From Start to Finish - The Road To Open Source Ryan Allen Senior E-Learning Specialist University of Dayton June, 15, 2010

Rolling Out Sakai – Where We Came From – Analyzing Our Options – Implementation – Development Process – Training Sustaining and Future Growth – Data Collection – Overcoming Issues – Tips

Rolling Out Sakai – Where We Came From – Analyzing Our Options – Implementation – Development Process – Training Sustaining and Future Growth – Data Collection – Overcoming Issues – Tips B A Point A to Point B in 30 months

E-Learning Lab Staff Training and Support  Ryan Allen – Senior E-Learning Specialist  Leah Bergman – E-Learning Specialist  Jerry Timbrook – E-Learning GA ) Development  Paul Dagnall – Web Developer  Matt Mize – Systems Administrator

University of Dayton 511th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010 o Private University founded in 1850 o Founded by the Society of Mary (Marianist) o ≈7,500 Undergrad / 3,500 Grad Students o Top 10 Catholic University in the nation o Faculty are not ordered to use technology but are also not shy about asking for help o No real Instructional Designers o 2010 NIT Men’s Basketball Champions!

Where We Came From UD adopted WebCT Campus Edition 4.1 as its LMS in 2003 About courses on WebCT each year Primarily used for: Submitting Assignments· Online Assessments Accessing Readings· Discussion Forums Posting/Reviewing Grades E-Learning’s primary customers are campus faculty Provide training, support, and instructional design assistance

We Want More! (and we don’t want to pay through the nose for it)

The Migration Timeline 11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, What we knew going in:  We wanted to end our contract with WebCT by the end of 2009  It was going to be a phased migration  A great deal of (new) work was ahead of us

The Migration Timeline 11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, What we learned along the way:  We needed help – IT Staff, Sakai Community, Faculty, Student  Some will embrace the change, others will not  30 months was just about the right amount of time needed

Phase 1 – Making the Decision 1.E-Learning lab reviews available LMS’s 2.Cross section of faculty and administrators brought together to evaluate options 11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Days $$$ Toolset Migration options Company history, etc…

Evaluating Our Options LMS Advisory Panel Assembled Finding the cost of Open Source The panel reviewed resources compiled by the E-Learning Lab: WebCT Usage Reports WebCT Satisfaction Survey Results ePortfolio Experience with Sakai 3 migration paths offered 1.Move to Sakai 2.Migrate to WebCT 6/Vista 3.Stick with WebCT 4.1 until Blackboard’s NG version is ready.

Evaluating Our Options LMS Advisory Panel Assembled Finding the cost of Open Source The panel reviewed resources compiled by the E-Learning Lab: WebCT Usage Reports WebCT Satisfaction Survey Results ePortfolio Experience with Sakai 3 migration paths offered Sakai unanimously chosen

Phase 2 – System & Tool Review 11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Days  Branding  Tool Review  JIRA Ticket System

From Sakai to Isidore St. Isidore of Seville Patron saint of students and schoolchildren and recently recommended for patronage of computers and the Internet

11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Days  Branding  Tool Review  JIRA Ticket System Phase 2 – System & Tool Review

Slow roll-out with limited number of tools – manage expectations and maintain better support All core tools reviewed – 11 of 15 core tools chosen for the initial Fall 2008 release – 3 more tools added for the Winter 2009 release – 2 more tools added for the Winter 2010 release Tool Review Process

11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Days  Branding  Tool Review  JIRA Ticket System Phase 2 – System & Tool Review

How We Keep Track of Progress and Needs? >400 Bug Fixes and Improvements Already Made

Phase 3 – Development  rSmart, Unicon, Ourselves?  What do we spend our time developing?  What does our hardware environment look like? 11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Days

Phase 3 – Development  rSmart, Unicon, Ourselves?  What do we spend our time developing?  What does our hardware environment look like? 11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Days

What does it mean to develop in Sakai? Data Access 10%* Business Logic 60%* User Interface 30%* HTML, JSP/JSF, JavaScript Java Reads/Writes via Java (Hibernate) * - % of time spent by developers

How do we decide what to ‘develop’? Before we went live: We used our experience What did people like/not like about WebCT? After we went live: Faculty Feedback/Requests  Phone Calls  s E-Learning Lab Guided  Trainer Feedback  Developer Suggestions Make plans but not necessarily promises

Disagreements are Good

Phase 3 – Development  rSmart, Unicon, Ourselves?  What do we spend our time developing?  What does our hardware environment look like? 11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Days

SSL 4 Servers Purchased – 2 App, 2 Database Production and Testing Environments Connected to campus SAN Rely on Oracle expertise on campus

SSL

Phase 4 – Pilot Instructor Training  18 instructors chosen for pilot semester  Based on WebCT experience and classes to be taught  No Test/Quiz tool available during pilot semester  Mandatory 2 day training – 2 hours each day 11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Days

11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Phase 5 – Pilot Semester & Training  22 course sections taught from multiple disciplines  Training sessions offered to all faculty throughout semester  Development courses created for all interested 140 Days

Training Approaches  2 Hour ‘Mastering Isidore’ Sessions  2 Trainers Per Session  Specific Tool Training  Departmental Planning  Customized Training Material & Isidore Help File  Isidore ‘Tip’ s  Students/Instructors

11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Phase 6 – System Upgrade  System upgraded weekend after grades due  Tests & Quizzes, Wiki, and Chat Room tools added (w/ help)  Self Course Creation functionality added for all in W09 semester 14 Days

11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Phase 6 – System Upgrade  System upgraded weekend after grades due  Tests & Quizzes, Wiki, and Chat Room tools added (w/ help)  Self Course Creation functionality added for all in W09 semester 14 Days We started with version 2.0 in Fall 2008 We’re now up to 2.5 We install bug fixes and minor feature releases at 6 AM every other Sunday (2.5.3)

11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Phase 7 – Sakai Open to Campus  WebCT and Sakai run in parallel during 2009 (3 semesters)  Faculty converted when appropriate for them  45% Winter | 65% Summer | 95% Fall  Migration options laid out & assistance provided 350 Days

We’ll be parting ways with WebCT on December 18 th, 2009 Faculty told over and over and over throughout 2009

Migrating from WebCT Create Automated Migration Utility Start Fresh or E-Learning Lab Migration – Began late Spring 2009 – Utilized Georgia Tech Migration Tools – Online Migration Request Form Created – Faculty were ed the courses for which they were instructors in as a reminder

Communicating with Campus Blanket (Non-Threatening) Marketing

Student Review 4711th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010 WebCTIsidore Which system is easiest to learn?49.00%51.00% Which system is easiest to use?44.80%55.20% Which system is better at supporting learning?36.20%63.80% Which system do you prefer to use?42.70%57.30%

Faculty Review 4811th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010 WebCTIsidore Which system is easiest to learn?10.7%89.3% Which system is easiest to use?0.0%100.0% Which system is better at supporting learning?3.6%96.4% Which system do you prefer to use?3.6%96.4%

11th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, Phase 8 – Bye Bye WebCT. Hello Sakai!  Lost LDAP authentication for WebCT on December 18th  WebCT still available to admin accounts  Hardly anybody looking back… December, 18, 2009

User and Site Statistics 5011th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010

User and Site Statistics 5111th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010 New uses popping up all the time New users popping up all the time Open Source benefits become more apparent to faculty all the time

Lessons Learned 5211th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010 Use x86 chip for Application Server Deal with Comparisons Head On ‘Hold Hands’ & Remind users ‘Why’ Dealing with the ‘Squeaking Wheels’ Believe the symptom, not the explanation Be ‘Unapologetically Helpful’ Get everyone ‘in on the act’ 5% of users will NEVER be happy …no matter what!

Making Users Happy Be Responsive & Understanding Install bug fixes and minor updates frequently Follow up with users that experienced problems Upgrade Course Evaluations (Eval Sys) Site Statistics (Site Stats) Rubric Grading Survey faculty & students yearly Share results and future plans when appropriate 5311th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010

Thank You Other Presentations You May Be Interested In:  “Is Sakai Always This Slow?”  Matt Mize, Paul Dagnall, and Steve Smith  Wednesday, 10:00-11:00 AM – Grand Mesa A  “Training & Marketing: Setting End-Users Up for Success”  Leah Bergman  Thursday, 1:50-2:35 PM – Grand Mesa B 5411th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010

Isidore Help and Resources Isidore Server – E-Learning Website – – Training Movies – Downloadable documentation and tool FAQs – Quick Start Guides and Introduction Video for Users – Training Calendar