You can read the intro to the "From LMS to Learning Outcomes Management (LOM)" below. The remainder of the section is available starting on page 5 after the jump. As always, if you have any comments or would like to share insight on the current state of LMS, please share it in the comments below or feel free to contact us directly at feedback@moodlerooms.com.
Learning management optimization: from LMS to Learning Outcomes Management (LOM)
The complexity of academic assessment and outcomes measurement, the demand for information from boards and accrediting bodies, and the increased velocity of decision making are driving the demand for new tools and applications in analytics. Past technology investments have been made to capture data, but few institutions have created or purchased applications for sophisticated data extraction, reporting and analysis.
Current means for extracting relevant information are both time consuming and expensive. Enterprise resource planning (ERP) databases are structured for transaction processing, audit trail, and operational needs, and are not organized for ease of reporting. These systems have virtually no end-user advanced analytics and reporting capabilities, and there is heavy dependency upon technical resources with detailed knowledge of SQL language database structures to extract data when needed.
With increased pressure on transparency, reporting and accountability, universities are currently relying on either internal staff or their ERP back office vendor to implement, extract, transfer and load (ETL) tools and one-off data extracts in the form of custom services work. This has been a growing problem among CIOs who are underfunded and overburdened in professional services case load. There is increased prima facie evidence that institutions are increasingly relying on ERP analytics and more formal data aggregation constructs, such as loosely formed digital data marts, data warehouses and operational data stores — all attempting to bring data to strategic planning, and to provide more sophisticated methods for monitoring performance outcomes that challenge post-secondary institutions today. Supporting the current market condition in data analytics and reporting is this observation from Lev Gonick, CIO at Case Western Reserve University:
- Decision support software and data warehousing tools have been available on campus for well over a decade. While cultures of evidence are not well rooted in the decision making on many university campuses, the growing pressures for better decision making in the context of budget pressures is compelling the campus to make better decisions. The small priesthood of campus analysts with skills to support decision making have more job security than most. At the same time, look for new reporting tools and growing expectations that metrics, scorecards, and data analytics will be used to drive tough decision making on campus.
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