Slow and Steady Wins the Race: Moving from Commercial to Open Source Ryan Allen, Senior E-Learning Specialist University of Dayton

Rolling Out Sakai – Where We Came From – Analyzing Our Options – Sakai Roll-out – Training Sustaining and Future Growth – Data Collection – Development Process – Overcoming Issues – Tips

University of Dayton Private University founded in 1850 Founded by the Society of Mary (Marianist) ≈7,000 Undergrad / 4,000 Grad Students Top 10 Catholic University in the nation Faculty are not shy about asking for help No real Instructional Designers Advanced to second round of NCAA Basketball Tournament last year

Where We Came From UD adopted WebCT Campus Edition 4.1 as its LMS in 2003 About courses on WebCT each year Primarily used for: Submitting Assignments· Online Assessments Accessing Readings· Discussion Forums Posting/Reviewing Grades E-Learning’s primary customers are campus faculty Provide training, support, and instructional design assistance

LMS Usage 2003-present The E‐Learning Lab prepares approximately 300 faculty to deliver web‐assisted and distance learning courses each semester.

Analyzing Our Options

WebCT Satisfaction Survey Results Despite the overall positive results and the fact that over 90% of the responders said they would recommend WebCT to a colleague… …a large majority of faculty noted that: 1.WebCT was not user-friendly 2.Among others, the Mail and Gradebook tools were consistently mentioned as weak points 3.Many tools such as the Quiz and Assignment tools had steep learning curves 4.The product was becoming outdated and didn’t embrace newer technologies 5.More support and training materials were necessary

The Hunt LMS Evaluation Process: LMS Advisory Panel Assembled The panel reviewed resources compiled by the E-Learning Lab: – WebCT Usage Reports – WebCT Satisfaction Survey Results – ePortfolio Experience with Sakai 3 migration paths Sakai unanimously chosen

Sakai ePortfolios OSP Tools piloted during school year Course level portfolios Some other Sakai tools in sites Ultimately, lots of work down the tubes 

Sakai ePortfolios

The Big Questions 1.What’s the real cost of Open Source? 2.Do we have the current staff to support an Open Source LMS? 3.Is there commercial support available? 4.Can we meet the high expectations of the faculty and students? 5.Are we up to the task?

Getting Things Rolling….

Answering Questions #1 & #2 1.What’s the real cost of Open Source?  Hardware  Time / Lots of Effort  Ultimately, it depends on what we want 2.Do we have the current staff to support an Open Source LMS?  No. We needed another developer for starters.

From Sakai to Isidore St. Isidore of Seville Patron saint of students and schoolchildren and recently recommended for patronage of computers and the Internet

Isidore Timeline JanuarySakai/Isidore Approved as Replacement February– AprilSystem / Tool Evaluations Completed MayPioneer Faculty Identified May – JulyDevelopment / Roll-out Preparation Work for Isidore 2.0 Begins JulyIsidore 2.0 Completed July18 Pioneer Faculty Trained over 2 Day Period AugustFirst 22 Courses in Isidore Begin SeptemberDevelopment / Roll-out Prep Work for Isidore 2.1 Begins OctoberFaculty User Group Meeting Held NovemberIsidore Student Survey Administered DecemberIsidore 2.1 Completed December Isidore Open to all Faculty … let the games begin! 2008

Answering Question #3 3.Is there commercial support available? Did we need it? Could we have success without it?

All core tools reviewed Slow roll-out with limited number of tools – manage expectations and maintain better support. 11 of 15 core chosen tools for the initial Fall release 3 additional tools for the Winter release The Form Tool Review Process

How We Keep Track of Progress and Needs? 240 Bug Fixes and Improvements Already Made 70 more planned for fall 2009 release

VI. Migrating from WebCT Create Automated Migration Utility Start Fresh or E-Learning Lab Migration – Began late Spring 2009 – Utilized Georgia Tech Migration Tools – Online Migration Request Form Created – Faculty were ed the courses for which they were instructors in as a reminder

Communicating with Campus Blanket (Non-Threatening) Marketing

Where is Isidore now? Fall ‘Pioneer’ Instructors teaching 22 courses – User Group Meetings – Student Surveys Spring Instructors teaching 300 sections - ‘Tuesdays with Isidore’ sessions Summer 2009 ≈ 50 Instructors teaching 140 section

LMS Usage 2003-present 64% Isidore 3% Isidore The E‐Learning Lab has trained nearly 200 faculty members in hands-on Isidore sessions since last August. 41% Isidore

Training  2 Hour ‘Mastering Isidore’ Sessions  2 Trainers Per Session  Specific Tool Training  Departmental Planning  Customized Training Material & Isidore Help File  Isidore ‘Tip’ s  Students/Instructors

Student & Faculty ‘Tips’

… Get Butts In the Seats Incentives…

Answering Question #4 4. Can we meet the high expectations of the students and faculty?

The Student Perspective What the Students are Saying I Love It Baby!

Academic StandingAverage Rating First Year4.6 Second Year4.3 Third Year4.0 Fourth Year4.2

Student Preferences WebCTIsidore Which system is easiest to learn?49.00%51.00% Which system is easiest to use?44.80%55.20% Which system is better at supporting learning?36.20%63.80% Which system do you prefer to use?42.70%57.30%

The Faculty Perspective

Faculty Preferences WebCTIsidore Which system is easiest to learn?10.7%89.3% Which system is easiest to use?0.0%100.0% Which system is better at supporting learning?3.6%96.4% Which system do you prefer to use?3.6%96.4%

Development

How do we decide what to ‘develop’? 1.E-Learning Lab Guided  Trainer Feedback  Developer Suggestions 2.Faculty Feedback/Requests  Phone Calls  s Still working towards firm solution

Disagreements are Good

What does it mean to develop in Sakai? Data Access 10%* Business Logic 60%* User Interface 30%* HTML, JSP/JSF, JavaScript Java Reads/Writes via Java (Hibernate) * - % of time spent by developers

SSL

 Proposed annual development cycle Coding Beta Release Public Release Summer Fall Spring

Work in Progress

Continuous Improvements and Tool Additions Speed Issues  ‘Data Heavy’ tools (Forums/Gradebook/T&Q) WebCT Course Migration Open Source = More Man Hours (and sometimes more headaches) Changing the campus mentality

Tips for Success Deal with Comparisons Head On Remind users ‘Why’ ‘Hold Hands’ Dealing with the ‘Squeaking Wheels’ – Believe the symptom, not the explanation – Be ‘Unapologetically Helpful’ Get everyone ‘in on the act’

Answering The Big Question 5.Are We Up to the Task? Yes. Stay Focused!

We’ll be parting ways with WebCT on December 18 th, 2009

Isidore Team Training and Support  Ryan Allen – Senior E-Learning Specialist  Leah Bergman – E-Learning Specialist  Jerry Timbrook – E-Learning GA ) Development  Paul Dagnall – Web Developer  Matt Mize – Systems Administrator

Isidore Help and Resources Isidore Server – E-Learning Website – – Training Movies – Downloadable documentation and tool FAQs – Quick Start Guides and Introduction Video for Users – Training Calendar – WebCT Course Migration Request Form

Thank You