Documents Contributed by ECAR, CMS, and Research Bulletins

This ECAR research bulletin details the arguments emerging in the blogosphere and elsewhere both for and against the learning management system. It examines whether the LMS is destined to continue as the primary means of organizing the online learning experience for university students. The bulletin is a companion to an earlier ECAR research bulletin that examines the factors leading to the selection of the open source learning management system at the Open University in the United Kingdom.

Citation for this work: Sclater, Niall. “Web 2.0, Personal Learning Environments, and the Future of Learning Management Systems” (Research Bulletin, Issue 13). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

This ECAR research bulletin examines the factors leading to the selection of the open source learning management system at the Open University, details the many aspects of development work that had to be undertaken, and describes the issues involved for institutions participating in an open source community. It also looks at some of the many business and cultural challenges the institution has faced, and at how faculty are being encouraged to move toward a model of education incorporating increasing amounts of e-learning content and activity.

Ccitation for this work: Sclater, Niall. “Large-Scale Open Source E-Learning Systems at Open University UK” (Research Bulletin, Issue 12). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

This ECAR research bulletin discusses the adjustments that the Indiana University information technology organization made, and continues to make, in order to support membership in Sakai. It has been said that supporting Sakai can seem like trying to change a tire on a moving car. As co-founder of and active participant in the Sakai collaboration, the effects of IU’s decision—the unexpected, the challenging, and the delightful—are discussed in terms of the intra- and interuniversity realities of highly collaborative efforts.

Citation for this work: Goodrum, David, Jan R. Holloway, Anastasia S. Morrone, Lance Speelmon, and Elizabeth A. Van Gordon. “Dynamics of Supporting Sakai Through Local and Global Collaboration” (Research Bulletin, Issue 11). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

This research bulletin examines what the literature refers to as “new learners” or “critically engaged learners.” It explores the responsibilities our institutions have to create opportunities for these learners to actively engage in creative discovery, problem definition, and appropriate use of information technologies. It is based on a literature review and accompanying conceptualizations that begin to answer important questions about institutional development for a technologically sophisticated age.

Citation for this work : Moore, Anne H., Shelli B. Fowler, Brent K. Jesiek, John F. Moore, and C. Edward Watson. “Learners 2.0? IT and 21st-Century Learners in Higher Education” (Research Bulletin, Issue 7). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

This ECAR research bulletin discusses how systems dynamics is being applied to higher education administration. It offers a case study for modeling growth in usage of a learning management system (LMS). This model was used to identify the current capacity of the system-wide LMS at the University System of Georgia and forecast the impact of the rapidly increasing faculty and student demands on the system. The LMS Capacity Planning Model offered administrators an overview of the entire operating environment, including hardware, application, database, network, and personnel, and it enabled them to evaluate the impact of policy decisions and operational rules over time on technical capabilities and resources.

This ECAR research bulletin highlights some of the similarities and differences between students attending four-year institutions and those attending community colleges, focusing on those areas where there are challenges and opportunities for using IT to improve students' academic experiences. Since 2004, ECAR has conducted an annual study of how students in higher education perceive the impact of information technology on their academic experiences. In its third year of undertaking the study (2006), fully 96 institutions participated, including eight two-year community colleges. From those eight community colleges, a total of 3,380 students responded to the survey for the study, representing 11.8 percent of the total survey respondents.

This research bulletin describes the University of Cincinnati strategy for addressing a fundamental shift in communication technologies in higher education, and for meeting—or exceeding—community expectations for contemporary productivity tools on campus. It covers the decision factors and service models that UC is implementing in fall 2006 through its UC Mobile program.

This research bulletin draws on the results of several research studies that are centered on the student experience with course management systems. These studies provide insight on student course management system use and experiences and lay a valuable foundation for future measurement of their experiences with these systems.

This research bulletin strives to clarify the complex landscape of open educational content by exploring the distinctions, challenges, and accomplishments among programs focused on opencourseware, open content, and open learning. ECAR interviewed individuals at three institutions that are on the leading edge of this movement: Anne H. Margulies of MIT is executive director, OpenCourseWare (OCW); Vivian Sinou of Foothill College is dean, Distance and Mediated Learning, and head of the Sofia Project; and Candace Thille of Carnegie Mellon is Director, Open Learning Initiative (OLI).

This research bulletin addresses how technology systems support online learning in ways that address multiple learning style preferences, paces, and performance goals. It discusses the need for an educational paradigm shift, the promise of adaptive learning, and questions that educational organizations should ask to ascertain their road to the next generation of online education.