The Design & Initial Rollout of a New

Institutional Blackboard Structure

Áine Galvin, Geraldine O’Neill & Eoin Hanratty

University College Dublin

ABOUT US

Áine GalvinDirector of Teaching & Learning, UCDaine.galvin@ucd.ie

Dr Geraldine O’NeillSenior Lecturer, UCD Teaching & Learninggeraldine.m.oneill@ucd.ie

Eoin HanrattyTeam Lead, UCD IT Serviceseoin.hanrarry@ucd.ie

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN

• Irelands largest & most diverse university, with over 30,000 students drawn from approx. 124 countries

• One of Europe’s leading research-intensive universities

• Modular curriculum- broad spectrum of programmes to PhD level

• Founded in 1854 by Cardinal John H Newman

• Best known graduate is James Joyce, BA in 1902

WHAT WE ARE GOING TO LEARN TODAY

1. Key educational design principles underpinning UCD’s new Bb module structure

2. Systems requirements for development of new Bb structure at institutional level

3. Communication & implementation of new Bb structure and use by staff & students

4. Results to date and next steps

OUR CHALLENGE

OUR CHALLENGE

Significant variability in structure & organisation of Bb modules…..difficult

for staff & students to place/find learning materials

OUR CHALLENGE

Bb being used as a ‘filing’ cabinet

CONSULTATION WITH STUDENTS

On-line Survey(n=19 students)

In-class feedback, School of

Information and Library Studies

(n=40)

Student Focus Group

To be Improved

• Dependency on it when it crashes

• Old fashioned lay-out • Difficulty finding

information • Different lay-out in

different modules• Increased use of grading

functionality • Use task manager for

assignments

Bb Positive aspects

• Ease of information on module

• Availability of quizzes for feedback

• Communication with other students

• On-line group work

CONSULTATION WITH STAFF

Workshop on Structure (n=14 academic and

educational technology staff)

Meetings with T&L leaders, Access/Disability, Library,

Communications staff

Individual Interviews with, and case studies from,

experienced academic staff (n= 10 )

Suggestions for new design• A simple default required for staff with

varying levels of expertise in Bb• It may be necessary to consider a gradual

transition to a new default, possibly for new modules only

• Announcements button should be retained.• Assessment button should be a separate

button and contain all assessment activity• Additional buttons could be at the discretion

of the module coordinator (lab/tutorials) • ‘Learning materials’ preferred to ‘Content’.

‘Learning’ sounds more active.• Positive to idea of dividers/sections

OUR SOLUTION

Implement new Bb structure for all modules in the institution….

• To introduce consistency for students of navigation, lay-out and ‘look & feel’ across UCD modules

• To support staff to implement simple strategies (good design practices) to enhance student learning

• To support staff to improve their Bb usage skills

PARALLEL TRACKS

Challenge 1: Structure

Inconsistency – hard to find/place resources

Track 1:

New Default Structure for all modules institution-wide

Challenge 2: Enhancing Learning

Bb being used as a filing cabinet

Track 2:

Good Design Principles (research-informed)

NEW DEFAULT STRUCTUREUCD branding,

theme & image

Reduced & renamed ‘buttons’

Emphasise

active

learning

Sections & dividers

Revised language

THREE DISTINCT SECTIONS

CONTENT ORGANISATION GUIDELINES

GOOD DESIGN PRINCIPLES

1. Plan a coherent and efficient sequence of your face-to-face, out-of-class and on-line activities & resources2,6,7,9

GOOD DESIGN PRINCIPLES

2. Reduce overload8 by creating a thematic structure in the module by grouping the learning materials by topic/activity/time-scale

3. Within these groupings, position all of the related learning materials close to each other2,3.

GOOD DESIGN PRINCIPLES

4. Consider opportunities for students to collaborate and monitor their progress within Blackboard5,6,7

Diane Cashman

GOOD DESIGN PRINCIPLES

5. Write as a narrative to students, setting out your expectation of what they have to do & why6

6. Communicate in Bb the expected ‘time on task’ 5,6,8

GOOD DESIGN PRINCIPLES

7. Ensure that learning materials are in an accessible format1,5,6

see also http://www.ucd.ie/teaching/documents/AccessibleBlackboard.pdf.

TECHNICAL IMPLEMENTATION

New institutional structure &

design

Customised theme

Customised language

pack

Banner image

Tabs and modules

Default module

structure

TECHNICAL CHALLENGES

• Customising CSS to reproduce the required design

• Modify, upload, test repeat

• Customising language pack to reflect UCD terminology

• Volume of changes

• “Course” to “Module”

• Coordinating the implementation with regular upgrade window in July

• Requirement to engage staff prior to this.

INITIAL ROLLOUT

• All new modules automatically set-up with new simplified structure (circa 630 modules = 10% of total modules)

• Existing modules have to be manually updated by lecturer

• Five pilot schools

• Review, feedback, testing of new structure

• User testing of the ‘customisation’ guidelines

COMMUNICATIONS & SUPPORT PLAN

Summer Planning

• Widespread communication of project & new structure coming on-stream - multiple communications channels employed

• Online (full) guidelines launched, along with information about upcoming supports

Pre &

Start of Term

• “Planning Your Blackboard for Next Semester” posters for all schools• Hard-copy Quick Guide sent to all academic staff• Pre-semester workshops scheduled & delivered• New ‘Customise Blackboard’ page on T&L website, plus launch of screencast

Semester 1

• Promotion video • Updated eLearning resources• Promotion of IT Services Roadshow

Pre-

Semester 2

• Further promotion of workshops• Promotion via Ed Tech network; School Heads of T&L network; IT Services school

contacts• “Planning Your Blackboard for Next Semester” posters re-issued to schools

PROMOTION MATERIALS & RESOURCES

http://www.ucd.ie/teaching/showcase/items/title,197935,en.html

INITIAL RESULTS

20%

65%

15%

Template Applied - end October 2013

YesNo - own templateNot in Bb

Random sample of 100 modules

8%

66%

26%

Template Applied - end January 2014

YesNo - own templateNot in Bb

Random sample of 874 modules

OBSERVATIONS

• Difficult to say if new structure was applied exactly (unreliable data)

• Majority of modules had their own menu structure that was very similar to the institutional structure

• Most common menu items included:

• Announcements / Module Information / Contacts / Module Documentation / Assignments / Web links

• The ‘old’ style box links still used frequently

NEXT STEPS

Two Tracks both in early stages:

a) Structure: development of strategies to increase use of the new ‘structure’, i.e. module ‘case studies’, open access to all or more modules, further communication….

b) Design Principles: use in further projects, i.e. blended learning project, on-line module design support, development of web-based resources, needs further communication.

Evaluation: Availability of a more reliable measure of success with the new reporting capability (i.e. BIRT).

REFERENCES

1. Biggs, J., Tang, C (2011) Teaching for Quality Learning: What the student does(4th Ed) . SRHE: Berkshire.

2. Fink, L. D. (2003). Creating significant learning experiences: An integrated approach to designing college courses.  San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

3. Meyers, N.E, McNulty, D.D. (2009). How to use (five) curriculum design principles to align authentic learning environments, assessment, students’ approaches to thinking and learning outcomes. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. 34 (5), 565-577.

4. UCD (2012) UCD Strategic Plan to 2014: Forming Global Minds.

5. Chickering, A.W., Gamson, Z.F. (1991). Applying the Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education. New Directions for Teaching and Learning. 47, Fall,  San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Inc. see alsohttps://www.msu.edu/user/coddejos/seven.htm

6. Littlejohn, A., Pegler, C. (2007) Documenting e-learning blends, In, Preparing for Blended E-Learning. 70-93. New York: Routledge.

7. Collis B., Moonen J. (2001), Flexible Learning in a Digital World, Kogan Page, London.

8. Mayer, R.E, Moreno, R (2003). Nine Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load in Multimedia Learning Educational Psychologist, 38(1), 43–52.

9. Sharma, P, Hannafin, M.J. (2007) Scaffolding in Technology-Enhanced Learning Environments  Interactive Learning Environments, 15, 1, 27 – 46