One LMS Initiative Update: Survey results are in! Click here to see the results!
As announced earlier this fall by Provost Brian Schmisek, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota is in the process of evaluating and recommending a single Learning Management System (LMS) to help create a consistent and modern teaching and learning experience for all our students — as directly a part of the university’s new strategic plan.
As part of the process, we are looking at both of our current systems (Blackboard and Engage) along with exploring other available options.
Most recently, the LMS task force surveyed all university faculty, staff, and students to determine usage, likes/dislikes, comments, and recommendations for consideration in moving forward with having a single system selected by the early part of 2020 — with the implementation and migration plan to be dictated by the vendor selected.
The results are in, and the taskforce is actively coding and interpreting the data — including manually coding in open-ended responses to supplement multiple-choice data — thanks to collective efforts, led by Alexandra Cheatham, academic assessment and evaluation analyst on the Twin Cities Campus.
The task force thanks all members of the university community who participated in completing the survey. In total, the task force heard from 153 faculty members, 85 staff/administration, 375 students, and 11 others. This represented 184 individuals at the Winona Campus, 293 people at SGPP campuses in the Twin Cities and Rochester, and another 146 responders who are a part of the online learning community in various capacities.
So far, we are learning that the majority of users feel proficient in accessing information and completing tasks in their LMS (either Blackboard or Engage). Ninety percent of the faculty are using the LMS in their blended, on-campus, and online courses throughout each week or every day. Most respondents — both faculty and students — thought it was important to be able to access the LMS on their mobile devices. Additionally, a large majority of students are either moderately or extensively accessing the LMS for their course information.
Going forward, the next phase of the process involves completing the list of requirements and finalizing the RFP (Request for Proposal) message that will be sent to several vendors. Based on the responses, top selections will be invited in for demonstrations with the task force to help further widdle down our top contenders in January.
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