Large Scale Implementation of SMS

1. Large Scale Implementation of SMS Alison Halstead a.halstead@wlv.ac.uk Kris Popat Kris@ultralab.net John Traxler j.traxler@wlv.ac.uk

2. Aims and Objectives • Assess usefulness of administration info • Evaluation of subject based learning and teaching • Identification of staff development needs • Impact of intervention on retention • Guidelines on purposes and benefits • Issues for implementation • Embedding SMS with ePortfolio • Generation of a technology tookit for groupcasting media nuggets

3. The Background Earlier Work

4. Pilot SMS survey

5. Pilot SMS survey

6. Pilot SMS survey

7. Which would be useful: Y N room changes 51 8 help with studying 38 21 appointment reminders 49 8 library recalls 39 18 revision tips 42 15 assessment reminders 52 6 assessment marks 52 7 timetable changes assessment feedback 53 6 Ignores 1 - 3 unknowns per row 41 17 Large-scale SMS survey

8. The Project • Five Schools of the University • Art and Design • Applied Sciences • Education • Engineering • Humanities and languages • One module at level 1 • Year 1 Administrative information • Year 2 Learning and Teaching

9. Typical Administrative information • pastoral • assessment prep, feedback & support • organisational • reminders • appointments • cancellations & changes • representation • voting student reps, issues for discussion

10. Examples of Learning and Teaching • Group discussion by SMS • Creative writing and reflection via SMS • SMS dictionary and vocabulary-builder • Reflective diaries in SMS • Tips and FAQs • Data gathering from field work by SMS • Mini-lectures in MMS • Multimedia assignments in Art and Design

11. Technology

12. Technology “Nuts and Bolts” • What does it do? • Hub for all text and media messages • Group-casting • Logging • Message costing - against cost centres • Two way messaging: build rules for message receipt • Message conference building • Plugin architecture for extensions • Full web-service interface • Web-based administration

13. Technology “Nuts and Bolts” • How does it do those things? • Stand-alone server which communicates this provider • Admin interface using currently using php • An email interface for use with commercial products such as SITS • A full web-service interface for use with VLEs and “home grown” systems • All message sending/receiving, administration, group definitions etc possible through web interface • Groups can be defined in a flexible way • Registration of Users • CSV • LDAP

14. Technology Rationale • Each system talks to a separate provider • Groups are defined in many ways • Many systems don’t deal with receipt • No MMS (multi-media messaging) support • Limited extensibility for pedagogic applications Current Systems The principle rationale was to develop a system which supplied a platform for research in messaging for HE and allowed the pedagogic needs/ideas of the staff to guide it’s use and design. Also of importance was to create a tool which would add value to the current messaging provision of an institution: supplying tools which allowed for greater integration, tracking and costing. MELaS System

15. Built-in Technology System Clients? MELaS System Providers Admin, Group Management, Receipt Rules, Pedagogic Applications (outside VLE), Plugin Config etc… Example SITS Example Esendex Standalone Server Example Pebble Pad Email C++/Java Open-Source Open Standards Example Ultra-SMS Web-Services SMS LDAP Example Open Directory MMS Example SMTP

16. Outputs • Guidelines on purposes and benefits of SMS • Technology toolkit for groupcasting media nuggets • Papers on: • Staff Development needs • Learner experience of SMS admin • Learner expereince of SMS L and T • Impact of intervention on retention • Issues on implementation