Presented at EDUCAUSE Annual Conferences, CMS, and EDUCAUSE2007

What information technologies are used by undergraduates? How does IT contribute to their academic experiences and learning? What has changed since 2005? ECAR presents key findings from the fourth annual survey of undergraduates, with responses from 27,846 students at 103 higher education institutions. Plans for 2008 will also be discussed.

EDUCAUSE has identified analytics as one of the grand challenges for 2007. This session will share an analysis of data collected from over 30,000 students using a course management system and will explain how analytics can be used to make predictive decisions about student success and inform early intervention efforts.

In the summer of 2006, Mount Holyoke implemented Sakai, an open source learning management system, to replace WebCT and provide diverse capabilities through a single portal. This presentation will cover planning, deployment, and transition of users and materials. The discussion will particularly focus on lessons learned including successes, challenges, and vision for future development.

Today’s students favor visuals and social computing tools, while instructors want to foster the development of deep, expert knowledge. Using concept maps connects student desires and instructor objectives. INHOLLAND University of Professional Education and the University of British Columbia have innovatively linked concept maps, rich media, and Web-based content.

At INHOLLAND University students learn in a visual and social online environment, using concept maps to engage in argumentation, writing, reflection, and brainstorming. Combinations of concept maps and rich media with a learning management system, wikis, and blogs help students create a unique yet structured viewpoint that retains a bird’s-eye view of complex ideas and concepts.

Instructors and staff from INHOLLAND, SURFdiensten, and UBC will discuss the process of choosing, implementing, and piloting a new concept mapping tool; demonstrate 10-plus practices and templates; and present tools in a hands-on manner.

Recent technical and contract issues prompted Emporia State University to evaluate its relationship with Blackboard, which included an examination of faculty use of Blackboard and the various available tools in Blackboard. Deployment-related issues will be addressed in terms of product support and faculty training.

Learn how Indiana University has successfully implemented the world's largest installation of the Sakai open source collaborative learning environment on eight campuses statewide. This presentation will cover migration from an enterprise legacy system, tiered support model, virtualized hardware solutions, source code management techniques, and balancing local needs with community-driven development.

McGill University's unique, individualized, and scalable learner-centered approach to training and support has helped over a thousand faculty successfully transition from one learning management system to another in an academic year. This session will offer learner-centered training and support strategies and lessons learned from our transition.