Try, Try, Try Again Learning from Technology Failure in...
Transcript of Try, Try, Try Again Learning from Technology Failure in...
Try, Try, Try Again: Learning from Technology Failure in Advising
Farifteh Shahbazian, M.S. & Marina Zarate, M.P.A.October 12, 2017
Introduction & Overview• The institution • Our story• The importance of failure• What we tried & how we failed
– Tools (pros and cons)– Leveraging resources
• Data & research• Lessons learned
Learning Objectives
• The benefits of failure
• Pros and cons of technology tools
• Creating opportunities to be flexible & adaptable
• Focusing on continuous improvement methodology
California State University, Fullerton Institution Snapshot
• 4-year public institution with over 40,000 students
• HSI (Hispanic-Serving Institution)
• Eight Colleges • One in four students on
campus is a business major
Mihaylo College of Business and Economics Snapshot
• Largest business school on the West Coast
• Dual accreditation in AACSB (Accounting and Business Administration)
• Over 9000 students• Approx. 1,500-1,800 new transfer
students admitted each semester • Mandatory new transfer student
advising
52% 48% TransferStudents
First-timeFreshman
Our Story• Modernizing a stagnant system
– The Business Advising Center was first established in 1979
– Assistant Dean of Academic Services appointed to oversee a team of graduate student advisors • Faculty advising was used to supplement a
“professional” advising system– Processes and policies were developed that
remained in place over the course of 32 years
• Online BA in Business Administration introduced in 2012– Opportunity to build in changes that incorporated
technology-based initiatives • There was no precedent for updating processes
– The Business Advising Center was the first college-based full-time professional advising center
– Changing mindsets related to technology-use• This required a shift in paradigm at both the micro level
(other advisors) and macro level (administration)– Understanding our students
• Commuter campus with a growing population of technology savvy interests
The Importance & Benefits of Failure• Deeper analysis of potential problems
– Can draw attention to previously overlooked issues and challenge status quo
– Learn more effectively from failure• Increased search for solutions
– Large failures may elicit protectiveness, but small failures can fuel exploration
• Motivation to make changes– Triggers the need to take corrective action
• Willingness to take risks and decreased complacency– Moderate risk taking is associated with increased innovation
(Madsen & Desai, 2010) (Sitkin, 1992)
What We Tried & How We Failed
• Initiative-based • Tech tools implemented
– Instructional technology– Learning Management
System – Web conferencing
• Pros and cons of each • Things to avoid
The Inception of “Online Advising”
• All transfer students admitted to the Mihaylo College are required to meet with advisor– What happened to those students that could not meet in-
person? (out of area, working professionals, international, etc.)
• Online advising became an option• Existing process for new students lacked interactive
element
New Transfer Student Advisement
Spring 2017• Titanium community• Camtasia tutorial • Provided email advising upfront• Gave option to meet “online”
Fall 2017• Titanium community• Worked with Instructional
Design team to create interactive tutorial with quizzes
• Added several steps (multiple advisor-student exchanges)
• Delayed advising• Required “online” meeting
Instructional Technology
Pros • Interactive, can be entertaining• Used assistance of experts • Can be thorough and
condensed – include all relevant information in 15 minutes
• Accessibility – adaptable to learning styles (visual + auditory, CC, asynchronous, ability to play back)
Cons• Learning new technology and
self-training• Time – on other people’s
schedule• Not easy to edit• Gaining access and frequency
of report – no instant access• Lack of clean data – glitches in
the system and report structure was difficult to analyze
New Transfer Student AdvisementSpring 2017• Advisement offered to 21 students• All 21 students completed
necessary steps • None opted for in-person advising
instead• 100% online advising completion
rate• 18 of 21 advised online enrolled in
classes (86%)
Fall 2017• Advisement offered to 25 students• 17 students completed tutorial
(average quiz score 73%)• 13 students completed all necessary
steps • 9 students opted for in-person
advising instead• 52% online advising completion
rate• 10 of 13 advised online enrolled in
classes (77%)
New Transfer Student Advisement
Lessons learned:• Adding more components decreased the likelihood of advising completion • When provided with option to complete tutorial (more components), more
students opted out of online advising • Getting buy-in from students is difficult • Success = online advising is effective (students who completed online
advising correctly registered, declared, enrolled full-time) – Of those who completed tutorial, fewer came in for in-person advising– Built relationships with students who participated in online advising– Student connection to college
• Failure = not as many students opted in (volume does not match workload)
Building an Online Community • Create a space for incoming students• Help students feel affiliated and welcomed to the college
(without the direct human interaction)• Ease of access to information not readily available
– Central location to obtain information given to other students in-person
Building an Online Community
Pros • Existing resource• Familiarity• Easy for advisors• Add downloadable content• Embed videos
Cons• Students are not familiar
when first entering University
• Students did not see the value
• Not easily accessible by students
• Tedious maintenance for advisors
Learning Management System – Moodle
Online Conferencing• Integrated as a method of one-to-one advising• Campus rolled out Skype for Business in fall
2016 for use amongst faculty/staff• Opportunity/tool for expanded online advising • Training and downloading to use Skype for
Business• After implementation for less than one
semester, campus announced use of Zoom • Preferred method to communicate with
students• Re-training for use and capacity of program • Ever-changing technology
Skype vs. Zoom
Pros & Cons
• Pro: Zoom is easier to access for the student – direct link – No downloading additional
components• Pro: More reliable connection &
fewer bandwidth issues• Pro: Screen sharing
• Con: no option for document sharing
Pros & Cons
• Pro: Most students have access to Skype for personal use
• Pro: Screen sharing • Pro: Document sharing options
• Con: Additional download component for those that do not have access to Skype
• Con: Connectivity issues • Con: Less secure in sharing
information
Online Walk-in Advising
• Two semester pilot• 186 hours total• Number of students
served: 32• Format did not
work• But students want
this option! (conundrum)
Adobe Connect
Pros • Convenient and easy to use• Can chat privately with
multiple students at once• Can present PowerPoint• Can share screen, provide
handouts
Cons• Not the correct tool to use
for instant messaging – Inefficient interface – Have to manually save
transcript of the chat– Students logging in can
use any name: no way to verify identity
• Discontinued on our campus
The “Online Advising” Survey
• Original implementation of the online advising process was based on the advisor perspective– What did we think the students wanted?
• After failing for two semesters, we asked ourselves, what do our students actually want?
• Survey launched to 9000 active students – Approximately 400 responses
• Here’s what we learned…..
Online Advising PreferencesHow would you define “online advising?”
How likely are you to use online advising options?
Extremely Likely
Moderately Likely
Slightly likelySlightly likely
Which of the following online advising methods would you use INSTEAD of meeting with your advisor in-person?(ranked 1-4 in order of most preferred to least preferred)
1) I would ask my advisor questions via email
2) Instant messaging my advisor
3) I would have a phone meeting with my advisor
4) I would meet my advisor online via Skype or another online conferencing program
What are the reasons you might choose to utilize online advising versus in-person advising? (mark all that apply)
I believe it would be more convenient 35.75%
I believe I would receive a faster response/answer to my question 24.89%
In-person advising availability does not fit my schedule 23.83%
None of the above, I would prefer to meet with myadvisor in person 12.52%
Other (please indicate): 3.02%
What are the reasons you might choose to utilize online advising versus in-person advising? “Other”
Why Did This Blow Our Minds?• We were surprised with how students defined online advising
– We wanted to create a multi-tiered, intricate system for delivery of services, but students wanted a simple solution
• Primary concerns of launching an online system– FERPA and privacy– Complicated questions with complicated responses– Record keeping – Becoming too prescriptive– Losing human interaction element – Lack of advising staff to handle volume
• Goal was to create a system to address concerns, however, students reported on the survey that they do in fact value face-to-face connection and will continue to seek that when they run into complex issues
Connecting the Dots: Research in Practice
• Online advising can be used for basic processes to allow the advisor more time to spend on one-on-one advising (Thompson & Prieto, 2013).– Students reported that they will self-select to meet in-person if
questions are more complex– But are likely to use online advising for basic or “one word” answer
questions
• Online students and on-ground students want the same thing: personalized experience and quick response time (Allen, Smith & Muehleck, 2014).– The reason students would use online advising is because they
believe they would receive a faster response
Connecting the Dots: Research in Practice• Even though students report that they are
interested in online advising, they tend to prefer a mix of online advising techniques and face-to-face meetings depending on their needs (Shana & Abdullah, 2014).– Some students reported that they would
prefer to meet their advisor in-person and would only use online advising as a last resort
Things to Avoid• Overly complex/complicated tools or processes requiring
additional training that can be time consuming• Going in blind – put tools to the test, start with soft
launch/beta• Waiting too long to implement
– Technology changes so often and can become outdated quickly
– Buy-in without quick execution can result in decreased motivation and confidence, a need for retraining, and less likely to get buy-in again.
Progressive Attitude• Out with the old, in with the new
– Leveraging existing resources – seek out new and existing tools and think outside of the box in how to use those tools
– You might get told no… keep moving • Create and maintain buy-in
– Regardless of failures, be transparent in your plans and future intentions
– Communicate desire to move forward and highlight successes (no matter how small)
• Continuous improvement– Don’t allow failure or set-backs to cause you to lose
momentum
Continuous Improvement (CI) Methodology
• Management-based methodology usually applied to manufacturing and product development, but can be applied to different types of work environments
• Incremental improvements through innovation
• Search for source of problem, waste, and variation⎻ Find ways to minimize them⎻ On-going cycle of improvement
• Decreases likelihood of repeating mistakes
(Bhuiyan & Baghel 2005)
Continuous Improvement (CI) MethodologyDifferent Typologies
• Organic CI ⎻ Multifunctional work group⎻ Improvement activities not left to experts⎻ Decision-making not left to authorities
• Individual CI⎻ Suggestion system: individuals come up with
ideas which are then presented to specialists who will implement
⎻ Tie it to the mission and strategy of organization = buy-in
CI Cycle
(Bhuiyan & Baghel, 2005)
In Summary
• Dispel fear of failure• Focus on lessons learned & be
open to change• Inspire advisors to see
innovation through failure • Finding Your Process
(handout)
“I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”
-Thomas A. Edison
Contact InformationMarina Zarate, MPA
Senior Undergraduate [email protected]
657-278-2214
Farifteh Shahbazian, M.S.Senior Advisor
ReferencesAllen, J.M., Smith, C.L., & Muehleck, J.K (2014). Pre- and Post-Transfer Academic Advising: What Students
Say Are the Similarities and Differences. Journal of College Student Development, 55(4), 353-367.
Bhuiyan, N. & Baghel, A. (2005). An overview of continuous improvement: From the past to the present. Management Decision, 43(5), 761-771.
Madsen, P.M., & Desai, V. (2010). Failing to learn? The effects of failure and success on organizational learning in the global orbital launch vehicle industry. The Academy of Management Journal, 53 (3), 451-476.
Shana, Z. & Abdullah, S.A.K. (2014). SAAS: Creation of an e-Advising Tool to Augment Traditional Advising Methods. Computer and Information Science, 7(1), 41-57.
Sitkin, S.B. (1992). Learning through failure: The strategy of small losses. Research in Organizational Behavior, 14. 231-266.
Thompson, L.R. & Prieto, L.C. (2013). Improvising Retention Among College Students: Investigating the Utilization of Virtualized Advising. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 17(4), 13-26.