Richmond upon Thames College Context: Large FE college 4000 FT students 300+ lecturing staff Entry level….….Oxbridge Several hundred part-time students (evening or day-release)

ILT & e-learning ILT/e-learning manager appointed Jan 2004 January 2004 –Localised use of ICT by curriculum areas –Several large open access areas –A number of classrooms with multiple computers –Robust admin and teaching network –A few projectors and a couple of Smartboards

ILT & e-learning MIS –Comprehensive –Widely used by staff – now seen as a valuable tool Academic year – very small budget …if there had been a large budget?

e-learning Six Champions (two hours per week remission) for end of Purchased Blackboard - March staff trained by external trainer (April) Cascade development during May/June Little or no student use at this time … staff

Blackboard training 2-3 hour session A brief introduction –Overview –Uploading documents –Test design –Course management –Pedagogy… But wrong time and place

Blackboard What happened next? –170+ instructors created (further training within departments?) –150+ ‘shell’ courses created –All FT students given an account in September People used it… …500+ ‘active users’

Blackboard Not many problems but so many issues!

Blackboard issues Quality control Staff audit –150+ have requested training! Initial training Intermediate/advanced training Development of training materials …or when can we get them?

Blackboard issues Encouraging senior management to understand a little about Bb

Blackboard issues Survey of staff/student usage –Where is it useful/not useful? What are student expectations? What is the best use of Bb for full-time students? Does Bb have a role in self-assessment, target setting and monitoring?

Blackboard issues Understanding the benefits… and the costs Realising the benefits Avoiding de-innovation …and a whole host of practical issues.

Blackboard? So far, so good!