1. IT Innovations for Field Education Administration, Assessment and Collaboration
Rebecca B. Brigham, MSW
Assistant Dean for Field Education
Larry J. Rosenfeld, MSW
Applications Analyst

2. Presentation Objectives
FE administration, assessment and collaboration
Goals of Automation
Solutions
Features
Quality
Implementation
Lessons Learned

3. FE Administration, Assessment and Collaboration
Develop and vet field placements
Match students to appropriate placements based on various criteria
Communicate with instructors and students critical information
On-going refinement of field education practices
Assessment / Monitoring
Monitor and evaluate student performance in placement
Monitor instructor completion of critical tasks, such as student assessments
Collaboration / Empowerment
Create environment that maximizes student/instructor/school engagement
Enable students to review potential future instructors’ resumes and agency statements

4. Goals of Field Office Automation
Speed / Efficiency
Remove unnecessary congestion to workflows
Automate labor-intensive processes
Reliability / Accuracy
Source of information can enter their own information from virtually anywhere
Validate data as close to data source as possible; instantaneous updates
Accountability / Access
On-demand reporting
Information archive & retrieval (less storage, faster multi-site access, on-demand printing)

5. Solutions Off-the-Shelf Custom Software Examples Benefits
Considerations
Off-the-Shelf
Alcea IPT
Sonia
Taskstream-Tk20 & LiveText
others
No development cost or cycle
Broad user community
Professional Help Desk
Features
Customization
Integration
Data storage
Support, training
Branding
Maintenance
Custom Software
Flying Bridge
SSWiS
Highly tailored to school’s needs
Full featured
On-site support
Project management
Staffing 5

6. Features

7. Feature Highlights Student tracking Student assessment
Placement planning
Student-placement matching
Program analysis
Student and agency data entry / migration

8. Feature example 1: Student tracking
form
monthly hours, activities, goals
notification
signature
student
field instructor
compliance
Student tracking workflow:
Student completes form
Instructor notified
Instructor signs off
Admin & faculty searches report (asynchronously)
admin, field faculty
report
database

9. Feature example 2: Matching (start)
form
placement type, time of year
notification
verification
field instructor
admin, field faculty
placements
Initial matching workflow:
Instructor completes form
Admin, faculty notified
Admin, faculty verifies
Student searches report (asynchronously)
student
report
database

10. Quality

11. Quality attribute 1: Reliability
Security
Usability
System availability (outages, downtime)
Backups (data recovery)
Crisis management (response to crises)
Maintenance procedures
Scalability (heavy loads)

12. Quality attribute 2: Usability / Accessibility
Field requirements: reliable internet access; browsers
Browsers (compatibility) vs. apps (platforms)
Software dependencies (e.g., Flash, Java)
Accessible for screen readers
Ease of Use
Navigation (especially by different roles)
Report filters, columns, sorting, downloading
Help support: on-line, , phone
Mobile friendliness
Integration
Interoperability with other software ( , Excel)
Integration with other School units (Student Services)
Reliability
Security
Usability

13. Usability example 1: Student view

14. Usability example 2: Administrator view

15. Quality attribute 3: Security / Privacy
Login portals
Defend against hackers & spammers
Abide by university policies & services
Require registration/authorization process  
FERPA compliance
Protected: directory info, courses, grades.
Instructors require need-to-know basis
Permissions based on roles & dates
Trans-inclusivity
Legal vs. preferred names
Reliability
Security
Usability

16. Implementation

17. Implementation: Project Management
Specification
Design & Code
Test
Release
Maintenance

18. Implementation: Product Rollout
Verifying completion of essential product features & quality
Providing on-line help
Institutionalizing Help Desk, bug reports, upgrades
Training staff and other end users
Multi-phased rollout among different cohorts

19. Implementation: Project Life Cycle
Specification
Design & Code
Test
Release
Maintenance

20. Lessons Learned
Manage constraints (costs/resources, time/schedule, scope/features)​
Goal fidelity (maintain voice of customer)​
Complexity breeds complexity​
Features
Schedule
Resources

21. Discussion/Questions

22. Contact Information
Rebecca Brigham
Larry J. Rosenfeld
PowerPoint Presentation