addition, newer browsers are needed for newer animation technology and mobile-responsive design to function correctly. PowerTrain will work with a Federal Learning Team in designing the products and testing the interactive e-learning applications, ensuring they meet all standards for operation an e-learning environment for the audience. In addition, there may be a need to program the E-learning application so that it can deploy on other learning management systems within Federal agencies. Parameters for these items will be discussed and determined at the design meeting. (See Browser note in this proposal. Hosting is not included in this proposal.)

Section 508 and alternate exercises: Another important item that will be discussed and agreed-upon at the design meeting is that the interactive e-learning application will subscribe to Federal regulations and standards, including Section 508. OPM understands that this may limit some functionality, but PowerTrain will develop alternate exercises and accessible links, as needed that satisfy OPM’s goal of interactive training and OPM’s need to provide training for veterans/persons with disabilities that meets Section 508 Compliance standards.

A final important consideration is the use of animation, images, audio, video, and gamification in the course. This includes:

Multi-media elements such as editing existing videos (if source is provided by OPM) Multi-media elements such as creating new video animations, including animated video

vignettes, whiteboard animation, Live Animate, and others High-level training and micro-learning videos - either animated or shot live in-house by

PowerTrain Gamification

Multi-media: The courses are each set at a maximum of one hour of user time and while it is anticipated that these courses will have multi-media features, OPM and PowerTrain will need to weigh the need for and instructional value of the various multi-media elements during the design process. Videos and animations are fun to watch and engage the learner, but take away from user interactions with the course content. The use of camera-shot live video is generally more expensive than creating animation, so the amount of live video will need to be considered against the total budget and time factors in development. Some considerations are that live video includes costs and added time factors such as filming and lighting equipment and costs to hire out premises, props and actors. Alternately, there is more control over animated video since it is custom-created and animated characters are always available; live actors may not be available in the future when an edit is needed or may look different than in the original footage. While this proposal does not include 3-D modeling, it does include waist-high animated characters.

Gamification: Another design consideration is the use of gamification. Gamification in eLearning is fast emerging as an effective technique to engage learners. It has uses in serious learning (that is, meeting specified learning outcomes) and is more than just about playing games; in fact, sometimes it does not involve playing games at all. Gamification is applying game-design thinking to non-game applications to engage users in solving problems. A good gamification strategy with high levels of engagement will lead



to an increase in both recall and retention and provide the instant feedback that allows the learners to realize what they know and/or should know. Gamification strategies include use of rewards for players who accomplish desired tasks e.g., points, achievement badges or levels, the filling of a progress bar, or providing the user with virtual currency. Below are a few innovative approaches to gamification open for discussion at the design meeting:

Partial gamification approach for online checks and assessments. Here course content can be treated using conventional learning design methodologies and can engage the learners by presenting them with challenges at the end of a topic, rewarding them with an access key or currency to move to the next topic. This reward theme can be woven into the overall visual strategy.

Formative assessment strategy to visually highlight the impact of learners’ choices. In real life, some of the choices users make can cause serious consequences. This approach allows users to apply what they have learned and see the consequences and outcomes of their choices. The scenario-based game board PowerTrain created and used in other courses called “What Would You DO?” uses this approach to skills application. Also, during this approach, a risk meter or other visual method can show the consequences of choices. This is not just the right/wrong response given in a standard knowledge check, but rather helps the learners understand the impact their choices will have on them as well as their organization.

Story-based learning makes the content engaging by using a true-to life vignette or story that is woven through or is the whole training. The story can be designed to make the user part of the course. (…as if they are in it, rather than watching it from outside). This approach can: o Start with a challenging situation for the users. This helps draw their attention to

emotionally connect with the content, and use the course information to ascertain how to get out of the jam. It includes an introduction to the cast of characters and the problem (the challenge that the trainee faces)

o Outline the events, their impact, and consequences (using the storyline) and show where resources and tools are for reference and problem solving

o Incorporate learning elements, examples, and case studieso Highlight dos, don’ts, and the right approach that the learners must follow (using Q&A

between the main characters)o Articulate questions that are likely to be in the learners’ minds (using the trainee)o Provide guidance for learners, reinforce the important learning aspects and key take-

aways, and provide formative feedback for learners (using a mentor or other expert character)

The design effort includes:

Conduct a Three-to four-day Design Meeting with OPM and PowerTrain (preferably in the PowerTrain office so that programmers and artists can be available as needed during the design process) and Prepare Blueprint Document: Meet in person or virtually for 3 or 4 days to brainstorm the new course designs and note the updates to the existing course content. This effort includes:o One-hour kickoff meeting where the project specifics will be reviewed based on the

final approved proposal and a date will be set for the design meeting.



o Three days of meeting preparation for the PowerTrain design team to review the existing courses in preparation for the meeting, plan for an interactive discussion, create a detailed agenda, create an Excel sheet that lists each screen number and popup in the courses so that specific content updates can be listed on the Excel sheet at the meeting (This will be included in the Blueprint Document that serves as the outcome of the design meeting), and print all course PDFs or other documents (with a note of the screen where the PDF is linked) for review and hand editing at the design meeting.

o Prior to the design meeting, OPM will list where each course content update needs to be made in the existing courses, so those edits can be noted at the design meeting (on the Excel sheet that PowerTrain will provide) and can be easily reviewed at the design meeting.

o Two-day meeting with the project team to review every screen and note changes that are needed based on new content and legislation changes. At the meeting the design standards and preferences, logo use, and branding will be discussed, the look and feel of the new interfaces, integration of the Transitioning course into TAP, and creative ideas to make the courses more engaging and useful to the audiences will be determined (including, but not limited to animations, gamification, audio, sophisticated interactions). The outcome of the meeting will be an ordered list for the content updates and a design plan for the new course designs.

o Ten-day-day post-review (plus QA, PowerTrain will finalize the meeting outcomes (e.g., ordered list most likely in Excel, copy of the marked–up PDF documents, documented decisions, new interactive elements, gamification, and animation concepts) and create the draft Blueprint document with a schedule for the next steps in the course development.

o Submission of the draft Blueprint to OPM for review and commento Creation of the final Blueprint that specifies the overall course revisions and new course

designs.

Course Development ProcessNote: These basic course development process steps below will be repeated for both courses. After the design meeting, PowerTrain will revisit the steps below and develop a schedule with each step spelled out and associated timeframes for each.

Prototype: PowerTrain will create a prototype for the course. The steps to create the prototype are: Use existing OPM Veterans Services Office approved template or develop an image for the

course interface based on the course design Blueprint. PowerTrain will create a simple template and submit the interface image to OPM Veterans Services Office. OPM Veterans Services Office will review and discuss interface and template with PowerTrain via WebEx and provide specific changes one time in one consolidated document.

Develop functional prototype and submit to OPM Veterans Services Office. OPM Veterans Services Office reviews and tests prototype and discusses with PowerTrain via WebEx. NOTE: The functional prototype only tests the performance of course features and does not contain content specific to the OPM Veterans Services Office courses.

The prototype will contain functionality that is representative of the final course, including a sample screen with scored assessment questions if the assessment is built into the WBT. The



completion criteria for LMS reporting will also be programmed for the course prototype (slides viewed, quiz, etc.).

The prototype file will be delivered as a SCORM 1.2-compliant zip package, so that it can be uploaded and tested in the OPM Veterans Services Office LMS.

Storyboards: PowerTrain will create storyboards for the course. The steps to create the storyboards are: Once OPM Veterans Services Office has approved the course Blueprint and provided all required

source documents and video files, if they are to be edited, PowerTrain develops draft storyboards in PowerPoint or in Microsoft Word. As needed, PowerTrain fleshes out details of course with subject matter experts (SMEs) during the development process.

PowerTrain QAs storyboards. PowerTrain delivers draft storyboards. OPM Veterans Services Office reviews draft storyboards and provides written specific,

consolidated comments. PowerTrain complete and delivers revised storyboards. OPM Veterans Services Office reviews

revised storyboards and provides written specific, consolidated comments with approval to develop final storyboards for programming. After the draft storyboard development and review cycle, changes that affect more than 15% of the course will affect costing and timeframes.

PowerTrain develops final storyboards for programming.

Alpha Courseware (Programmed Course – First Review) PowerTrain develops Alpha courseware (programming, graphics, and interactions and

assessment, if needed), and QA. PowerTrain delivers Alpha courseware. OPM Veterans Services Office reviews courseware and conducts functionality testing. OPM

Veterans Services Office approves Alpha and provides an edit list that is specific, combined, and ordered. NOTE: After storyboards are approved there should be little to no changes to course content. Changes that affect more than 15% of the course will affect costing and timeframes.

Beta Courseware (Programmed Course – Second Review and Pilot) PowerTrain enters Alpha edits and holds comment clarification meeting with SMEs via WebEx, if

needed. PowerTrain develops Beta courseware for pilot and QAs courseware functionality. PowerTrain deliver Beta courseware ready for testing. OPM Veterans Services Office distributes course for testing and conducts functionality testing

and pilot offering, if needed. OPM Veterans Services Office approves Beta and provides final changes in a single, combined, ordered comment list.

Final Courseware PowerTrain and OPM Veterans Services Office holds a conference call to discuss final changes

together and clarify and unclear items on the OPM Veterans Services Office comments list. PowerTrain develops final courseware and QA. PowerTrain submits final courseware for final functionality testing, including testing for Section

508 Compliance. OPM Veterans Services Office conducts final functionality tests and provides approval.

PowerTrain delivers courseware files and OPM Veterans Services Office accepts final courseware.



Period of Performance

The Period of Performance is from Task Award through one year. However, it is understood that the courses may need to be complete and ready for release in September 2016. The deadlines and schedules will be determined as part of the design process.

Cost Summary

The cost for the Course development services for one full year is documented in the table below.

CLIN Supplies/Services Description Unit of Delivery Cost1004 Course

development services

Transitioning to Federal Employment E-learning Application: Mobile-friendly, innovative, highly engaging, and interactive E-learning application for Service Members, Veterans, and certain Family Members. Approximately one-hour in length.

1 course xxxxxx

1004 Course development services

Veteran Employment Training for Federal Hiring Managers and Federal Human Resource Professionals WBT: Highly interactive, innovative, effective on-line learning for Federal human resources professionals and hiring managers. This WBT will be hosted on HRU and consolidates 2 courses into one. Approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour in length.

1 course xxxxx

Total Proposed PowerTrain Cost xxxxx

Assumptions

Course Post-Delivery Edits: PowerTrain will separately price any post-delivery edits that are not the result of errors made by PowerTrain staff. These separately-priced changes include any updating of content and programming changes required as a result of porting the course to a different LMS or changes to the existing LMS or browser updates that impact the course functionality. Additionally, these separately-priced changes include any updating of content and changes required as a result of new policies, procedures, media, or content that come into effect after the design meeting.

Content: It is assumed that the course content is already complete in the existing courses listed in this proposal. PowerTrain will not conduct independent content research. During the design phase and prior to the course development effort, OPM will provide PowerTrain with an ordered list of specific content updates to the existing courses, all source documents that pertain to content revisions , updated USA Staffing screen shots, forms, job aids, standards, source code (as available), and available templates.



Delays in receiving these materials will affect the timeline and may affect the course development scope.

Rights to Use Content: Each party assumes responsibility of ensuring all content provided by them (facts, text, images, media) is free to be used in the course (no copyright restrictions, confidentiality issues, etc.). Each party will indemnify the other party from any third-party claim arising from infringement or other lack of permission for the content that party provides.

Animation, Video, and browsers: It is important to note that animation and video components in a course may not operate correctly in older computers and may be affected by a user’s bandwidth. HTML5 programming features, animation, video components, and video players can operate differently in different LMSs and in different browsers. PowerTrain cannot control how a user’s laptop or desktop is set up. It is important to consider your audience’s needs during the design phase so that courses can be designed that function correctly for the broadest range of users. Of course, once the course is live, for users who have issues with course function, it is suggested that they contact their help desk for a system check to ensure that their computer is set up with the minimum standards to have the course operate and function correctly. Please review the detailed explanation about browsers at the end of this proposal.

Review Cycles: As part of a firm-fixed environment, tasks build on the work that is reviewed and approved at each step. If new content, new images, new or revised animations or video, or significant changes are required to previously-approved deliverables, there will be a cost and schedule impact. Review cycles are the most common cause of schedule delays. To help the project stay on schedule and in-budget, PowerTrain works with the following revision guidelines:

Storyboards PowerTrain will submit storyboard documents in PowerPoint or Word format with all on-screen

text, graphic descriptions or sample images, and interactivity descriptions. OPM can request unlimited changes by an unlimited number of people to the draft storyboard

and will provide PowerTrain with comments in one consolidated document at one time with clear and specific changes in writing in one document. If OPM chooses to provide redline edits, OPM will resolve any gaps in content or discussions as to the direction of the content before delivering the document to PowerTrain. (i.e., OPM may ask a specific question on the change for PowerTrain to answer from an instructional design perspective, but no internal content discussions will remain in the returned document.)

PowerTrain will make all changes and provide a revised draft for review. PowerTrain will then create the final storyboards, ready for programming.

All revisions can be checked by OPM to ensure they were made correctly. PowerTrain will make any corrections to any changes made incorrectly.

New changes can be requested for up to 10% of the total number of screens in the revised storyboards without an impact on the schedule or cost. All requests must be provided at one time in one document.

OPM may ask to confirm that all corrections were made properly in the storyboards before programming begins. Any new requests for changes to the final approved storyboards may negatively impact the schedule and the level of effort.

WBT Online Draft PowerTrain will post an online draft with images, text, and interactions.



All content can be reviewed for accuracy to ensure it meets the descriptions in the storyboards and the final edits. PowerTrain will make any corrections to errors to programming. New changes can be made to up to 10% of the total number of screens without an impact on the schedule or cost. All requests must be provided at one time in one document.

PowerTrain will provide a final online version with the requested changes. All content can be reviewed for accuracy to ensure requested edits were made properly. New requests for changes will negatively impact the schedule and cost.

Online course versions will be posted to the American Red Cross LMS for testing.

Additional review cycles can be accommodated, but will impact the cost and/or schedule.

Payment Schedule

Description Billing Amount Billing Date

CLIN 1004: Course Development:Transitioning to Federal Employment E-learning Application

xxxxxxxxxx

CLIN 1004: Course Development:Veteran Employment Training for Federal Hiring Managers and Federal Human Resource Professionals WBT:

xxxxx xxxxx

Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan

Deliverables Performance Standard

Acceptable Quality Level

Monitoring Method

Incentive / Disincentive

Course Development Services

On time; includes all required content

100% completion with accurate content

Government review and approval

Positive/negative performance evaluation

Browser Support

Different browsers (Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox, and Safari), as well as versions within a specific browser, display web pages differently and have different functions. HTML5 commands did not start to be implemented into Internet Explorer more fully until IE9. This means that IE7 and IE8, released a decade ago, do not support HTML5 at all. Because of these issues, USALearning defines which browsers and operating systems will be supported, then develops and tests courses and on-line applications for these target browsers.



Internet Explorer 9 and above including Edge. Chrome version 2.x (May, 2009) to 46.0 (Nov, 2015) Opera version 10.0 (Sep, 2009) to 33.0 (Nov, 2015) Firefox version 3.5 (Jun, 2009) to 42.0 (Nov, 2015) Safari version 4.0 (Jun, 2009) to 9 (Mac OS only Oct, 2015) (5.1.7 for Win 7 May, 2012)

Future updates of popular browsers will incorporate more and more of HTML5 elements. If the past is any indication, support for bleeding edge elements like in-browser sound and video mixing will remain uneven for the foreseeable future. For example, the latest Chrome version currently supports a host of HTML5 audio features that are not well supported in Internet Explorer, including the latest IE browser, Edge. Given requirements for backwards compatibility in content and courseware, USALearning will not employ such elements until at least two versions after they achieve universal support.

While the functionality of these browser versions is similar, the display properties of each may differ in terms of how text, tables, graphics, and other web elements are rendered. Optimizing a course for a browser does not mean that it will be displayed exactly the same in all browsers, or even in all instances of the same version of a single browser. Given the myriad user setup/preference options, this is neither possible nor should it be a goal, as browsers are designed to be customized by their users according to their needs.

Modified and custom browser derivations like SRWare's Iron Browser are not recommended for use with USALearning products, as their HTML5 adoption status is unknown. They should function with HTML5 much like their parent browser (Iron Browser is a derivative product of Chrome), but there is no guarantee that this is true or that functionality has not been removed or modified. Iron Browser, for instance, is heavily optimized for privacy and anonymity.


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