4 years after campus wide adoption of hosted elluminate: a history of issues and successes leading...

4 years after campus-wide adoption of

hosted Elluminate

Mike Shaffer & Scott TrimmerThe University of Findlay

4 yearsafter campus wide adoption

of hosted Elluminate:

A history of issues and successes leading to a very satisfied university

A little bit about

Liberal Arts University

Undergraduate,Graduate &

Doctoral Degrees

Offer Traditional and Online Degrees

Liberal Arts University

Undergraduate,Graduate &

Doctoral Degrees

Offer Traditional and Online Degrees

Liberal Arts University

Undergraduate,Graduate &

Doctoral Degrees

Offer Traditional and Online Degrees

3900 Students

~250 Faculty

History of Implementation

Blackboard school since 2001

Blackboard shell is available for every

course

Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE)

Blackboard school since 2001

Blackboard shell is available for every

course

Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE)

Blackboard school since 2001

Blackboard shell is available for every

course

Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE)

MBA

Environmental Safety and Occupational Health Program

Degree Completion Program

Fully online programs

MBA

Environmental Safety and Occupational Health Program

Degree Completion Program

Fully online programs

Synchronous Program

Synchronous Program

Heavy Use of the Office Hours chat

Technical issues• Java version issues (server vs. client)• Corporate/Personal Firewalls• Pop-up Blockers

Majority of course were taught using the “office hours” tool because of issues with the “virtual office” tool

Faculty & Students wanted something better

Just not good enough

A search for a better toolEarly 2006:

Started Search

Fall 2006:Elluminate Pilot

Spring 2007:Wimba Pilot

Summer 2007:Decision

Elluminate Wins!!

Why we selected Elluminate:

• Java-based web-browser and platform independent architecture

• Deep functionality gave us room to “grow into the tool”

• Easy to learn interface

Elluminate Wins!!

Why Hosted?• No additional work for central ITS group• 24/7 support to end-users• Disappointing experiences from self-hosting

TegrityWhy ELM?

• Gave us the option to host on campus

Where do we host?

To EVERY course/organization in Blackboard?

Concerns• No training prior to roll-out• Getting a bad reputation on campus

Assurances• 24/7 phone support for faculty and students• One-on-one training not required

How to deploy?

We took the gamble

We took the gamble

Deployed campus-wide in

Fall 2007

Training & Support

Workshops

Training & Support

Workshops

1-on-1 Training

Training & Support

Workshops

1-on-1 Training

Student and Faculty Guides

Training & Support

Workshops

1-on-1 Training

Student and Faculty Guides

Videos

Training & Support

Issue Solution

Course copy of recordings

Support Issues

Issue Solution

Course copy of recordings

We developed manual instructions

Worked with students to develop an automated process:

http://homepages.findlay.edu/tltc/pelc/

Support Issues

Issue Solution

“&“in session

names

Support Issues

Issue Solution

“&“in session

names

We taught instructors not to use “&” in session names

Elluminate modified ELM to provide a useful error

message

Support Issues

Issue Solution

“&“in session

names

Instruct not to use “&” in session names

Elluminate fixed this issue

Support IssuesElluminatefixed issue!

Issue Solution

ELM uses ports 80 & 2187

SAS uses ports 80 & 443

Support Issues

Issue Solution

ELM uses ports 80 & 2187

SAS uses ports 80 & 443

Purchased a small SAS environment for users

connecting from organizations that block

port 2187

Support Issues

Issue Solution

Sun and Microsoft conspire to break Elluminate with updates to Java and PowerPoint

Support Issues

Issue Solution

Sun and Microsoft conspire to break Elluminate with updates to Java and PowerPoint

Elluminate identified the issues, and provided

workarounds.

Exporting slides as jpegs from PowerPoint always

works.

Support Issues

Issue Solution

Sun and Microsoft conspire to break

Elluminate

Elluminate identified the issue, and provided a

workaround. They were able to fix the issue.

Support IssuesElluminatefixed issue!

The Transformation

1. Teaching Styles Changed

2. The word spread

3. Students Expected It

The Elluminate Survey

Summer 2010

Distributed to UF Full & Part-Time Faculty

84 Responses

Elluminate Survey

The Survey Says…

54.7%Used Elluminate in the

previous academic year

78.8%Said it improved learning in their courses

91.3%Agreed it is easy to use

91.3%Agreed it is easy to use

… and agreed that it is easy for students to learn

93.5%

Would recommend it to other faculty

How is it used at UF?

First online speech course

Development of pre-recorded materials

Language interviews for self-evaluation

Guest speakers

Recording student presentations

Academic Uses

Elluminate with Mimio board

Elluminate with Wacom tablets

Virtual field trips

Class capture

Online Office Hours

Academic Uses

SEED Conference

College of Business Economic Summit

Distinguished Alumni Speakers

Pharmacy Grand Rounds

Special Events

Support & Troubleshooting

Graduate and Professional Studies Advising

Staff Meetings

Board of Trustee’s Meetings

Non-Academic Uses

1. Integration of polling with Blackboard Testing

2. High-stakes testing with Collaborate and Bb Learn

3. Course copy copies recorded sessions

Recommendations for the future

For your part in turning what could have been just another vendor

relationship into a true partnership.

Thank You Collaborate Support Team

Mike Shaffer, M.A.E.Academic Technology Specialist: Trainer & Technical SupportCenter for Teaching Excellence The University of Findlay

Email: shaffer@findlay.eduPhone: 419-434-5513Twitter: @michael_shafferLinkedin: http://linkedin.com/in/shaffer2385

Scott Trimmer, MBAAcademic Technology Specialist: Blackboard Administrator & Technical SupportCenter for Teaching Excellence The University of Findlay

Email: trimmer@findlay.eduPhone: 419-434-4150Linkedin: http://linkedin.com/in/strimmer

Contact Information