Sunset to Sunrise: The University of Windsor Evolution
of SakaiPurita BristowAssistant Director, Enterprise Information Systems Services
Branden VisserApplication Programmer,IT Services
Terry CollinsLMS Administrator & Coordinator,Centre for Teaching & Learning
Lorna StolarchukLearning Technology Trainer, Centre for Teaching & Learning
• Project management is like juggling three balls - time, cost and quality.
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• Programme management is like a troupe of circus performers standing in a circle, each juggling-three balls and swapping balls from time to time.
G. Reiss http://www.projectauditors.com/Company/Project_Management_Quotes.html
About the University of Windsor• Mid-sized University in
South-West Ontario, Canada, across the river from Detroit, MI.
• Approx. 16,000 students• 150 bachelor, master's
and doctoral degree programs
• 524 Faculty• Student/faculty ratio:
26:1
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Session Outcomes
By the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Describe at least three lessons learned about the deployment of a Sakai system in a mid-sized university
• Identify at least three pros/cons regarding system support
• Discuss at least three effective pedagogical practices discovered when using the Sakai system
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
• 2004-2005. Mandate to evaluate and select a new LMS
• Why look for another LMS?• Current LMS: ViCKi (Virtual Course Kit)
• Limited Development and ResourcesLimited Development and Resources• Difficult/expensive to upgradeDifficult/expensive to upgrade• Limited ToolsetLimited Toolset
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
• Fractured SupportFractured Support• Distance between divisions (technical, administrative and Distance between divisions (technical, administrative and
academic)academic)• Failed to Meet Everyone’s NeedsFailed to Meet Everyone’s Needs
• Encouraged a patchwork of online environments• U of W was at a place where it needed to improve its U of W was at a place where it needed to improve its
capacity to deliver on-line learning environmentscapacity to deliver on-line learning environments• We were falling behind other universities in our We were falling behind other universities in our
capacity to offer solid, interactive and scalable online capacity to offer solid, interactive and scalable online course web sitescourse web sites
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
• Commercial vendors: Desire2Learn, WebCT and BlackBoard.
• Sakai was added afterwards • University of Michigan - 2004• Educause 2005
• Entry into Open Source world• University requirements a priority vs profit
• a very powerful, flexible and affordable tool for handling the growing demand for on-line course management
• a research collaboration tool.
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
• source code available• best way to get the software developed quickly and at
virtually no cost• creates a community of avid supporters, people actively
involved in promoting and helping others use the software. • Fairly large number of developers working on a very
sophisticated code
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S/I 2006 Fall 2006 Winter 2007 S/I 2007 Fall 2007 Winter 2008 ->
Pre-Pilot
Phase I (5 courses – no DE)
Development Implementation
Phase II (15 courses - incl DE)
Development Implementation
Phase III (add S/I 2007 DE +) Development Implementation
Phase IV (open to all)
Development Implementation
Phase V
Migration of ViCKi kits to Sakai
Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Multi Phase Implementation PlanPre-Pilot (Intersession/Summer 2006) • temporary Server set up• Sakai version 2.1.2 (not Oracle based; MS based
DB)• 1 course Theater – designed and taught• LMS coordinator hired to provide ongoing client
support (tier 1, 2 & 3).
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
• Purchased Production Server • Installation/Setup included:
• hardware (Solaris) T2000 model• sakai 2.1.2
• Oracle based• Enterprise backup• Established ldap/eds connection
• Authentication
• Class lists from SIS db
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase I – Development (Intersession/Summer 2006)
• Admin/Technical training conducted in August 2006 via rSmart
• Candidates selected for development of non-DE courses for delivery in Fall 2006
• Instructors briefed on Sakai format and features• Established organizational structure and detailed
implementation plan1211th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010
Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase I – Implementation (Fall 2006) • 5 non-DE courses delivered in Fall 2006 from
• Education, Engineering, Psychology, Business, Computer Science
• Installed rSmart CLE 2.2 • 1st tier support switched to ITS HelpDesk• Training for participants• Instructor training to be conducted in
November/December 2006 via rSmart1311th Sakai Conference - June 15-17, 2010
Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase I – Implementation (Fall 2006) • Selection of instructor candidates in Winter 2007
done through the Deans’ Office• Training of new instructors on CLE 2.2• 15 new courses to be developed in Fall 2006
(including DE) for delivery in Winter 2007• Representation from all Faculties except Law
(Phase III)
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase I – Implementation (Fall 2006) • Education -- Human Kinetics• Engineering -- Psychology• Social Work -- Women’s Studies• Business -- Computer Science• Biology -- Earth Sciences• Nursing
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase I – Implementation (Fall 2006) • University of Windsor branding applied through
“Name the LMS” Contest. New Name: CLEW
• LMS Trainer (ITS) hired to begin training faculty in 2007
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase II – Implementation (Winter 2007)• Promotional campaign begins with consultation
from PAC• Hiring of EISS developer• ITS Helpdesk assumes Tier 2 support• Feedback from new courses
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase II – Implementation (Winter 2007)• All DE courses from Summer/Intersession 2007
to be developed, plus carryover where applicable from Phase II
• Project sites for researchers, graduate students and non-academic associations become available as training provides
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase III – Implementation (Summer/Intersession 2007)
• Promotional campaign continues with consultation from PAC
• All Summer/Intersession DE and non- DE sites developed are delivered
• All U of W courses that require on-line resources or delivery to be developed
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase III – Implementation (Summer/Intersession 2007)
• Selection and conversion of existing ViCKi kits to Sakai begins
• Timetable for eventual discontinuation of ViCKi to be established
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase IV – Development (Summer/Intersession 2006)• Promotional campaign continues with consultation
from PAC• “Open to All” – all U of W courses that require on-line
resources or delivery to be developed, plus carryover where applicable from Phase III
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Sakai Rollout Processin Windsor
Phase V – Migration of ViCKi to Sakai (Summer/Intersession 2007)
• Timetable for eventual discontinuation of ViCKi to be established
• Fall 2008 – Planning for release 2.5 • Fall 2009 – Release 2.5• Fall 2010 – Plan for release 2.7• Intersession/Summer 2010 – Vicki Server retired
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ViCKi to Sakai Conversion Steps
Conversion strategy• Contacted via email those with existing
Vicki kits.• Developed a program to create a Sakai site
from existing Vicki Kits upon request
Note: Over 1000 Vicki Kits, 300 Converted, less than 30 complex kits
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Project Administration Model
• Governance model based on input from across Governance model based on input from across campuscampus• Administration, Faculty, Student Associations, Administration, Faculty, Student Associations,
Support Services, Library, Public AffairsSupport Services, Library, Public Affairs
Project Teams and Committees:• Steering Committee
• Executive overseer of the project.
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Project Administration Model
Project Teams and Committees:• Implementation Team
• a self directed team that handled the overall management of the LMS project. Membership: Assistant Director of Enterprise Information Systems Services, Assistant Director of Client Support Services, Manager – Centre of Teaching and Learning
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Project Administration Model
Project Teams and Committees:• Client Support Team
• LMS Administrator, LMS Developers, LMS Trainer, + Implementation team
• Technical Team• Representations from
• Systems Programming, Main Library• + Client Support Team, + Implementation Team
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Project Administration Model
Project Teams and Committees:• Advisory Team
Representations from all the Faculty areas across the University + Implementation Team
• Other Teams:• rSmart• Sakai Foundation
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Project Administration Model
• The model The model • Strengthened relationship between Centre for Strengthened relationship between Centre for
Teaching and Learning, IT Services and the Faculty Teaching and Learning, IT Services and the Faculty areasareas
• Successful Delivery of projectSuccessful Delivery of project• Committee model worksCommittee model works
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Environment Web: F5 BigIP LTM v9.0
Upgraded from Apache HTTPd 2.0 + mod_proxy Database: Oracle 10g on AIX App Servers: Sun Solaris, Tomcat 5.5.28 LDAP for user and group “provider” and
authentication Synchronizes from SIS
Database content storage JIRA holds many more Sakai environment details1
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1 http://jira.sakaiproject.org/browse/PROD
Robust, Reliable and Stable• Jump-started with commercial support from rSmart
• Stability didn't come right away
• Lots of unknowns
• Further JVM tuning required
• Further database tuning required
• Software bottlenecks in Sakai 2.4
• Lessons learned:
• More interaction with the Sakai Community to estimate usage and resources
• More thorough load testing (e.g., JMeter)
• More thorough performance monitoring (e.g., JMX, JSTAT, custom scripting)
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Contributing• Contribute where possible
• It's win-win• It seems like the right thing to do
• Ways to contribute1
• Technical• Design• Teaching & Learning• Bug reports / Feature requests
• Ways we contribute• Bug reports / Feature requests• Software patches
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1 http://sakaiproject.org/contributing-sakai
Making Technical Contributions Getting started
Joined the “lists”1
Set up the development environment2
Jump-start: Attended a Programmer's Cafe3
What needs to be done? Found “bite-size” issues in JIRA4 and tackled them What do your users want done?
Report, discuss, test and fix!
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1 http://sakaiproject.org/join-email-lists2 http://confluence.sakaiproject.org/display/BOOT/Development+Environment+Setup+Walkthrough3 http://confluence.sakaiproject.org/display/BOOT/Programmer%27s+Cafe4 http://jira.sakaiproject.org/secure/Dashboard.jspa
Instructors: Converting to Sakai• Pros/cons of phasing out our previous LMS• ViCKi (LMS in Lotus Notes) - May 2010: Severs were turned off
PROS 1. Sakai was exciting 2. Many new tools to useCONS 1. Replacement Tools – not always better 2. Many relied on 2 being replaced (Assignments & Discussions). 3. Many users were asked to leave a system they knew very well. Migrate to CLEW Content converted to web pages & viewed through Content Viewer
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Windsor’s Customization
• Early adopters came into Sakai willingly.• Reluctant faculty needed a reason to move.• Customizations helped them make the move.• Windsor’s Customizations:
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•Dashboard•Course Site Requests /Approvals•Content Viewer•Email Instructor•Quizzes & Tests
Troubleshooting• Pros/cons of troubleshooting the system and responding
to instructors • Dashboard & Site Requests / ApprovalsPROS 1. Innate knowledge of the system and users 2. Trusted relationship 3. AccountabilityCONS 1. Optimum level of communication & details (fine-line) 2. Problems with other systems = Sakai problems (CLEW is Down) 3. Not a shared role (one administrator)
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Training: Then, Now and Next
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Calendar
Announcements
Syllabus
Resources
Interactivity
Assessment
Managing Student Work
Structuring Lessons
Basics
Learning Community
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Learning Community
Quotes from participants• “likes diversity and make-up of group, both
technically & faculty”• “See all possibilities & keeps me alert to
what I could do”• “Connects with Resource people who are
knowledgeable”
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Goals of Learning Community
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Ways of Being Together
• Keep confidentiality in mind• Be respectful and empathetic• Don’t cut people off or take too much time• Be encouraging and support creativity• Have fun while learning• Trust the model, model the trust
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Ways of Being Together cont’d
• Tolerate those who are passionate• Be brave enough to be honest• Capture the memories and history of the
meetings• Share food and don’t choke• Tidy the room when done
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Support Evolution
• Moving from providing “tool” training to integrating with pedagogical principles
• Evening classes are appealing, particularly to sessional instructors who work elsewhere
• Some faculty prefer phone/email/one-on-one vs. class
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Individuals Attending Classes
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Aug. 09 - June 10
Workshop Attendees by Time of Day
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Aug. 09-June 10Note: evening classes began Dec. 09
Support:Personal and Phone Consultations
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Aug. 09 - June 10
Online Education Course:Using Sakai
• Wiki was an effective tool
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Online Education Course:Using Sakai
• Forums was an effective tool
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Online Education:Using Sakai
• Melete (Lessons) posed us some challenges
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Next Steps
• Develop group processes more clearly next offering of Online Education
• Work to integrate and embed more content directly into lessons with accessible visuals
• Develop group interaction Sakai training classes
• Develop Learning Community – other locations host, review goals annually
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Questions
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Remember to complete the session evaluation @http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/sakai10
Windsor’s Customization
• Dashboard
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Windsor’s Customization
• Course site requests
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Windsor’s Customization
• Course site approvals
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Windsor’s Customization
• Content Viewer
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Windsor’s Customization
• Email Instructor
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Windsor’s Customization
• Quizzes & Tests
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