In their own words: Understanding and Enhancing Our Students’ Experience of Blackboar d Lindsey Martin, Edge Hill University

Overview Drivers: National, Institutional, personal Tools to aid understanding ‘In their own words’: what makes a positive EHU student experience of Blackboard? Making use of our student data within EHU Discussion: what can we learn from each other?

Drivers: National New business model Student fees, student as consumer and assumptions of their expectations as digital ‘natives’ Institutional Audit Strong messages from QAA outcomes reports around the need for a strategic approach to VLE deployment National Student Survey (NSS) League tables based on student satisfaction – increasingly looking to the VLE for enhancements to organisation and management, communications and learning resources

Drivers: Edge Hill University Rapid expansion Institution has doubled in size in past 5 years Institutional Audits 2005 and 2010 QAA 2005 recommendation for a more strategic use of VLE resulted in an institutional ‘minimum entitlement’ to the VLE - phased in which mainstreamed adoption Much change around the VLE 2008 moved from WebCT to Blackboard CE8 and Managed Hosting VLE Review upgraded from CE8 to Blackboard Learn 9.1 and rebranded Learning Edge

VLE: adoption on undergraduate programmes % 2006/07 60% 2008/ % 2009/ %

Key tools to aid evaluation and understanding Baseline data CE8 activity. Drilling down to Faculty and year of study, active use of Blackboard tools Blackboard reporting tools Usage statistics – users, live courses Google Analytics Supplements Blackboard reports. Provides valuable user information – geographic location, browsers, mobile access Annual eLearning Survey Online survey, began in 2008/09. Mixture of closed questions supplemented with free text NSS/Student Union surveys/focus groups NSS and SU qualitative data is limited with regard to the VLE. Focus groups exploring ‘student experience’ only offer a glimpse of VLE

Evolving … evaluation for decision-making AssumptionsSatisfactionExpectationsImpact Rule of thumb Experience Similarities Perceptions Emotional Behavioural Will recommend to others? Intentions KPIs/ performance measurement Return on investment Engagement Access ‘You said… …we did’ Checklists Scale Benchmarking Value for money L&T Literature ‘early adopters’mainstream

The EHU Student eLearning Survey A snapshot in time An indicator of the extent that the VLE is integral to the learning experience of EHU students Longitudinal 4 years worth of data Not just a VLE survey What other technologies do our students use (or want to use) in their studies – and what would they like to see more of? Where and how do they study? But is also a VLE ‘health check’ Frequency of use, importance to study, impact on their learning, what works and what doesn’t

Survey Headlines How often do you use Learning Edge in your studies? Frequency

Survey Headlines How often do you use Learning Edge in your studies? Importance

Survey Headlines Learning Edge has enhanced the knowledge and understanding I get from lectures, tutorials and practical sessions

Survey Headlines My tutors regularly update Learning Edge with course information and materials

Key themes from the 2011/12 survey Mobile technologies 55.8% participants own a smartphone (36.1% in 2010/11). Picking up notifications, grades, lecture notes ‘on the go’ often in preference to bringing a laptop Importance of Learning Edge Used frequently, rated important, enhancing learning, online submission, communication 2 sides of the same coin 4 themes identified: access (technical), access (content and resources), communication, design and layout Social networking for informal learning Facebook widely used for informal learning – Facebook ‘Hub’ and Learning Edge ‘classroom’ – largely student owned and managed

“This is the first time I have used eLearning and I love it. It gives me the freedom to log on whenever I have time and continue my study and it is fast and effective. “ “Consistent format across all modules means I know where to look for information. “ “If used properly it has the capability to improve everyone’s learning experience – even just using the basic features. “ Student quotes from the 4 th EHU Student eLearning Survey, 2011/12

“It can sometimes be slow. “ “Layout of Blackboard modules can be confusing, not always sure where to find information and material. “ “Learning Edge is massively underused and handing in hard copies of work seems pointless when the facility is available. “ Student quotes from the 4 th EHU Student eLearning Survey, 2011/12

Using our survey findings … You said … we did activities Identifying and rectifying touch points (build your ‘ideal’ VLE responses, needs and issues) Influencing academic practice Getting the message out that the student experience of the VLE is largely determined by how it is set up and managed by tutors – consistency, lecture notes, communications Raising visibility and awareness Demonstrating that we understand the needs of our key stakeholders. Disseminating through deliberative structures and informal channels, audit trail Supporting business cases Blackboard 9.1, Complex Managed Hosting, Mobile Learn, Mobile Central, Assignment Handler,

Lessons learned … Have a prize draw! No brainer! Make it mean something Take any negative comments on the chin and do something about them. It has to inform real and visible improvement/enhancement Communicate! Communicate! Communicate! Before, during, after! Student , Blackboard announcements, Learning Edge blog, Facebook, Student Union, Committees … Learn from mistakes Allocate lots of time – it generates a lot of data. Listen to students – they tell you if questions don’t work. Time your survey release for maximum uptake. Get some headlines out quickly afterwards

Outcomes from Institutional audit and review, QAA, Outcomes.aspx Outcomes.aspx Kyriaki Anagnostopoulou, University of Bath. Evaluating the Role of Technology in Supporting Students. Follow the Sun, April EHU Student eLearning Survey Collection References

Contact Lindsey Martin