focusing on sis frameworks: a migration from snapshot integration tools

Focusing on SIS Frameworks: A Migration from Snapshot Integration Tools

Terry Patterson LMS Application Administrator University of Missouri - Columbia

Jeremy Wiebold SIS Computer Programmer / Analyst University of Missouri - Columbia

ABOUT TERRY

Terry Patterson LMS Application Administrator University of Missouri - Columbia pattersontl@missouri.edu

I have used Blackboard for over 10 years.

Catalyst Award Winner and author of Blackboard Learn Administration

ABOUT JEREMY

Jeremy Wiebold SIS Computer Programmer / Analyst University of Missouri - Columbia wieboldj@missouri.edu

I have worked with Blackboard for 3 years.

I am a "new" father of an 11 month girl named Madeline.

ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI Facts About Our Blackboard Instance

§  1 Load Balancer and 6 App Servers

§  35,356 - Active Blackboard Users

§  625,093 - Average Daily Page Views in Bb

§  5,337 - Available Courses on Blackboard

§  315,689 - Avg Number of Weekly Emails

ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI Facts About Our Enrollments

Total Student Enrollments - 32,563

Students Enrolled in Bb Courses - 29,575

Blackboard Student Course Enrollments - 121,513

Spring 2013 Enrollment

THINGS I CAN TAKE BACK TO MY INSTITUTION...

An understanding and comparison of the Snapshot and SIS Framework processes within Blackboard Learn

A possible solution to address not creating Blackboard Learn shells for every course offered

Understand the benefits and challenges of moving from Bb Snapshot to SIS Framework

OUR CHALLENGE Sync users information between our SIS and Blackboard systems

Develop a process which creates courses that:

- Give instructors flexibility - Is mostly or fully automated - Shortens the time to complete a course request

Enroll and drop users from courses based on SIS data

Move from Snapshot to SIS Framework

STARTING POINT

Users creation was based on quasi-snapshot implementation but lacked update functionality

Enrollments also were quasi-snapshot, but didn't allow for drops

Instructors reused course shells. Support staff had to export, archive, and clean out courses before the start of the next semester

OUR PLAN

A 3 step process...

Step 1 - User creation

Step 2 - Course creation

Step 3 - Enrollment creation and management

OUR INITIAL DECISIONS - Use flat files

- Already being created - Simplest form of automation - Most comfortable for support staff and administrators

- Users actively enrolled or employed by the University

- New student users not added until enrolled in courses

STEP ONE... USER CREATION

Give users ability to change first name in Blackboard Learn

Clean up current Blackboard usernames to address duplicate or improper ones.

Create SIS Users Data Source Key

Create SIS Users Data Integration

STEP ONE... USER CREATION

Snapshot

SIS Framework

STEP ONE... USER CREATION

STEP ONE... USER CREATION

STEP ONE... USER CREATION CHALLENGES

Email Addresses needed to be updated

Develop a way to tell the difference between local and SIS owned user IDs within Blackboard

STEP TWO... COURSE CREATION

Only create requested courses for instructors

Address course merging and cross listing

Create SIS Course Data Source Key based on each term

Create SIS Course Data Integration based on each term

STEP TWO... COURSE CREATION

STEP TWO... COURSE CREATION

STEP TWO... COURSE CREATION

STEP TWO... COURSE CREATION

SIS Database

Blackboard Crosswalk Table

STEP TWO... COURSE CREATION

Snapshot

SIS Framework

STEP TWO... COURSE CREATION

Use of Terms automatically assigns courses the proper term. Users can enable the Group By Term option in My Courses to organize a cluttered list of courses.

STEP TWO... COURSE CREATION CHALLENGES

Make sure SIS data was correct and up to date.

Work with staff in the culture change and the new automation process

Always finding new incidents and examples that required new coding

STEP THREE... USER ENROLLMENTS Faculty and students demanded automated enrolls & drops

Need to update enrollments but not drop students during heavy usage

Create SIS Enrollment Data Source Key based on each term

Create SIS Enrollment Data Integration based on each term

STEP THREE... USER ENROLLMENTS Created a "clock” which adds user enrollments for the current semester every two hours.

Push of all enrollments and drops happens daily at 3:00am (lowest daily usage point).

During transitions we send multiple semester enrollments.

STEP THREE... USER ENROLLMENTS

STEP THREE... USER ENROLLMENTS

STEP THREE... ENROLLMENT CHALLENGES

Dealing with "accidental enrollments"

Ensure students who switched sections weren’t dropped from combined courses

DELIVERING THE FEED FILES

Snapshot

SIS Framework

SENDING THE FILES USING SIS FRAMEWORK

Using Curl

Using Coldfusion

SIS FRAMEWORK BENEFITS

-  Users can be given secondary roles within Blackboard

-  Course Term association

-  Avoids use of third party services on campus for file transfers

-  Ability to push data frequently and in smaller quanities

OUR FEEDBACK “What fantastic updates you guys have made in the course request process. This was so much easier than it has been in the past. Pure genius!”

- Megan McKinstry

“The new form for requesting Blackboard sites is GREAT. It was so easy to do, took me about 45 seconds to request the first class and about 25 to request the second.”

- Karen Mitchell

“Just wanted to pass on to you that the new Blackboard site request process is soooo much easier now. Thank you for all the work you do to make instructors jobs easier. Much appreciated.”

- Crystal Gateley

LEARN MORE

CUTTING THROUGH THE NOISE: A DISCUSSION ABOUT IMPLEMENTING THE NEW SIS FRAMEWORK Birds of a Feather Session Venetian | Palazzo Congress Center - Bellini 2005 Thursday, July 11th ▪ 2:00pm – 2:45pm

THANK YOU!

Terry Patterson LMS Application Administrator University of Missouri pattersontl@missouri.edu Twitter: @terrypatterson

Jeremy Wiebold SIS Computer Programmer / Analyst University of Missouri wieboldj@missouri.edu Twitter: @J_Wiebs