1. The Digital Department
Project Team: Stefanie Anyadi (PaLS), Lorraine Dardis (Internat. Affairs),
Alison Gilry (ICH), Ciaran Moynihan (ICH), Clive Young (LTSS)

2. Aims
• Professional profile and expertise of UCL teaching
administrators (TAs)
• Training programme
• External accreditation via
....semi funded by Aug 2011 to July 2013

3. Workshop aims and structure
• Activity: what are „digital literacies‟?
• Intro to The Digital Department
• Activity: how does this relate to your organisation?
• Activity: The digital literacies „triangle‟
• Activity: What areas to investigate?
• Discussion: accreditation and networking

4. Workshop aims and structure
• Activity: what are „digital literacies‟?
• Intro to The Digital Department
• Activity: how does this relate to your organisation?
• Activity: The digital literacies „triangle‟
• Activity: What areas to investigate?
• Discussion: accreditation and networking

5. Digital Literacy according to JISC
• digital literacy defines those capabilities
which fit an individual for living, learning and
working in a digital society
– ICT/computer literacy
– information literacy
– media literacy
– Communication and collaboration
– Digital scholarship
– Learning skills
– Life planning
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6. Why teaching administrators (TAs)?
• 30k? individuals across UK HE (c150 at UCL)
• major contribution to the student experience in
increasingly technologically 'blended' learning
environments – manage the digital presence
• have a range of responsibilities - admissions,
quality management, programme and course
coordination and planning, VLE course
management, student advice, student feedback
processes, distance learning etc
• digital literacy underpins all these activities

7. The backstory
1. The unexpected guests (2009)
2. “The dog that didn‟t bark” (2010)
3. The Forum (2009-11)
4. Total Moodle (2011), Moodle 2 (2012)
5. The Digital Department (2011-13)

8. Some of the tools UCL TAs use
UCL admin and financial systems Communication and networking tools
Portico – student information service Email – inefficient way of contacting students?
Financial Information System (FIS) - financial data and Facebook– seen mainly as a communication tool
management Phone Text messaging – no UCL service but a strong demand
Timetabling/CMIS - room bookings and timetabling Messenger - text messaging
Service in Partnership (SiP) – HR forms Skype – video conferencing
Rome - online recruitment Linkedin – professional networking
Web content management (silva) Blogs – UCLWordpress service
Scanners – being piloted as attendance checks for Points- Twitter –how to use in HE?
Based Immigration System (PBIS) YouTube – online videos
UCL teaching and learning systems Productivity tools
Moodle - e–learning environment MS Office – Word, Excel, PP, Acrobat
Turnitin – plagiarism detection Dreamweaver – web page development
Lecturecast – automated lecture recording Etherpad – collaborative note taking
Opinio - web-based surveys Evernote – stores notes, photos
My Portfolio – staff and student e-portfolio Google docs – share web documents
Electronic Voting Systems (EVS) – audience response Google analytics – web usage
'clickers'
UCL Dropbox – exchange large files
Wiki – collaborative web pages
Dropbox – web-based online storage
Blackboard Collaborate – virtual classroom
Marketing and events management
Eventbrite – events management
“It is almost impossible for busy academic Find a Masters – marketing
staff to stay up to date” (SLiDA) Oxboffice – ticketing service
Google Adwords – online advertising

9. Top 10 systems used by UCL TAs
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0

10. What do TAs want to learn about?
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0

11. TDD activities
1. Review current processes and practices to establish a baseline of
digital literacies required and a framework of good practice.
2. Analyse the likely future requirements - via focus groups and 'mini
projects„.
3. Plan innovations - co-develop a knowledge base.
4. Pilot a practitioner-led workshop programme.
5. Evaluate with a particular focus on enhancing the student experience.
6. Certify the programme (with the AUA) – a portfolio approach.
7. Cascade the literacies to colleagues and students.
8. Adapt the model for other groups of professional services staff.

12. Workshop aims and structure
• Activity: what are „digital literacies‟?
• Intro to The Digital Department
• Activity: how does this relate to your organisation?
• Activity: The digital literacies „triangle‟
• Activity: What areas to investigate?
• Discussion: accreditation and networking

13. Workshop aims and structure
• Activity: what are „digital literacies‟?
• Intro to The Digital Department
• Activity: how does this relate to your organisation?
• Activity: The digital literacies „triangle‟
• Activity: What areas to investigate?
• Discussion: accreditation and networking

14. Digital literacies and the learner experience
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15. Digital literacies and the learner experience
Students - must become skilled at identifying and
integrating learning opportunities to meet their
personal needs.
Academics - support Administrators -
and feedback to students complex enrolments and
seeking a range of timetables, new modes
learning of study, courses
outcomes, maintaining delivered in different
contact and support settings.
progression.
Key: Enhancing student experience and meeting new expectations

16. Workshop aims and structure
• Activity: what are „digital literacies‟?
• Intro to The Digital Department
• Activity: how does this relate to your organisation?
• Activity: The digital literacies „triangle‟
• Activity: Which areas to investigate?
• Discussion: accreditation and networking

17. Case studies

18. Workshop aims and structure
• Activity: what are „digital literacies‟?
• Intro to The Digital Department
• Activity: how does this relate to your organisation?
• Activity: The digital literacies „triangle‟
• Activity: Which areas to investigate?
• Discussion: accreditation and networking

19. Next steps
Accreditation – map knowledge, skills and experience
against AUA professional behaviours and design
accreditation framework with AUA
UCL TA induction and professional development –
produce handbook and standard operating procedures and
work with UCL HR to design a professional development
programme for TAs
Best Practice – produce best practice guidelines for TA
responsibilities cutting across departments
Professionalisation – investigate and report on recent
developments in university administration

20. Networking
• Links to relevant other
activities/projects/institutions
• Links to development for support staff in other
areas/jnstitutions
• Lessons for cross-institutional working
• Any questions?