Sydney Uni to rationalise core learning platforms

The University of Sydney will rationalise its 11 online teaching and learning systems into a single platform in an effort to improve collaboration and interactive learning for students.

The university's new strategic plan for 2016 to 2020 [pdf] unveiled in March outlined plans to improve the quality of the university’s online teaching through curriculum changes supported by IT upgrades.

It highlighted intentions for new online short courses in data science, research techniques and ethics; as well as improved collaboration and mobility for students studying overseas; and increased use of video and interactive tools in courses.

A new educational technology incubator will also be established to help to create video, animation, visualisation and simulation for teaching purposes, and to assess new tools and technologies that can be used.

However, the university noted at the time that it was somewhat constrained in its ambitions given its current technology environment.

It has used the Blackboard 9.1 learning management system (LMS) as its primary LMS since 2010, but the platform also interacts with ten other online teaching and learning systems.

A desire to provide an "enhanced experience" to staff and students, coupled with the upcoming curriculum changes due in 2018, prompted the university to last week go to market for a single institutional-wide LMS.

It is currently assessing the market for options, and is using the process as an opportunity to evaluate software-as-a-service options.

“The evaluation of these platforms will cover both technical and educational requirements to ensure that our learning environments are aligned to our goals of developing interactive and collaborative learning designs,” a Sydney University spokesperson told iTnews.

The university expects to launch a small-scale trial of its chosen technology in time for the start of the first semester of 2017 on March 6.

A wider trial is tentatively scheduled for semester two from July 31, followed by a full rollout in 2018.