NEXT GENERATION OWLS: CUSTOMIZED SOLUTIONS AND THE MOVE TOWARD OPEN-SOURCING Matthew J. Gilchrist, U of Iowa Tammy Conard-Salvo, Purdue U CCCC 2009, San Francisco, Session C.07

Overview  Customized, next generation OWLs  University of Iowa’s OTA; sharing and adapting existing systems  Purdue University’s VCaP; usability testing  Potential for Open-Source OWLs  Challenges for Customized OWLs  The next generation

Customized OWLs  Support campus needs and communities  Address distance and time constraints, mobility issues, and accessibility  Channel students’ interest in computer- mediated instruction  Offer next-generation in writing center technology

Iowa’s OTA  Uses Iowa’s existing tutoring foundation for asynchronous online tutoring  Built upon existing code shared by UNC, Chapel Hill  Allows tutors to work from any location with Internet access  Accepts only.doc formatted files, but may expand to other formats

OTA Student home

OTA Student Submission View

OTA “My Submissions”

OTA Session Evaluation

OTA Tutor Work Center

OTA Tutor Feedback

Advantages of Sharing  Saves considerable time and effort  Software has already been tested and improved through the course of many iterations  Innovations in the new context may be beneficial to the campus that created the software

Challenges of Adapting Existing Software  Finding a match  No such thing as “plug and play”  No open source community may mean that little guidance or help is available  Active, collaborative partners at all levels are needed to smooth the transition

Purdue’s VCaP  Customized and programmed “from scratch”  Inspired by systems at UNC and Texas Tech  Asynchronous tutoring system  Accessible to students with time and geographical constraints, mobility issues, etc.  Accepts documents in multiple formats  Reflects our pedagogy of online tutoring

VCaP Main Page

VCaP Student View

VCaP Student Submission Page

VCaP Tutor View

VCaP Tutor Feedback Page

Importance of Usability Testing  Allows system to be refined and customized  Navigable and accessible  Student-centered, pedagogically appropriate  Solicits student and tutor input  Provides collaboration opportunities with Professional Writing Program

Potential for Open-Source OWLs  Offers low-cost, pedagogically appropriate solutions for writing centers  Fosters academic knowledge creation  Prevents dependence on one software or vendor  Allows multiple campuses to work together  Reflects collaborative pedagogy and community- building  Supports 2008 CCCC Resolution on Open Source Technology

Challenges for Customized OWLs  Tutor training and resolving differences between electronic tutoring and face-to-face tutoring  Need for writing center administrators with expertise in open-source development  Cost, time, and resources to build a usable system  Technical support and maintenance  Upgrades and changes necessary as needs and technology change  Open-sourcing may complicate support and development

The Next Generation  Adding synchronous chat tutoring at Iowa  Including (somewhat) new technologies  Blogs and wikis  Podcasts and flash movies  Avatar interactions  Interactive whiteboards  Negotiating multiple online identities and services  Researching electronic writing support, how students learn online, effective technologies, etc.

Q&A Matthew Gilchrist, University of Iowa Tammy Conard-Salvo, Purdue University