Managing Higher Education operations, to meet the new 24/7 demanding IT Train of thought.

Over the past several years there has been a speeding train coming towards Higher Education. It is to the livery of education on demand. This is such a unique trend in the educational world that administrators basically have no clue. There is ample confusion on how to meet these ever-increasing demands, and satisfy the Internet savvy, e-learning generation.

Every couple of months, I seem to be going through the same discussion with administrators on both the academic side as well as the information technology side. You cannot run an educational program on the East Coast that serves students on the West Coast, without tech support available after 8 pm ES time. Not only will the “e-learning generation” not put up with the lack of instant gratification technical support, but somebody like the University of Phoenix will gladly fill the gap.

This leads me to my major frustration about Information Technology Administrators who believe IT is a 7 AM to 5 PM business. In Higher Education today, all parties expect 24/7 access to information. Administrators, faculty members, and students (both traditional and distance learning) expect access to all Web applications and software packages 24/7 - 365 days a year. So, how do we, Information Technology Professionals, close our doors Friday at 5 pm and reopen Monday morning at 7 am? The number of catastrophes coming our way will not only be a shock to older administrators who are not willing to adapt to the IT age, but we will all be amazed at how quickly we lose market share to online universities who are willing to go the extra step and provide services that meet the demands of today’s student body.

We must first get a serious grip on what services are needed, and be realistic about hours of operation.  There has been a serious movement in higher education to outsource IT Helpdesks to third-party contractors that provide after-hours services. This is a quick fix to address the problem of how to get the required after-hours customer service and support. This solution does nothing to address the real problem since customers truly need constant phone as well as on-site desktop support. The institutions should rather adjust their operations and accept the new e-learning culture that provides around the clock functionality. I fear, after having several conversations with many IT Administrators and Chief Information Officers, that this shift in service provisions will not happen until true tragedy strikes and many people lose their jobs.

This seems to be a recurring theme throughout Information Technology and Education. We as professionals need to seriously take a step back and begin planning for the new generation of end users. We must stop being so locked in our “old-school” ways that we do not see the train coming down the track, we do not hear the warning horn, and we refuse to adjust our outdated and antiquated views of what Information Technology is. Information Technology is a living breathing, ever-changing industry. The IT train is moving so quickly and so constantly, that it is impossible to restrict it for the convenience of those of us who'd like to be home by 5:30 to watch the evening news.

A Point Of Thought Is Now On Facebook

A Point Of Thought On Facebook

Please come visit a new Facebook page that focuses on Information Technology Professionals in Higher Education, can share ideas and visions of the future of Information Technology in Education, as well as common frustrations.

WATH IS WIZIQ

WiZiQ enables teachers and learners to collaborate through

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Educational Content

Contact Network

WiZiQ is a web-based platform for anyone and everyone who wants to teach and learn live, online. Teachers and students use WiZiQ for its state-of-the-art virtual classroom, to create and share online educational content and tests, and to connect with persons having similar subject interests.

Anyone can join WiZiQ
WiZiQ is FREE for everyone and takes just few seconds. Whether you are a teacher or a learner, signing up for a WiZiQ account is free and simple. Enter your log in essentials (email address, password) and name to get started with an account on WiZiQ.

Live, online classes
In the virtual classroom with all the digital benefits at your fingertips, you can interact online using

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All classes on WiZiQ are automatically recorded so that you can revisit and even search for a certain topic anytime at your convenience

Build your educational network
On WiZiQ, you can enter your subject interests and discover who else on WiZiQ shares similar interests with you. Initiate contact with members around you to exchange knowledge, content and to help each other work towards common goals such as preparing for an exam or assignment.

Share content 
WiZiQ lets you produce your content online and convert it in a sharable format, with minimal effort. You can make your content semi-permanent, easy to put on blogs, and embeddable as objects and links.

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To learn more about WiZiQ before you join, take our Tour.

How to teach using WiZiQ?

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Educational Technology Funding Fiasco

Current debates on the use of Education and Technology fees in higher education have been highly animated and have given rise to subtle financial power struggles between top executives and departmental officials. “Ed-Tech” funds which have been historically seen as some sort of cushion to soften state budget crunching and sorely underfunded initiatives, are actually supposed to be money for enhancing student’s quality of learning – with the use of technology.

One Executive on the Academic Affairs side once argued, “It is an EDUCATION and technology fund” not an EDUCATIONAL technology fund. This really tickled me. What a clever twist of words. However, when one considers the current educational climate which is more and more dependent upon technology this argument seems ridiculous.

I would argue that in order to keep up with ever increasing technological trends in education, The “Education and Technology Fee” should be spent almost primarily on Educational technology. I mean when one considers that the world has moved to mandatory laptop programs, smart classroom learning, podcasting, e-learning, on-line degree programs………For goodness sakes, Arizona Sate University has tried implementing the Amizon.com Kindle as an e-learning tool in one of their courses. http://www.federalnewsradio.com/?nid=33&sid=1785012

With the use of technology in education moving at light speed, it is almost crippling for students not to have access to the latest gadgets. Students at NC State University have actually been instrumental in approving their own Ed-Tech fee increases, in acknowledgement of the rising cost of technology and the dire need to stay abreast of current advances. http://students.ncsu.edu/sgims/archive-79/bill/education-and-technology-fee-17.html

It is time for decision makers to acknowledge that currently many textbooks come with a CR-ROM, and on-line teacher resources. That many students prefer to take on-line courses from the comforts of their own room , and that study groups now take place in online chat rooms and blog spaces. What happens when officials who may not be so “techno-savvy” are making decisions for today’s psyber-student body? Perhaps the Education and Technology fee should be used to get the faculty and staff technologically up to speed. It is time for decision makers to realize that in some cases, education without technology, is just not good education at all.




The Education and Technology Fee (ETF) is used to:

o advance the quality of learning experiences and outcomes for students

o embrace emerging opportunities that differentiate the learning experience beyond what appropriated funding allows, while remaining accountable to students, the university, and the state, for return on technology investments —examples include but are not limited to equipment, software applications, supplies for educational materials, laboratory expenses, student computing labs and facilities, connectivity infrastructure and services to support student learning, learning spaces, and field trips. (from: NC State University via. website)

Vision and Strategy for Information Technology in Higher Education

Fostering a highly functional, effective, efficient, current Information technology Services in Higher Education requires the consideration of three major areas, and then a concise action plan that will remedy these areas to make the plan functional.

Information technology in higher education falls into three distinct categories. The first category day-to-day operations comprises of the basic function of information technology in any given organization(ie. keeping e-mail running, file systems, basic uptime for desktop, systems and overall network and telecommunications functions). The second category function of information technology in higher education is the strategic planning, decision making, and implementation. The third major category and by far one of the most important functions is to foster teaching and learning by keeping up to date with all new trends and tools that will be required for the education of students.

It is one thing to state the major goals of the organization but how do we as information technology professionals achieve and actively implement these goals? To achieve the goal of Day-to-day operations one must begin by listing out all of the core components of information technology functions and rate them in order of importance. There is a methodology for this practice called SLA’s (service level agreements) this methodology not only allows you to prioritize all day-to-day operations but it also allows you to set expectations on turnaround time forward repairs and maintenance.

There is another favorite methodology under the information technology governance framework that lots of information technology professionals used to align the strategic goals of the institution with the information technology operation, this is called COBIT this methodology takes you step-by-step through the procedures necessary to align information technology with the overall goals of institution i.e. implementing a long-range strategic plan in consultation with all stakeholders to ensure all information technology decisions are in line and hitting in the right direction with complete understanding of all constituents.

The 3rd most difficult category for any information technology professional is the overall pedagogy and teaching and learning. This is a difficult subject for any individual to explore. It consists of two differencing interests. As each year student begin to learn in different ways, it is an ever moving target to keep students engaged in higher education without implementing massive technological tools (ie. social networking tools to overall communication and collaboration tools). The educators trained many years ago who were taught to harnessed proven methods of educating students must now also grasp the ever increasing learning curve of new technology. This becomes a unique challenge for both sides, the IT team as well as the educators themselves.


The overall vision for information technology in higher education is based on patience, understanding and solid communication. One cannot hold the point of view that any one path is right in consultation with the overall community. All decisions must be made in a methodical manner and clearly communicated to all constituents, faculty, staff, administrators and students. Only with repeated communication and clear understanding will information technology ever be effective in any higher education organization.




What is ITIL?

ITIL is the abbreviation for the guideline IT Infrastructure Library, developed by CCTA, now the OGC (Office of Governance Commerce) in Norwich (England) developed on behalf of the British government. The main focus of the development was to create mutual best practices for all British government data centers to ensure comparable services. Today ITIL is the worldwide de-facto-standard for service management and contains broad and publicly available professional documentation on how to plan, deliver and support IT service features.

What is COBIT? (Cobit is an information technology governance framework and supporting toolset that allows managers to bridge the gap between control requirements, technical issues and business risks. COBIT enables clear policy development and good practice for IT control throughout organizations. COBIT emphasizes regulatory compliance, and helps organizations to increase the value attained from information technology).

Google Wave and the effect on document retention policies and procedures

Over the last couple of days, I have been lucky enough to have a Google wave account which has allowed me to investigate all of the new features. Once again Google has knocked this one out of the park, I can truly see how the next generation of e-mail will greatly enhance our overall communication abilities and meet today's needs for multi-thread thought patterns of today's youth. After about three days of playing with Google wave and its new features I've come to realize, how quickly technology moves. Which leads me to my question of the day? Have we given any consideration to document retention policies and procedures in our institutions? With the change of e-mail being located on a central server an out of our control(today's e-mail systems work on the basic principle once delete it and given the proper amount of time it is gone forever. Google wave works on a thread principle, of being in a central location and owned by many people. if one person deletes it is still owned by the of the person, not taken off of the server if you add a third person you begin the dilemma of how long something can stay out in cyberspace.) This brings out a couple of questions about existing document retention policies in the future for our institutions; any help answering the following questions will be greatly appreciated.

1. How does this affect a public, government or higher education institution under the freedom of information act?
    
2. How will state laws affect e-mail retention policies and procedures, when an organization receives a subpoena?
   
   
3. What type of training will it really take to explain the effect of this new technology, to administrators, staff, faculty, alumni and students?

 

These are the questions that are in our future as information technology professionals and leaders. By starting this conversation early and having it frequently, for once we might truly be ahead of the curve instead of behind it. So let's begin this conversation with the knowledge that the new technology is coming rather we have worked out our issues with document retention or not.