Sakai as a Service for Colleges and Consortia Scott Siddall Denison University The Longsight Group

What is SaaS? Project planning Hardware and software configuration Customization and branding Installation and client testing (one week) Train local staff for tier 1 support Online training materials 24/7 tier 2 support Monitoring performance; capacity planning Regular backup and restoration services Software (i.e., Sakai) as a Service Application service provider (ASP) model Security and patch management Hardware renewal Sandbox for testing, development Sakai upgrades Bug reporting and fixes Tool installations Custom development Data migration SIS connectivity, etc.

Why Sakai as a Service? Providing a CLE is strategic Running it yourself is not It is cost-effective to hire specialists Quicker startup, no capital investments More predictable costs (human and capital) Lower costs of ownership or access Greater reliability

Why Sakai as a Service? Campus can reallocate staff resources Focus resources on outcomes, not technology Focus staff on training/engaging faculty Technical staff gain experience with open source Gradually take ownership of the project Not a proprietary instance of Sakai No vendor lock-in assures choices

Our focus is on colleges, consortia

Why SaaS for Colleges? Smaller colleges are less likely to have expertise Java, Tomcat, Subversion, Ant, Maven… SaaS lowers threshold for use Train and access within a week at a low cost Teaching and learning are paramount Sakai is providing pedagogical flexibility Good argument for Sakai in general Achieve this innovation at lower risk without long term commitment through SaaS

Pilot versus Production The Authentic Pilot Limited only in scale Mission critical – full support Live courses for credit Fully engaged faculty, students, staff Evaluation rubric McGill University EDUCAUSE 2005 presentationEDUCAUSE 2005 presentation (unacceptable – could live with it – recommended)

Walsh University CourseWork and CHEF pilots in 2004 Sakai in production since August, ,300 students Campus community has developed a techno-realistic outlook on open source

Sakai Usage Survey (151 respondents in December 2005)

Walsh University survey results 25% used Sakai for collaboration 6.5% placed notes into My Workspace Those without prior CLE experience wanted more training

Different opinions for faculty and students Changed your teaching/learning style? 64% of faculty but only 36% of students (significant difference, p=0.02) Overall impression? 83% ++ faculty and 66% ++ for students (significant difference, p=0.01) Use Sakai again? 88% of faculty would but only 62% of students (significant difference, p=0.02)

Tool assessments 87% ++ rating for resources 75% ++ rating for announcements and assignments 67% ++ rating for drop box 62% ++ rating for discussion 59% ++ rating for tests & quizzes

Split opinions! “It was hard for me to find the information I needed…” “Easy to log on and find the necessary information” “Taking a paper and pencil test was easier” “Taking tests on Sakai was easier than take a test in pencil and paper” “The drop box was a little confusing…” “The drop box was the best for assignments..” What features did you most appreciate? “All of it!” What features of Sakai did you find most negative? “All of it!”

What improvements would you suggest? “Just keep listening to us as we get used to using it, and continue solving problems and discovering ways to make it even more user friendly…”

Why SaaS for Consortia? Single shared instance of Sakai extends the tradition of collaboration Project sites shared among disciplines Resources shared through WebDAV Potentially reveals courses for cross- registration Creates new connections among support staff and faculty

Ohio Learning Network Pilot 42 participating institutions Statewide program for shared CMS –Blackboard, WebCT and open source Open source –Sakai, OSP, Moodle and uPortal Face-to-face and online training, monthly sessions Sandbox for testing new tools

Appalachian College Association 11 institutions Pilot and production uses Moved from WebCT Face-to-face and online training of support staff Week-long faculty development workshops Strong leadership (consortium and campuses)

Longsight’s open source model Strict adherence to pure open source model Branding and look & feel customizations but nothing that breaks upgrade pathway Bug fixes submitted to Sakai Jira site Rights to contract work are shared Contracted code is open sourced No lock-in to a proprietary version of Sakai Knowledge transfer if/when client takes over Clients retain all content rights

Benefits Flexibility Collaboration Lower cost Innovative features CHOICES Lowered risk

Total Cost of Access (not ownership) Number of accounts Contracted SaaS costs per year Campus staffing commitment Total costs per account per year Campus provides no new staff 1,000$19,800$0$ ,000$43,860$0$8.77 n/a Campus provides staff for tier 1 support & training 1,000$19,800$15,000$ ,000$43,860$20,000$ ,000$126,200$38,000$8.21 Campus provides staff for tier 1 support, training & technical oversight 1,000$19,800$25,000$ ,000$43,860$38,000$ ,000$126,200$45,000$8.56

Sakai as a Service Focus on what’s strategic Cost-effective access to innovation and pedagogical flexibility Reallocate human and capital resources Increase local staff expertise in open source Foster greater collaboration within and among institutions

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