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Caught in the MNET
Challenges and Strategies in Multi-Institutional
Consortiums
November 5, 2013
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Presented by
Eiizabeth Blankenship,
Interim Director of
Instructional Technology
University of New Orleans
Herb Wilson,
LAN Administrator,
University of New Orleans
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Derek Rodriguez,
Help Desk Director,
ORGL Moodle Administrator,
University of New Orleans
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Technology now allows multiple institutions to collaborate on
courses and programs … yay!
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But multiple institutions = multiple challenges
Accreditation
Regulations
Enrollment
General
Wazoo
Pain
Programming

Communications
Data and
Format
Incompatibility
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Solution: MNET
`
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Moodle Network
`
Moodle Network allows
site administrators to link
to and share resources
with another Moodle site
or sites.
Site administrators create
courses through MNET
and enroll their own users
in remote course via the
Remote Enrollments
Client.
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Remote
Enrollments
Client
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Transparent for
students
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Direct
click-through
with no extra
credentialing
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Effective Communication
is KEY
As many as
27
people are involved in
the ULS ORGL degree
across the nine
institutions
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Create buy-in from shareholders
• Find the technical and functional
leads at each institution
• Create paths to communication
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Keep faculty in the loop and support them
•
•
Train them
Be sure they know who
to contact for what
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Roadblocks to consistency
• Consistent, timely actions
• Agreement among administrations
• Communication across institutions
and across units
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Unanticipated learning
opportunities
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Instructor / Course Management
•
•
•
•
Final grades
Course Maintenance
Evaluations
Enrollments
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Registrar concerns
Transcript
s
FERP
A
Drop
Dates
Registrar
Financial
Aidˇ
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Grade
Challenge
s
Faculty
Credentials
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Technical Administration Issues
• Communication!
• Creating courses
• Enrolling students
• Enrolling instructors
• Working across Moodle versions
• Managing identities
• Labor intensive
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Everything is done manually
… in different places
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•
•
•
Case study: final grades
Grades are
uploaded manually
Then downloaded
and transferred to
the Registrar’s
databases
manually.
No tools exist in
Moodle so one had
to be made –
thanks, Jason
Domiano of SELU!
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Reactive, not proactive
We have been learning as we go,
reacting to unexpected issues and
errors on the fly.
But as those errors shake out we are
better organized and moving into
planning mode.
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Case study: version incompatibility
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Where we stand
•
•
•
•
•
More communicative
Consistent data
Final grades tool
Registrar training
accomplished
Knowledge gained
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Checklists …
• What has to happen before a
course is launched
• Checklist for start-of-semester
tasks
• Checklist for instructors
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Q&A
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Get in Touch …
Derek
Rodriguez
Beth
Blankenship
504-280-6396
Herb
Wilson
drodrigu@uno.edu
504-280-5512
504-280-6759
eblanken@uno.edu
hawilson@uno.edu
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THANKS
BYE

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