eTexts at Algonquin College

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eTexts and Digital Resources…
Going All In @3X100
• eTexts at Algonquin College
• Project Overview
• Student’s and Accessibilities
• “Our Digital Integration Solution”
Algonquin College is located in
Ottawa Ontario, Canada
• Founded in 1967
• Located in Canada’s national capital of
Ottawa, Ontario
• Comprehensive polytechnic education
• Applied research intensive institution
• >20,000 full-time students
• >35,000 part-time students
• ~185 programs of study ranging from:
– Apprenticeship trades, 1-yr certificates,
– 2- & 3-yr diplomas,
– 4-yr degrees and post-grad programs
Our Digital Journey
2013
2011
2004
2002
2000
1995
Learning Mgmt. System
Network/email accounts
for all students,
beginning of digital shift
BYOD for all programs
Blended Learning
(Hybrid) Courses
Online General
Education Courses
eTexts
eText Project – Algonquin College
Accessibility
Achievement
Affordability
For Participating Programs:
– 100% Students have access to
– 100% of their digital resources on the first day of
class, with
– 100% access, On-line or Off-line at anytime
of the day in perpetuity, on multiple devices
of their choice.
– At a significant savings compared to print
based resources
eText Project – January 2013
The following first level, Winter Intake Programs were involved in the eText
Project in January 2013
1. Business Mgt. & Entrepreneurship
2. Business Administration
3. Computer Engineering Technology
4. Computer Programmer
5. Computer Systems Technician
6. Event Management
These Publisher partners were involved in the eText Pilot
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Pearson Publishing
Nelson Publishing
McGraw Hill
Wiley
What is an Institutional Pay Model or Course Fee?
 Students pay for content as part of their course fee
upon registration
 Students receives access to content prior to the first
day of class
 Institution reimburses publisher
 Students savings are significant
 Faculty can begin to teach students at the beginning
of the semester, confident that the students all have
a resource
eText Models at Algonquin
SPM Student Pay Model
• Students purchase a resource online, from our bookstore, and publisher websites.
Typically a 30 / 60 / 90 day rentals. Significant savings based on length of term
IPM Institutional Pay Model – (Course Fee Model)
•
Course fee model offers , “Permanent Version” and can be printed, with savings of
over 40% of the tradition textbook.
•
100% of the students must participate. eTexts are available to all students before
the first day of class. eTexts are available only through our Student Resource Portal
ESPM Enhanced Student Pay Model
•
Similar to the institutional pay model, with the exception that student purchases
the resource. The savings to student approx. 25-35% of the traditional textbook
cost.
eText Model Comparison Chart
Features
IPM
ESPM
YES
YES
Unlimited Print – Chapter by Chapter
YES
YES
Resources available using the Student
Portal
YES
YES
eTexts fees are collected with Tuition Fees
YES
YES
100% of the students have their eTexts on
the first day of class
YES
YES
eTexts purchased online 30 / 60 / 90 day
rental
SPM
YES
IPM eText - Permanent Version
eTexts purchased online 2 page -10 page
max.
YES
eText Project
Pilot
Fall 2013
Winter 2014
January 2013
Phase #1
Phase #1b
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750 students
6 programs
27 courses
32 Instructors
Level 1 only
2,300 eTexts
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VitalSource Bookshelf
Access Codes
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3600 students
34 programs
180 courses
450 sections
160 Instructors
Level 1
16,800 eTexts
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VitalSource Bookshelf
LMS Deployment
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3400 students
34 programs
160 courses
420 sections
140 Instructors
Levels 1 & 2
Students
14,000 eTexts
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VitalSource Bookshelf
LMS Deployment
eText Project @ Algonquin College
eText Advisory Group – Monthly Meetings
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Student Association
College Faculty
Student Council Representatives
Library Resources
Registrar’s Office
Blackboard Support
IT Support
AODA Officers
College Bookstore
College Print Centre
Student Success Specialists
Centre for Students with Disabilities
eText Project @ Algonquin College
LMS (Blackboard) Deployment Challenges
– Course Level Deployment – unable to resolve individual student issues and
account adjustments
– Browser issues …Pop Up Blockers must be turned Off.
– Process of adding the eText to the students “Cloud Account” is not
intuitive and the student the leaves the resource in Blackboard, instead of
in the VitalSource Bookshelf.
– Only available “Online” in the browser view
– Browser view has only a few of the rich eText features enhancing the
Student Experience
– Over 300-350 students each day requiring support on the first 2 weeks of
class
– At Algonquin College we have thousands of students enrolled in programs
not currently using our Blackboard system. (Canvas, D2L)
eText Project
Fall 2014
Winter 2015
Phase #2
Phase #2b
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9,900 students
100 programs
600 courses
1,450 sections
300+ Instructors
Levels 1/2/3
32,000 eTexts
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8,000 students
90 programs
450 courses
1,050 sections
300+ Instructors
Levels 1/2/3/4
18,000 eTexts
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VitalSource Bookshelf
Digital Resource Portal
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VitalSource Bookshelf
Digital Resource Portal
eText Project @ Algonquin College
Observations following Fall 2014 / Winter 2015
– Student Level deployment of student specific Software
and eTexts was very successful using customize solution
– Very intuitive and seamless interface with students
accessing all their required resources a week before the
first day of class
– Less than 30-40 students a day at our eText support
counters looking for help in using their eTexts
– Improved student and faculty satisfaction and
engagement
– Course Fee and Student Pay Deployment models
eText Project
Fall 2014
Winter 2015
Fall 2015
Phase #2
Phase #2b
Phase #3
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9,900 students
100 programs
600 courses
1,450 sections
300+ Instructors
Levels 1/2/3
32,000 eTexts
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8,000 students
90 programs
450 courses
1,050 sections
300+ Instructors
Levels 1/2/3/4
18,000 eTexts
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14,000 students
130 programs
800 courses
2,250 sections
500+ Instructors
Levels 1/2/3/4/5
45,000 eTexts
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VitalSource Bookshelf
Digital Resource
Portal
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VitalSource Bookshelf
Digital Resource
Portal
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“New” eReading Platform
Digital Resource Portal
Student Resource Portal – Fall 2015
We created a Digital Resource Portal linked to our college student
information to manage the deployment all our Program specific resources
which include:
Windows 8
Microsoft Office 2013
Adobe Creative Suite
Project Management Software
BOYD program specific details
Distribution of eText Access Codes
Full storefront eCommerce offerings …..computers, accessories
This digital deployment system is scalable as we increase demand on the
system and easily allowed us control of the thousands of codes deployed
during the semesters
eText Deployment Fall 2014/15 – Deployment Statistics
Fall 2014
Winter 2015
DATE:
9,990 Students
32,000 eTexts
7,000 Students
18,000 eTexts
Day 1
13,000
4,544
Day 2
16,788
7,733
Day 3
20,486
9,379
Day 4
23,516
9,918
Day 5
24,888
11,586
Day 6
25,500
12,638
Day 7
26,050
13,365
Day 8
27,627
15,707
Day 9
29,583
16,005
Day 10
31,740
17,800
System manages specific deployment of
the resources based on the courses the
student is registered in our Student
Information System SIS
How Did We Implement an Institutional Pay
Model (Course Fee)?
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Work with Publishers as your business partner
Develop a concept, business model, and shared values
Start with a small group of willing faculty, early adopters
Gain support from the Executive Team
Pilot, iterate, feedback, lessons learned
Involve stakeholders from the Institution
– Registrar, Information Technology Services, Bookstore, Student Services,
Students’ Association, Human Resources
• Create an internal eText Advisory group who meet monthly
Can course fee improve Student
grades and retention? REALLY?
Impact on our Students
Winter 2015 Results*
Extremely
or
somewha
t negative
21%
eText Satisfaction
(Overall)
Neutral
22%
Extremely
or
somewha
t positive
57%
Extremely
or
somewha
t negative
11%
eText Satisfaction
(Population Subset)#
Neutral
17%
Extremely
or
somewha
t positive
72%
# students who found the eTexts to
be essential and who had no trouble
using the software
*March 2015 Survey, n=1,389
Faculty and Administration Feedback in
Winter 2015
• Faculty:
– Early adopters, now quite comfortable with the technology,
are exploring ways to exploit it to enhance teaching and
learning activities
– More support available for technology and digital integration
into curriculum.
• Administration:
– More accuracy in the integration and seamlessness of
systems and processes;
– Sustainability of the business model for the academic
operations and the bookstore.
eText Project
Publisher Agreements - Accessibilities
Early in the process we discussed with our Publisher partners several
key factors to support Students with Disabilities:
• Previously at Algonquin College the process of accessing digital
files for modification can take several weeks
• We mandated all resources purchased in the Institutional Pay
Model be posted to the AERO (Alternative Educational Resources
of Ontario) Database
• Over the past two years we have ben responsible for making well
over 1,600 textbook titles accessible from the AERO network.
• All Ontario Colleges using AERO now benefit from our initiative
eText Project – Algonquin College
Centre for Students with Disabilities
The etext program has been a huge step forward in helping to make
Algonquin College more accessible. The books are accessible to most
people who are blind. For the student who require alternative versions of
their books, in the new system we are able to get copies from the
publishers much faster than in the old paper book system.
Christine Kelsey, Assistive Technologist, CSD
A few years ago a student would stop by the lab to request their material
expecting to wait two weeks, and were now delighted to find out that we
did not need to scan books and that they would be getting their books in a
day or two. E-Texts have had a very positive impact on students using
Assistive Technology or who need alternative format version of their text
books.
Jason Timms, Assistive Technologist, CSD
eText Project – Algonquin College
TERM
Winter - January 2013
Spring - May 2013
Fall - September 2013
Winter - January 2014
Spring - May 2014
Fall - September 2014
Winter - January 2015
Spring - May 2015
Fall - September 2015
TOTALS
Students
Resources
750
2,300
N/A
N/A
3,600
16,000
3,400
850
14,000
2,600
9,900
30,000
8,000
18,000
1,100
3,600
14,000
41,600
40,000
126,500
eText Project – Algonquin College
Our Future Plans …….
Currently the following institutions have approached us for support and guidance in
integrating a similar Digital Solution:
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Assiniboine College
Conestoga College
Confederation College
Centennial College
Dalhousie University
Fleming College
George Brown College
Georgian College
Humber College
Lambton College
Lethbridge University
Medicine Hat Alberta
• Mohawk College
• Ottawa Carleton District
School Board
• Saint Paul’s University
• SAIT Polytechnic
• Simon Fraser University
• University of British Columbia
• University of Waterloo
• Wilfred Laurier University
• ACJazan, ACKuwait and
Montenegro Campuses
eText Project – Algonquin College
ETEXT INTEGRATION SOLUTION – from “End-to-End”
Together with our Publisher and Software partners we have identified the four main components of
an effective eText Integration Model
PAL Publisher Asset Library
Book Adoption System
providing a high level of
effective electronic data
management (ONIX FEEDS)
An integrated Resource
Management System connected
to PAL and COMMS (Course Outline
Mapping management System)
Digital Resource Portal
Texidium eReader
An integrated resource
deployment system connected
to Book Adoption System and
our SIS (Student Information System)
A cloud based eReader designed
with the student user experience
as a priority, addressing AODA
compliance and available on most
mobile devices
eText Project – Algonquin College
Over the last year Algonquin College has moved forward with our
Publisher and Software partners in developing an “End-to-End
Solution”
1/. PAL, Publisher Asset Library is a very large database or repository, where our
publishers provide all national and institution specific resource data electronically using
an Onix data feed (Online Information Exchange) from there corporate computers.
2/. Book Adoption System has been introduced to faculty and coordinators later next
month. This system has been created to allow the course writers from our college
“Course Outline Mgt. System” to select their resources both in Print and Digital format,
from the PAL database.
3/. Digital Resource Portal, will continue to offer an efficient deployment solution
4/. Texidium eReader is a new reading platform developed by Algonquin and our
Software Partners. We are currently testing in our Spring semester and will fully engage
for the Fall 2015 deployment at Algonquin College both in our Ottawa and international
campuses.
www.algonquincollege.com/etexts/
Next Steps in our eText Strategy
• Continue with eText roll-out to more programs
• Continue improving administrative processes
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Texidium eReader
Publisher Asset Library (PAL)
Book Adoption System
Integration to existing Institutional Systems (ACSIS, COMMS)
• Enhance communication plan:
– Revitalize messaging (relying less on cost savings to students)
– Report on the evidence and data collected
• Formalize the research plan and continue the Pearson
Efficacy Study
– Define success in terms of outcomes (access, affordability, and
quality);
– Develop the analytics to measure intended outcomes;
Key Takeaways from Our Overall Strategy
• Listen, engage, communicate, AND build trust;
• Commit to shared vision and values;
• Commit at all levels of organization to leading operational (i.e.
business model) and cultural changes required;
• Invest in faculty and staff, and the processes to support them;
• Align resources to support student/client
needs;
• Be disciplined with reference to core
strengths, and stay true to your strategies;
• Manage risk, … but accept that failure is part
of the innovation process.
Larry Weatherdon
Algonquin College
Presenter’s photo
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
weathel@algonquincollege.com