CSMS 2002Computing Services Management

Symposium XXIX

Infrastructure Is Not The Issue

Carole A. Barone, EDUCAUSE

St. Louis

March 12, 2002

Infrastructure Is not the Issue• Technological determinism is a fallacy

• Technological, economic, and social forces are driving institution-wide transformation

• Institutional characteristics (culture, values, politics) & leadership style affect the viability of strategic choices

• Current support methods do not scale(NLII Findings 2000)

Transformation

• …to change or alter completely in nature, form or function

• (Webster’s Dictionary),

• i.e., taking away

It’s Different Than It Was

“IT support staff cannot claim success just because they deliver product, nor can IT customers expect satisfaction without thinking about what they want.”

(Gregory Jackson, “Ya Can Talk All Ya Want, But IT’s Different Than It Was:

Conundrums in Support of Information Technology,” ER, Sept/Oct 2001.)

Concept Map of Key Themes New business models

(partnerships, consortia,collaboration)

Assessment

Knowledge management

Student support services

Online communities E-learning

Learner centeredby design & practice

Learning materials & services

markets

Faculty engagement and support

Ubiquitous, transparent technology

Pedagogy/learning theory

Education that is

•Active & learner-centered

•Dynamic and lifelong

•Collaborative

•Cost-effective

•High quality

•Accessible

Policy

Why are we worrying about this?

•Perceived Failures

•Supportability

•Expectations

EXPECTATIONS !• Students expect professional quality

courseware

• Faculty expect independence

• Administrators expect to be held blameless

FILL IN THE BLANKS:

A E F H I K L M _ _ _ W X Y Z

(Source: NY Times 6/25/00)

STUDENTS EXPECT

• Active learning situations• Convenience/Customized learning

environments – “swirling” (Johnstone, et.al)

• Interaction and Collaboration-blending of academic & social environments

• Faculty to share their cognition

Emerging Faculty Role

Designing active learning and knowledge creation environments that immerse students in the cognitive style of the discipline.

Convergence of Technology & Pedagogy

TechnologyLiteracy

ClassroomPresentations

Discipline/Specific

Applications

SystemicApplications

(NLII)

Individual Collaboration

Faculty Types & Expectations

• Entrepreneurs (Cottage Industry)• Risk-Avoiders (Boutique

Solutions)• Careerists (Consistency)• Reluctants (Prove It!)

Paul R. Hagner, “Faculty Engagement and Support in the New Learning Environment”, ER, Sept./Oct. 2000, pp26-37..

Administration

• Administrators expect the CIO to handle matters of technology

• Leaders expect to focus on external relations

• Leaders expect to use rhetoric to guide transition

Breakthrough Leadership (HBR Nov/Dec 01)

Institutions require a new style of courageous, focused, visible and emotionally intelligent leadership with a deeper level of internal executive engagement.

Service Dilemma

Dealing with the friction created by the need for a dynamic, blended service environment to support individual faculty members in a culture that abhors risk and values linearity, critical scrutiny, and consensus building governance conventions.

“Changing Roles, Changing Rules”

• Blend support for academic and administrative, teaching and research computing

• Blend local control into service concept(Brown & Jackson, NLII02)

• Package consistency to respect process and independence

• Promote learning objects over individual course redesign

• Design “help” around new learning and working strategies

• Align IT and institutional planning and assessment• Collaborate!

Systemic Approach

Software

Products

Standards

Business Models

Policy

Relationships

Support Services

Technology

BestPractices

Space

Readiness for Transformation

• Awareness + Attitude = Readiness

• The institution must know why it is doing this and must make informed choices

• Leaders must create an environment that can accept change

READY TOOL PURPOSE

• Conceptual framework for complex decisions

• Context for creating a dialog about key questions and issues

• Interactive medium for dissemination

• Gauge of campus readiness for change

www.educause.edu/ready/

Major Activities

Result • High Quality Learning Components • Support for Faculty Development

M E R L O T

Track & Assess Usage

Develop Discipline

Communities

Post/Host Learning

Components

Review & Assess

Learning Components

Solicit Learning Components

Guiding Principles

• Never try to get the faculty to do something they do not think they are already trying to do

• Consider the bizarre but don’t frighten the horses

• You cannot avoid dealing with those who “spray and pray”

• Know thyself…and thy president

• Tie your camel

Sources and Resources• Ready Tool – www.educause.edu/ready• MERLOT – www.merlot.org• National Learning Infrastructure Initiative

(NLII) www.educause.edu/nlii/keythemes• Carole A. Barone and Paul R. Hagner, eds.

Technology-Enhanced Teaching and Learning: Leading and Supporting the Transformation on Your Campus, Leadership Series, Vol 5, Jossey-Bass, 2001.

• Jason L. Frand, “Students’ Information Age Mindset”, ER, Sept./Oct. 2000, pp.14-24.

• EDUCAUSE Quarterly, Vol. 25, No.1• ACE/EDUCAUSE Series – Distributed Education:

Challenges, Choices and a New Environment

CSMS 2002Computing Services Management

Symposium XXIX

Infrastructure Is Not The Issue

Carole A. Barone, EDUCAUSE

St. Louis

March 12, 2002