VLE Review update
Context and drivers at LSBU
Aim of the VLE review
VLE Review stages (UCISA)
Scope
The learning environment covers all digital technology used to facilitate learning, teaching and assessment activities including those used in the design and delivery of teaching, the creation and curation of content, and access and interaction with digital content occurring in physical or virtual spaces including:
Emergent Themes - Moodle limitations (1)
Administration: Setting up groups laborious task (manual and time-consuming); multiple intakes studying the same module is complicated; students repeating a module can get lost between sites; access for key staff requires extra; roll over each year is clunky;
Assessment: file size too limited for many schools (but particularly BEA and ACI); possibility to submit ‘drafts’ causes issues (students believing they have submitted etc.); feedback template does not encourage a variety of different feedback formats (e.g. podcasts);
System: latest version of Moodle is not used; performance and capacity issue at times with glitches (especially at the beginning of the year or during assessment periods); not reliable
Sites: course sites separate from modules and not utilised effectively (less engagement); some students often confused by layout which may be to do with how the information is presented; despite baseline, module sites can be inconsistent and set-up differently leading to confusion;
Analytics: manual set-up and monitoring; don’t track everything; could go further/be improved e.g. itemised tracking;
Support: lack of training and support available for staff using the VLE; staff lack awareness of full functionality and potential of Moodle; don’t know how to fully exploit its functionality;
Emergent Themes - Moodle limitations (2)
Accessibility: colour scheme and fonts not favourable; Moodle page busy; DDS information not always accurate;
Functionality (tools/activities): plug-ins not available; tools do not effectively encourage or facilitate interactivity (e.g. students don’t engage with discussion forums); not very customizable (e.g. cannot personalise the interface to reflect the discipline); at the same time potentially too customizable leading to inconsistency / confusion; used mainly as a repository; limited editing possibilities; no search tool, so not easy to locate resources; app not reliable; more integration with apps needed (like the integration with Panopto);
Communication: announcements are not instant can take up to 24 hours; no longer possible to email students; messaging groups difficult; announcements clog up inboxes; not always clear where an announcement has come from
Structure: limited structure; basic drag and drop which is slow;
General: not a lot of ‘vision’; not very attractive in its look; Moodle is a one-way, top-down platform; not a social or collaborative; too ‘click’ intensive; not a good user experience – students don’t engage as it’s not interactive; not a ‘learning environment’ (just a place to post information); Moodle is static (in comparison to other VLE’s such as Aula)
Emergent Themes - Moodle Benefits
Administration: new sites appear each year and students are enrolled (this doesn’t happen in something like Teams);
Assessment: Moodle quizzes helpful because marked automatically (staff do not want to lose this option); easy to set up assignment submission point; easy for students to submit work; Turnitin plug-in works well;
Functionality: well structured; possible to run reports on engagement; marking rubrics easily attached; ability to import content from previous years; good as a repository for resources and depositing information; integration with Panopto works well; Moodle app available; ability to add/remove blocks; the ‘hide’ function is useful;
Experience: staff are mostly happy and generally find Moodle intuitive and easy to use; it does what staff need it to do; students get a mostly good experience; familiarity and consistency (but this can lead to complacency); good to be open source; announcements are at least consistent and come from one place; easy to audit;
General: better than Blackboard; more static than Aula – but positive side of this means you can go back and find announcements;
Emergent Themes - Systems
Connection/communication/integration: LSBU systems such as the VLE and student record system need to be better integrated; requires improved automation – for example, when grades are entered on the VLE, they should be automatically visible on the student’s record in the SRS (at the moment, grade downloads and entry to SRS is a manual process and prone to human error); also better at connecting to My Account, DDS, Cognos, MyLSBU, MS Teams; too much fragmentation at the moment;
Student enrolment: problems with enrolment into Moodle from SRS because Moodle follows a traditional Sep-Aug academic year, but not all courses follow this pattern (CPD intake throughout year, also MA students Sep-Sep); repeat students may lose access to Moodle; students may become ‘legacy’ students when they are still enrolled on a course; lecturers are not notified if a student is added to the VLE late; issues to do with the accuracy of data that comes to VLE about students and can have different students on SRS, timetable and VLE.
Student Experience: perhaps one landing page (or student portal) for students rather than all separate sites – students don’t know where to go for extension requests etc. and some sites potentially contain different or conflicting information; should be two sides to student life: 1) transactional/administrative and 2) learning environment – but two need to interact.
Emergent Themes – Wish List 1
Administration (links to automation): seamless enrolment for students and staff (less manual); general reduction of admin desired (e.g. groups); link to SRS to obtain student photographs; must be easier to separate and enrol multiple cohorts/classes/groups;
Automation: generally more automation throughout; assessment portals automatically set up; Moodle page set up with baseline included; processing of grades (connected to SRS); automation of groupings (especially year groups/ seminar groups); needs to link to timetable;
Assessment: enable proctored examinations; upload larger file sizes; easier creation of rubrics with links to grading (university rubric too general for many schools/courses – needs to be easily adaptable); embed formative activities and feedback that is linked to progression, attainment and analytics and for students and tutors to access this; a space for collaborative assessment to be facilitated more easily; when feedback is provided in a tool like Turnitin, for the NGLE to identify common themes/errors and link to support/resources etc. available at LSBU;
Accessibility: to include accessibility checkers (e.g. BB Ally or something similar); options for customization at the students’ end; should enable a variety of formats; the site should be more user friendly and intuitive to enhance accessibility;
The ‘look’ of the NGLE: more customizable but at the same time more consistency – consistency and configurability; also customizable at the student’s end for purposes of preference but also accessibility; more refreshed and modern look; to start with a blank canvas and build something imaginative fit for purpose of course;
Emergent Themes – Wish List 2
Analytics: a NGLE that notifies tutors of low engagement or can produce RAG rating (traffic light score); for analytics to be more automated; analytics to feed into SRS; updates regularly for early intervention (perhaps engagement monitored on a weekly basis); enhanced engagement/attendance monitoring; learning and engagement analytics should be influencing the environment;
Functionality (tools/activities): access to more apps and plug-ins that are integrated more seamlessly; emulate functionality of MS Teams (better platform for interactivity/blended learning); better functionality required for a fully online mode of delivery; tools to enable easier collaboration (e.g. discussion spaces and break out rooms within the NGLE itself); easier and more integration with other packages/platforms/apps such as Teams; easier to embed YouTube videos and Padlet; integrated instant messenger and video calling; search function; enhanced quiz function; blocks for other LSBU systems (My LSBU and My Account); industry standard tools and technologies integrated so clearer links are made to the workplace; using AR an VR for a virtual classroom; newsletter functionality;
Communication: a platform for students to give ongoing feedback (rather than through MEQ’s); improved instant messaging and/or emailing options (to groups and individuals); student reminders and notifications (e.g. room changes, upcoming assessments, resits – resits particularly useful/important because often happen when staff are on leave); more mobile friendly; the NGLE should be the ‘single source of truth’ for students (at the moment too many destinations for students to find out information);
Emergent Themes – Wish List 3
Collaboration: platform to facilitate enhanced collaboration - student to student and tutor to student; must be able to facilitate and encourage social aspect of learning;
Engagement and Learning: to be more seamless between virtual and physical classes (being encouraged to access NGLE during physical classes for example); NGLE should embrace and support blended learning more intuitively; easily available and accessible on a range of devices that students use (primarily smartphones); a feature where student progression is more easily tracked – for example a timeline or progression line viewable by individual student and tutor with access to formative and summative feedback and comments; making use of adaptive learning technologies – if a student makes an error in an online test, for the test to automatically link to a specific revision aid/video/reading/tool; use of algorithms to suggest content and resources (perhaps connected to assignment feedback and also activity on the site) – and for staff to know what has been recommended to individual students (to enable informed future planning); features to enhance engagement (similar to those available on Aula – e.g. adding posts, comments and reactions); could AI be used to track students’ submissions and potentially identify learning recommendations, specific learning needs or even potentially disabilities, such as dyslexia?; using AR and VR to facilitate a virtual classroom
Sites: for students to have access to one main course site and modules available within this site (rather than a dashboard where the course site becomes redundant); larger file upload;
Support: academic staff to have access to a test site for practice and training; NGLE to include instructional pop-ups for first time users and pop-ups/notifications if or when there is an update; there needs to be a simplicity to the NGLE – the expectation is that technology works and it works quickly, simply and efficiently;
Emergent Themes – Don’t include
Social Media: students have their own social media accounts and this should fall outside of the realm of an NGLE
‘Look’: it shouldn’t look outdated; it should look modern
Purpose: should not contain anything beyond L+T (like finance/student admin – although this doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be able to communicate with other systems);
Emergent Themes – Support
Staff:
Fear of technology: fearful of rapid change; for a NGLE to be easy to use and intuitive;
Academic Developers/ Learning Technologists: a dedicated person for each school; subject specific pedagogical and technological advice and support; at the moment there is confusion of whether this support is available or where to go for this type of support (DEL, IT, Digital Skills); academic staff have a lot of ideas but lack knowledge of technology to bring ideas to life;
Training: more VLE specific training focusing on the available and advanced tools/features; VLE induction for new staff; to get staff to participate in more training and not just query tools/activities when they need them (development of professional practice); staff training needs to be more accessible (e.g. going to lunch and learns); two tier system 1) LSBU wide, 2) on demand support – drop in sessions; enhanced repository of training materials; little time for training within the academic calendar for staff to seek out opportunities – it needs to be embedded in T+L culture
Students:
Scaffolding: for it to be absolutely clear where students go for learning and teaching, support and administration services (to minimise confusion); for a NGLE to be easy to use and intuitive; more training;
Note: if the NGLE is seamless and intuitive, there should, in theory, be less of a need for training on specific tools and student scaffolding.