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Rob, Julie and Adel were lucky enough to go to Amsterdam to have a tour of the Blackboard (the product underpinning NILE) offices and data centre where our servers are housed.
The trip involved a morning of meetings with Blackboard staff and representatives from Bath Spa, and Birmingham University at the the Blackboard offices which are based near Dam Square the in the heart of Amsterdam. Jan-Willem Van der Zalm (Director EMEA, Managed Hosting at Blackboard) lead the discussion where we talked about the service they provide and where their roadmap will be taking the service in the future.
The meeting confirmed many of the reasons why we pay Blackboard to provide this service. It includes everything from systems monitoring, security and backups to front line support, project planning, and handling of upgrades. With all of this handled by Blackboards team of experts, and service level agreements in place guaranteeing 99.9% uptime, we can concentrate on supporting staff and students in using technology to enhance their teaching and learning practice.
The Blackboard servers are housed in an Equinix Data Centre where the security just to get in was like something out of ’24’, requiring passports, pre-booking and a registered user whose finger prints are recorded. We had a tour of the facility including a room containing 5 generators which can keep power going into the centre for 51 hours without needing a fuel top up. The Data Centre is a sophisticated building with millions being invested in the continued maintenance, security provision and safety of the equipment and data held within its walls.
We finished the tour by going into the Blackboard ‘cage’. Some of the Blackboard servers are run from this relatively new area where there is a lot of space available for expansion. There are other Data Centres containing Blackboard servers in Virginia, USA and Sydney, Australia. The Blackboard Data Centre/Infrastructure engineer gave us an enthusiastic overview of the set up within the cage demonstrating the physical structure of an otherwise virtual system.
The whole visit gave us a clearer understanding and appreciation of the work that goes on behind the scenes to support and maintain NILE. Pretty good value as far as we’re concerned.
Since NILE was formally established in 2002, the system has developed organically based on staff and student feedback. To date NILE has not been linked with other institutional systems, and this has sometimes caused confusion both at module and user level – modules listed on this system often did not have the same name or code as that held elsewhere within the University, and passwords and email addresses used for NILE have not been consistent with those used for other systems. The Learning Technology team have been monitoring these issues, and QNIG (QLS / NILE Integration Group) was set up to address them, and starting this summer, a programme of improvements will begin.
Feedback received
A number of comments have been received based around the following points:
- Some users have reported issues with logging into NILE because their password is different to that used on other systems.
- Some users have reported that they have not received communications being sent out by NILE via email, because of a mismatch in email address. Some users also report that they have received information from courses and modules which they are no longer taking, because they are not automatically removed from NILE sites.
- Students often have problems finding their correct modules on NILE, as the site may not have the name they were expecting or is listed inside another course site. Students appreciate being added in advance to the sites they need on NILE, so that they don’t need to search for them, but for staff, adding students to sites can be a long task.
- Staff sometimes need sites at the field or course level rather than just at the module level, and sometimes sites which do not fit with any of the course, field or module descriptions (for example: a site for particular project activity).
- Students are currently removed from NILE sites each year which means that they will lose access to previously used materials unless they are separately saved. Again, the process of removing students from sites is time consuming for staff.
- Staff would like to make better use of the information held in the Grade Centre in NILE, as some of this contains information which also needs to be located on the student record system.
Future Planning
As a result of the feedback above, a number of actions are now being taken forward in a phased process:
Phase 1 (2 / 3 August 2011)
The usernames, passwords and email addresses held in NILE will be linked to the central identity management system. When a user changes their centrally held password or email address then this will be automatically updated on NILE.
Phase 2 (piloting Jun – Dec 2011)
New sites on NILE will be named with a specific ID which matches exactly with that held on the student record system. The ID will define the module, field or course; the cohort (e.g. Autumn, Spring or Summer); and the year of activity.
Any requested site which is not specifically related to a module, field or course will be set up on an ad hoc basis by the Learning Technology team, and normally listed under the Organisation section of NILE rather than within the Module tab.
Once the pilot is complete and any issues have been addressed, this will be rolled out for all NILE sites. Existing course and module sites will be recreated with new codes, and sites not related to taught courses or modules will be moved to organisations. Once this is done we should be able to proceed to automatically enrol students onto the course and module sites they need.
The specific setup of the sites will also mean that a new site will be created for each different cohort and each new year. The implications for this on storage are currently being assessed but this should mean that students could have access to previously taken modules and courses. The setup of new sites will mean that there is no need for staff to manage site enrolments, and communication to specific cohorts will be easier.
Phase 3 (2012 onwards)
Pilots will be undertaken to look at how Grade Centre data from NILE may be passed directly into the student record system. This will potentially speed up student access to grades and reduce administration.
Further Information
If you have any comments or questions on the above then please email Rob.Howe@northampton.ac.uk
Sign up for the following session at www.northampton.ac.uk/it-training
- Creating Large documents
- Remote Working
- Refworks
- PowerPoint
Take a look at the new IT training schedules at www.northampton.ac.uk/it-training
The May 2011 Learning Technology Newsletter is now available from the Learntech Newsletter page. This provide full details on current team activity and new activity based on feedback received.
Image via Wikipedia
The Learning Technology team are now available on Skype!
We can’t always be where you need us, but Skype allows us to support you remotely using the screen-sharing tool – we can show you what we’re doing on our screens, or talk you through what to do on yours, without either of us needing to travel. Best of all, it works on PCs, Macs, and even some mobile devices, from anywhere in the world. All you need is the Skype software, a Skype account (free), and a headset (or speakers and a microphone/webcam).
If you already use Skype, or if you think this might be helpful for you, why not get in touch with us to find out more. Each of team has a Skype ID, which you can find listed on the Contact Us page in the LearnTech site on NILE.
Executive Summary
The University of Northampton (UN) is committed to enhancing the quality of its e-learning and this is a central component of its Learning and Teaching strategies and key to the delivery of its new Strategic Plan 2010-15. The QAQE E-Learning Toolkit allows the University to develop, refine and enhance the institutional approach to quality with a particular focus on the whole lifespan of the (re)development of programmes, making use of Open Educational Resources where applicable. The toolkit will particularly assist as the institution moves forward to increase and enhance its distance learning provision and review and develop its curricula.
1) Institutional Context
Since 2007, UN has been working on improving processes for course design and delivery using a method based on the Carpe Diem model (Originally developed by The University of Leicester (Armellini et al, 2008 and 2009)). Over time this process has been changed and refined and is now termed CAIeRO (Creating Aligned and Interactive educational Resource Opportunities).
The CAIeRO process is an opportunity for the course team, Learning Technologists, Librarians, Students and other stakeholders (e.g. academic developer/facilitator(s) who are not part of the course team) to come together over a focused period of time to reflect on current or future courses and rebuild these in a way which is pedagogically focused and makes use of technology where relevant – and where it would enhance the delivery.
‘…….the use of the technology itself is increasingly not a distinguishing factor for organisations, but rather the quality of that use and the way it advances the goals of a change resilient organisation become essential to success.’
(Marshall, 2010)
The style of the events held under the CAIeRO banner have subtly changed over time to incorporate new practices and developments. For example, recent JISC/HEA funding during 2010 has allowed the University to explore the development of Open Educational Resources under the TIGER project (www.northampton.ac.uk/tiger). This has introduced the elements of Designing for Openness to the CAIeRO events so that culture of both using and sharing material is ingrained at the earliest opportunity.
We are also discussing the nature of course development and design with the Director of Learning and Teaching and Head of Quality and Curriculum Services to look at the nature of the validation process and the way in which programmes are delivered within the University.
2) Focus, Scope and Timeline
A team with the following staff will review the toolkit during March and its applicability to the CAIeRO process:
- Director of Learning and Teaching
- Head of Quality and Curriculum Services
- Deputy Director of Academic Services (Information Services)
- Principal Lecturer Learning and Teaching (Health)
- Head of Learning Technology
Whilst the institution has interest in all the stages and the detailed questions which are provided within the toolkit, it is clear that we currently place more focus on some areas than others. We will provide full feedback on the use of the toolkit and would hope to be involved in future revisions.
Two CAIeRO events will be held during March/ April / May informed by the outcomes of the above review and appropriate modifications. Staff involved in the CAIeRO processes will be surveyed about their experiences with particular focus on the value added through the use of the e-learning toolkit.
The feedback will be collated by 31st May, reported on, case study developed and then presented at the e-learning quality conference on 14th June.
As part of our regular programme of NILE maintenance and improvements, this summer there will be two short periods when work will be completed. There may a disruption to the NILE service during these periods.
On the weekend of 25/26 June, the software that underpins NILE will be upgraded to the latest service pack.
On the 26/27 July, NILE will be linked to the staff / student login system.
In preparation for these changes, all users need to ensure that their passwords and email addresses on NILE match those on the main University IT systems, before 25th June. For more details, please see the upgrade information page.
I’ve known about this tool for a while, it was developed in the MS Lab, and it’s a free tool to create 360 panoramas and virtual tours. I’m using the iPhone app at the moment, testing it out. The stitching isn’t perfect, ideally I’d find someone with a fish-eye lens and a digital stills camera, but for a quick and easy 360 tour, Photosynth is pretty good. I’ve uploaded it to the Photosynth site and also embedded a panorama in my NILE training module. The School of Health wanted to look into posting up little tours of their facilities, so this might be of use. UoN marketing paid a company to produce virtual tours a while back but the cost was silly, they may try a use video to achieve the same effect.
This is my first effort, so the stitching is bit off but you get the idea.
Link to Photosynth 360 panorama
Image via CrunchBase
There is no denying that as new technologies go, Twitter is here to stay (as much as any web tech ever is). With a user base of 175 million, it regularly features in the news, albeit sometimes alongside disparaging comments about users posting what they were eating for breakfast. So is it actually useful, and something that you should be paying attention to? I think so, and here’s why.
What actually is it?
Technically, it’s a ‘microblogging’ tool. If that means nothing to you, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Basically it’s a place where people can post short updates (no more than 140 characters, think the length of a text message before the phones that allow you to type forever). These are (mostly) public on the web for anyone to see.
Why is it useful?
Different people have different ideas about this. Below are some of mine. Feel free to add your own thoughts in the comments.
Twitter for CPD
I should probably point out first that my social media accounts (like my email addresses) have clearly defined purposes – Facebook is for personal conversations, and LinkedIn and Twitter are for professional ones. Rarely if ever do the two cross over, which keeps things nice and simple. This means I have a clear idea before I start of the kind of information I want to find on twitter – some people have more than one account to do this kind of filtering.
Although there is undoubtedly a lot of nonsense posted on Twitter, the power of the tool is in the ability to choose who you follow (following someone means you see their updates, or ‘tweets’). For me this is an organic process – over time I might meet people at conferences or see their twitter accounts on email signatures, or recognise names that are well-known in my field. The trick is to gather a list of people that are talking about things you will find useful or interesting (and of course this is why people would follow you, too…)
Following these people gives me a list of updates that I can quickly scan through when I have a few spare minutes (each one is only 140 characters remember), to get an idea of what’s new in my field. Having people follow me means I can post questions, and, if I’m lucky, get answers from someone who knows. It’s also a source of peer review, for everything from informal ideas to papers for publication.
Twitter for marketing
A number of companies, organisations and HE institutions have accounts on Twitter. This allows them to send out updates, as well as track what’s being said about them by other users. You can see some reviews of how universities are using Twitter on Brian Kelly’s blog: he’s covered 1994 Group Unis and Russell Group Unis.
Twitter for learning and teaching
Aside form simply keeping students updated and recommending resources, teaching staff are finding a range of creative ways to use twitter for learning and teaching. The most common ones are:
- ‘crowdsourcing’/collaboration. Using hashtags (a unique word or set of characters with a # sign in front of it) allows you to collect together tweets posted by a range of different users, as long as they all contain the same hashtag. This could allow you to collect resources and information from a group of students. A great example of this way of collecting information is Tim Burton’s collective scriptwriting project.
- ‘backchannels‘ and classroom voting. Having a hashtag for an event or lecture gives you the opportunity to display feedback from the audience during the event. Or, if this sounds a bit scary, you can use polling software like twtpoll to ask specific questions on twitter. Any student with a smartphone or laptop can access twitter in the classroom.
Follow the Learning Technology team: @LearnTechUoN
You can get some more ideas from the links below. Also, look out for training sessions from the LT team.
50 ideas on using Twitter for Education (Cooper-Taylor Training)
Eight Reasons an Innovative Educator Uses Twitter (The Innovative Educator Blog)
The ‘utility’ of Twitter in teaching and learning (JISC RSC)
100 ways to teach with Twitter (Emerging EdTech)
