Developing Strategic Approaches to E-learning

1. Developing Strategic Approaches toE-learning Rachel Ellaway, Ph.D., Assistant Dean Curriculum and Planning, Northern Ontario School of MedicineTerry Poulton, Ph.D., Associate Dean for eLearning, St. George's University of London MedBiquitous 2012

2. Conflict of interest We have no involvement with industry and have no conflict of interest to disclose with respect to this workshop

3. Strategy 101

4. Technology enabled learning • E-learning and e-teaching • Educational technology • Technology enabled or enhanced learning • Now a fundamental part of med-ed but hard for leaders to understand • We need a strategy …

5. What is a strategy? • Operations > tactics > strategies • A plan of action to realize a broad vision • Predicts future needs • Identifies goals, values and ideals • Plans to be able to meet and/or realize them • In a particular context, culture, community

6. Strategy as activity

7. Provenance • Who’s it for? • Who’s it from? • Who gets to tell who to do what? • Authority, legitimacy • Domain authority • Expertise authority • Representativeness • Accountability

8. Impact • What happens if it’s enacted? • What happens if it’s not? • What do you want it to do? • What do you expect it to do?

9. Components • People • Services • Tools and infrastructure • Projects • Management • Communication

10. Formal and Informal • Formal • Academic programs • Research • CME/CPD • Training & courses • Informal • Learning organization • Projects, pilots • Mentors, networks, SIGs • Research

11. Cultures • Clinical vs e-learning • Clinical factors • Clinical systems • EHR, PACS • Security, confidentiality • Educational vs e-learning • Administrative vs e-learning • ERP • Business cultures • Power

12. Perspectives Instructional designers Teachers Managers

13. Does e-learning exist? Teaching and learning strategy teachers learners E-learning strategy Technology strategy

14. Does e-learning exist? Teaching and learning strategy teachers learners E-learning strategy Technology strategy

15. Does e-learning exist? Teaching and learning strategy teachers learners E-learning strategy Technology strategy

16. Everything’s connected projects innovations operations projects innovations operations tactics operations specific strategies tactics operations organizational contexts strategy tactics operations specific strategies tactics operations tactics operations replacedecommission operations replacedecommission

17. Everything’s connected funding Teaching and learning strategy policy Technology strategy institutionalstrategies accreditation E-learning strategy legal Finance strategy social accountability HR strategy

18. Everything’s connected funding Teaching and learning strategy policy E-learning strategy institutionalstrategic plan accreditation Technology strategy legal Finance strategy social accountability HR strategy

19. Planning it

20. It all starts to look like PM Project management: • Deliverables • Timescales • Resources Plus: • Vision • Major themes • Priorities • Enablers

21. Components – all high level • Vision • Major themes • Priorities • Enablers • Deliverables • Timescale • Resources • Integration • Evaluation and QA

22. Strategy Components • Vision • Priorities • Enablers • Deliverables • Evaluation • Contingencies 1: 2: 3:

23. Vision and Priorities • Vision • Simple clear statements • Cognizant of definition and scope • Cognizant of stakeholders • The way the world should be • Priorities • 3-8 key discrete themes and concepts • Couched as priorities • Each is itself a clear unambiguous vision

24. Enablers and deliverables • Enablers • For each priority • What exists that enables it? • What is needed to enable it? • Deliverables • For each priority • What will be achieved • When will it be achieved

25. Evaluation and Contingency • Evaluation • How will you know you’ve succeeded? • How will anyone else know? • What data/process/reporting is required? • Contingency • What happens if things don’t work out? • Plans B, C, D etc • Show continuity, impact etc

26. Where is now?

27. Interviews: members of university eLearning strategy groups 3/7- ‘Russell group’ 4/7- middle–ranking universities All had very similar over-arching aims: Embed eLearning, as standard ‘pedadogic’ tool Raise staff awareness of eLearning, provide support Foster a culture of innovation and seek out good practice Create appropriate infrastructure Increase student satisfaction Create a sustainable system for guiding investment and deployment of eLearning service and infrastructure

28. The story so far: Russell group universities:- Clarity in the implementation plan, with an adequate level of detail Implementation plan developed reasonably quickly. The focus has been more on staff (rather than students) but .. in general students are “more satisfied than not”, but “only time will tell” Strategic decisions require staff to comply with the ‘plan’ Already regard themselves as ‘global’ universities, so without the same drive to ‘create’ an international presence Adequate funding Investment in infrastructure The ‘rest’ Less clarity, more confusion between ‘technology’ and ‘eLearning’ Implementation plan developing slowly. Focus on student experience Concern at the challenge of obtaining Faculty ‘buy-in’ Strong remit to increase their international presence A primary aim, to remove ‘all that paper!‘-attachment feedback, sign-offs Budget position unclear Strategy appeared more defensive

29. Hidden agendas?4/7 middle–ranking universities, examples Strategic aim: To enable technology to be used effectively, creatively and confidently for the enhancement of the student learning experience • Pro-Vice Chancellor strategic aim: • We need to increase our National Student Survey scores - urgently • Pro-Vice Chancellor strategic aim: • I want the university to expand its reputation for innovation as soon as possible - before I move to my next, more prestigious university. • Pro-Vice Chancellor strategic aim: • We need to attract more lucrative overseas students to improve our bottom-line • Strategic aim: • Investing in innovation in teaching to drive xxx’s reputation internationally • ‘It will remove thousands and thousands of pieces of paper’ • ‘It will solve our problems of integration between services’ • It will break the stranglehold of IT!’ • ‘We don’t seem to need the new/proposed library building’

30. Common features /agreements • ‘Service’ led programmes concentrated on technology not eLearning, and introduced more technologies that students didn't or couldn’t use. • Successful implementations were more frequently home made technologies! • The off-the-shelf ‘Learning Management Systems’ /VLE e.g. Blackboard, Moodle were difficult to adapt for medicine. • The ‘slickest’ successful implementations tended to be ‘non-generic’, despite the national guidance.

31. Edinburgh vs NOSM Big fish, small pond: Technocratic, tertiary, traditional Small fish, massive pond: Distributed, innovative, community-engaged

33. Activity 1: flip

34. Activity 1 • Develop a strategic plan for “Medbiq University” • Work in groups of 5 • Steps: • Create an institutional profile (HT) • Develop a vision, 3-5 priorities • Identify enablers, deliverables etc • Present vision and one critical priority

35. Strategy Components • Vision – 1 sentence • Priorities – 3 to 5 • Enablers • Deliverables • Evaluation • Contingencies 1: 2: 3:

36. Activity 1 • Develop a strategic plan for “Medbiq University” • Work in groups of 5 • Steps: • Create an institutional profile (HT) • Develop a vision, 3-5 priorities • Identify enablers, deliverables etc • Present vision and one critical priority

37. Activity 2: roll

38. Activity 2 • Change your strategic plan for “Medbiq University” • Steps: • Identify disrupters – roll the dice • Redevelop a vision, 3-5 priorities • Identify new enablers, deliverables etc • Present revised vision and one critical priority

39. Strategy Components • Vision – 1 sentence • Priorities – 3 to 5 • Enablers • Deliverables • Evaluation • Contingencies 1: 2: 3:

40. Activity 2 • Change your strategic plan for “Medbiq University” • Steps: • Identify disrupters – roll the dice • Redevelop a vision, 3-5 priorities • Identify new enablers, deliverables etc • Present revised vision and one critical priority

41. Developing Strategic Approaches toE-learning Rachel Ellaway, Ph.D., Assistant Dean Curriculum and Planning, Northern Ontario School of MedicineTerry Poulton, Ph.D., Associate Dean for eLearning, St. George's University of London MedBiquitous 2012