Virtual Learning Environment Phase Three

Project title: Virtual Learning Environment Phase Three

Date: in progress.

Collaborators: Staff involved in the following five workstreams.

September 2008 marked the successful launch of the NTU online workspace NOW for staff and student use at the beginning of the academic year. A number of outstanding tasks requiring the input of a wider group of colleagues prompted the extension of the project until the end of 2008.

Five workstreams have been created to carry out the tasks involved in this process.

1. Communications workstream

This will will continue to be headed by Linda O’Hare, Internal Communications Manager.

2. Quality assurance workstream

This will continue to be headed by Sue McKnight, Director of Libraries and Knowledge Resources.

The following three workstreams have also been set-up as part of the process.

3. Technical or information systems workstream

This will include the following activities and be led by Chris Firth.

Virtual Learning Portal decommissioning tasks

• Migrate integrations away from the Virtual Learning Portal (VLP). (Also see the VLP retirement feature consolidation.)
• Remove the authentication route away from the VLP.
• Organise the provision of hardware capability.
• Investigate technical interdependencies of the VLP with other NTU systems.
• Re-engineer any dependent systems.
• Migrate content both from inside and outside of the VLP.
• Archive records. (Business staff will lead this activity if needs doing.)
• Remove or decommission VLP hardware.
• Recycle existing software licences.
• Provide relevant VLP statistics up until VLP switch-off.
• Reduce VLP support with regards to the re-engineering of processes.
• Agree upon a grace period.

Disaster recovery

• Put in place an acceptable disaster recovery capability based upon the business continuity requirements.
• Maintain and test the disaster recovery plan.

Virtual learning environment resilience

• Review the environment configuration.
• Establish configuration management.
• Locate server/s at Clifton.

Data integration

• Integrate the Student Information System (SIS).
• Integrate data in conjunction with the Educational Development Unit's XML review and possible re-modelling.
• Complete the identified and agreed integrations.

4. Virtual Learning Portal retirement workstream

This will involve the following activities and be led by Angela Trikić, Head of the Educational Development Unit.

Information gathering

• Identify everyone who is still using Virtual Learning Portal (VLP).
• Identify all content located in the VLP.
• Negotiate transfer of those using the VLP to the VLE.
• Identify tasks still to be undertaken.
• Migrate staff, students and everyone required to move content from the VLP to the VLE.
• Migrate all required content from the VLP to the VLE.
• Archive records from the VLP.
• Feature review and consolidation VLP integrations.
• Agree upon a grace period.
• Decommission the VLP.

5. Support and maintenance workstream

This will include the following activities. It will be led by Elaine Swift, Education and Training Manager.

• Run an internal support process.
• Train users on the new tools. (This includes production of documentation.)
• Provide operational support for disaster recovery etc.
• Support and maintain a Learning Object Repository (LOR).
• Support and maintain system modelling works.
• Support and maintain the School homepages in conjunction with the Learning Teaching Coordinator's Portal Project.
• Review the data integration and possible changes to be made.
• Support and maintain the user interface, which will be handed over as business as usual.
• Support and maintain outstanding integrations.