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Project Details:

T-SPARC

Technology – Supporting Processes for Agile and Responsive Curricula

This project will deploy and evaluate technology that has the potential to support the process of programme design and the facilitation of more efficient procedures to confer institutional approval upon programmes.

	100% complete Project Completed Funding period:September 2008 to July 2012 Source:		Organisations: Birmingham City University
	Tags: Curriculum Design

Related Projects

Built on by	Comments
The Exeter CASCADE Project	Building on video case study methodology
See also	Comments
COVARM	Relavant for course validation process descriptions
EFSCE	Could provide pointers for course evaluation tools and processes
Phoebe	Is relevant but is aimed at too granular a level. It aims at modules rather than course, which is where T-Sparc is aimed
T-SPARC	using Xrte for content creation, maybe of interest
Viewpoints	Sharing workshop materials, presenting workshop
Personal Actualisation and Development through Digital Literacies in Education	for info on caputuring reflection and evidence
WORDLE	for use and analysis of video
Digitally Ready	some useful resources for use of video for evidence and reflection
Digidol – Developing Digital Literacy	for use of video
Evaluating feedback for elearning: centralised tutors	Recommended to look at for use of video capture

Standards

Standard	Comments
XCRI	For exchangeable course descriptions. Probably of more interest to wider Uni than project, updates on use being sent 2011. 2012 update, still interest from team but internally not at a stage to take forward yet, but team imagine that this will happen in the near future.
ODF	XML based documentation standard
Archimate	Modelling language that could help map out and communicate processes at an organisational level. Some experiences reported here: http://wiki.cetis.ac.uk/Archimate_Workshop. Visio templates and the spec are available here: http://archimate.org/en/start_using_archimate/
OOXML	Microsoft competitor to ODF. Now deployed almost across the board via Office 2007
RSS	Used to draw in marketing and student info into Moodle
MPEG-4	Default video format

Technologies

Moodle	From project plan; delivery platform, VLE, collaboration platform. 2012 update, lots of anticipated use of Moodle by the project (e.g. doc sharing) has been superceded by developments in Sharepoint. Have a Curriculum Design information area in Moodle with related resources and content from Module Designer
Mahara	From project plan; porfolio solution. Where courses will be presented for approval. Acts as a repository for multimedia design choice evidence. There were some issues with the deployment of multipage html zip files. This didn't work yet, but will probably be supported in a future version. shortly be transferred onto a cluster of load-balancing servers that will mean increased scalability for the system 2012 update - like Moodle, project using Sharepoint more now than Mahara..
Wimba	From project plan; synchronous collaboration tool. Used Wimba Create for multimedia documents/reports -see blog posts. 2012 update: since BB acquisition, being used less institutionally and now issues around sustainability and integration with Moodle
Sharepoint	From project plan: definitive document repository and version control. Work has progessed on creating workflows and developer in place to implement workflows and help with migration to SP2010. Earlier server issues seem to have been resolved. 2012 update: Sharepoint central to curriculum design process work flows, and development continues.
Zoho notebook	Investigated but not actually using
BCU Module Designer	Inhouse module design tool. Use has been almost deprecated, all resources now in Moodle.
Youtube	Project youtube channel for sharing video from baselining
Visio	Used to create process maps for stakeholder engagement with staff and IT dept. Simple diagrams have worked effectively
Voxur	Video capture for various staff/student engagment purposes
Fip cams	Reflective video capture (diaries) by students. Trying to get codec update as flip records to MP3 which doesn't run on Uni Windows streaming server. 2012 update: still using extensively in pilots
Twitter	Project dissemination
Wordpress	Project blog - dissemination
YouTube	Project dissemination
SITS	Recently installed in institution, not central to project just now but team interested in integrating with moodle to automatically create course instances. 2012 update: Team see integration of their work and data stored/shared in sharepoint as key for future developments. See comments for more info.
wordle	Used to create visual representations of key themes emerging from stakeholder engagment and then used in wimba create documents
Xtranormal	To annoynomise video content
Overstream	Video subtitling
MiiTuu	i-pad video capture system (http://www.miituu.com/), has advantage of being able add additonal text questionnaires and more flexibility to share questionnaires to multiple devices. Uses iTunes for storage. Have committed to institutional licence.
Microsof Expression	Video encoder, also works well as basic editor
Handbrake	Video Compression
iTunes	MiiTuu utilises iTunes functionality so used for sharing video and content from that system. Have institutional provision for iTunes.

Comments:

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2012-02-13 12:16:51

in terms of video sustainability and storage, the team are still looking for realtime time video compression system which would compress video on the fly then automatically upload into a repository.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2012-02-13 12:15:28

The team continue to use video extensively and are now using an ipad based system, which is allowing greater flexibility to combine video capture with more qualitative questionnaires. The system uses iTunes and so questionnaires can be shared between devices easily and data exporte as CSV. The team have also been able to secure an institutional licence, which has significantly reduced unit price, and encourage use of video outwith the project scope.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2012-02-13 12:12:35

The development of Sharepoint continues apace, and it has replaced a lot of earlier envisioned use of both Moodle and Mahara for document sharing. The workflows developed by the team are being trialled by 8 pilot projects at the moment. The team have spent a lot of time developing their UI - particularly around windows displays for different stages of the approval process and for differing types of stakeholders. UI needs to work both technically and cognitively.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2012-02-13 12:09:27

The team are currently trying to build connections to SITS to ensure that there is alignment with their PDAS (programme design and approval system) and SITS information. Ideally SITS will pull data from PDAS, and the underlying architecture should allow this to happen easily, however there still needs some more clarity around the policy infrastructure around the use of SITS.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2011-03-03 14:00:51

The institution is looking at a new repository system, although this doesn't directly affect the project, the team are monitoring developments. Just now use of moodle is quite organic with lots of cloning of courses (and so lots of storage being used). A number of systems including Harvest Rhodes and Equella are being evaluated. All workflows will be run through SharePoint.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2011-03-03 13:57:05

Now dedicated Sharepoint developer in place,team will probably follow up contact with Uni of Queensland.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2011-03-03 13:55:12

The pilot phase for full institutional roll out has been pushed back a year, this gives the team more time to work on smaller pilots. They also have agreement in principle for new programmes and re-approval to be included in their pilots now.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2011-03-03 13:53:38

The student handbook will be the definitive source definitive document for course approval, information will be pulled from Sharepoint to create it and a student will have final sign off.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2011-03-03 10:07:30

Team have 0.5 time of Sharepoint developer to help with implementation of workflows into Sharepoint. Hope to have first prototype workflow functional by May 2011

Posted by SheilaMacneill at 2011-03-03 10:05:30

The team are still at requirements gathering phase. In broad terms they want to use:

moodle for curriculum design authoring providing (video) guidance from their module planner tool, collaborative spaces, and relevant links.

Mahara: to represent the course design process/evidence for course approval (not just the standards approval doc set)

Sharepoint: to be the repository for definitive course documentation

Looking at using XML to ensure they can reuse data, looking at XCRI and various modellig process just now. The team are going to investigate if archimate is being used in the institution and may come to workshop.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2011-03-03 10:05:24

Decision to work mainly with mainstream institutional systems ( moodle, mahara, SharePoint) has been key to help integrate project work within the institution.

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 16:59:51

Paul happy to run an Elluminate session on module design, of interest to projects in delivery programme also

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 16:59:04

Team interested in modelling approaches and will look into these and contact Wilbert to follow up if needed.

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 16:57:52

T-sparc Moodle site links to Mahara for video. Had developed documents in web format but couldnt upload zip files, believe it has been updated since.

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 15:51:43

in terms of Information Architecture have tended to use Visio. Wilbert mentioned Archimate that some have found useful for capturing requirements, and a Visio template is available

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 15:50:22

team using Sharepoint, used quite extensively across the University, planning upgrade as demand is outstripping supply. Welcome sharing experiences with this with other projects.

Posted by sheilamacneill at 2010-02-15 15:49:35

Team looking at wider use of sharepoint but realise need for clear information architecture models. Have shared info on archimate

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 15:48:10

would like to link to other projects looking at representation models, will work up some case studies & study problems for people to tackle. Can then discuss designs - suggested involvement in LAMS Design Bash (15 July 2010, Oxford)

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 15:44:04

looking at mini projects collecting evidence of the 'process' rather than production of artefacts, plan to build multimedia examples from these

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 15:42:51

Hannah seconded to Academic Registry and will work on new student handbook, quite flat & text based, may use Wimba to enhance it.

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 15:41:48

As part of a strategy to move to XML based documentation, Office 2007 has now been installed across the institution’s desktop systems. Experienced some niggles with docx format mainly with students & older versions of Word, Wilbert suggested pointing to latest build of Open Office

Posted by lisacorley at 2010-02-15 15:01:38

suggest looking at Archimate approach, see http://wiki.cetis.ac.uk/Archimate_Workshop