Developing and implementing a virtual learning environment (VLE) for a large complex course. David Dewhurst Director of Learning Technology College of Medicine & Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh Rachel Ellaway & Allan Cumming

‘Complex course’ Undergraduate medical course MBChB New course in line with GMC ‘Tomorrows Doctors’ – started in years (+PRHO) ~ 220 students/year Integrated curriculum with clinical teaching in all 5 years Horizontal ‘courses’ with vertical ‘themes’ Mixture of didactic, case-based learning, PBL but with greater emphasis on student centred, resource-based learning

What is a VLE? VLEs are integrated systems of networked on-line resources which support and facilitate course management, learning, teaching and assessment activities whether these take place on-campus or at a distance. Also known as MLEs, LMSs, LCMSs

Virtual Learning Support Environment Mirrors traditional learning environment On-line personalised (MyEEMeC) student information Features to promote student interaction Networked Teaching, Learning & Assessment resources provided by academic staff Features to support course management by administrative staff On-line library and reference resources For medical students in Edinburgh this is EEMeC - Edinburgh Electronic Medical Curriculum

EEMeC Collaborative project between: – Learning Technology Section IT Services, Courseware development, Medical Illustration & digital graphics, Teaching Facilities management –Medical Teaching Organisation course delivery, implementation, curriculum development started September 1999 and follows the roll-out of the new medical curriculum – year 5 starts July 2002 Bespoke system which constantly evolves to meet local needs both administrative and learning Resource intensive

How did we start? Major ‘drivers’ –top down (Dean), bottom up (staff enthusiasts and increasingly students), middle in (LTS/MTO). Resources –strong team of courseware developers with appropriate expertise and enthusiasm Pragmatism and vision - ‘small steps, big plans’ ‘pragmatic approach towards a grand vision’ Recognised the need to become indispensable to attract further funding

Year 1 - First steps - static resources Planning - considered off-the-shelf VLEs - not appropriate for the highly complex medical course. Initial Development - a highly structured website with easy, intuitive navigation – used standard development tools –populated with study guides and other existing resources MS office data (Word, PowerPoint, Excel) to html static timetable –Limited ‘Resources section’ – static html documents Evaluated the site through liaison meetings with students and staff - very positive feedback and high level of use. Parallel staff development

Now - features of EEMeC added in response to feedback Personalised ‘MyEEMeC’ Home Page - notices, personal resources, queryable timetable (SQL Server/ASP) Chat area Discussion area, shared workspaces and annotation facility Expanded Resources Section (database driven and contains, e.g. room locations across all sites, web- and LAN-based CAL programs, videos (some streamed), ‘Grand Rounds’ - searchable Much improved staff interface – local content management Choosing ‘Options’, voting class reps Portfolio management Evaluation Assessment Marks Archive of previous years materials Develop an ‘attendance’ database

How useful is it? Evaluates very highly Student use very high – hits every 2 days – available 24/7 from anywhere with internet connection Staff use increasing but still problems with clinical teachers in teaching hospitals where there are some access problems Quality of resources increasing Broken down barriers between course delivery (academic) and management (administrators) Single source of course information Audit vehicle

Thank you for listening David Dewhurst