Learning Relationship Management - Wainhouse Research

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Learning Relationship Management

Ending the Expectation of Average while Getting Back to Basics Alan D. Greenberg April, 2016

Sponsored by

Contents Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 4 Education Today ............................................................................................................. 4 Educational Technology Today ....................................................................................... 5 The LRM Platform ........................................................................................................... 6 Methodology................................................................................................................... 8 Key Takeaway.................................................................................................................. 9 Why LRM? ......................................................................................................................... 10 Learning Theory and LRM ............................................................................................. 10 Learners and LRM ......................................................................................................... 10 Technologies and LRM .................................................................................................. 11 LRM Capabilities and Key Elements .............................................................................. 12 Market Needs for LRM ...................................................................................................... 13 Benefits of LRM Platforms ................................................................................................ 17 Consolidation of Technologies ...................................................................................... 18 Independent, Successful Learners ................................................................................ 20 Data-Driven Decision Making ....................................................................................... 21 Organizational Transformation ..................................................................................... 22 Challenges ......................................................................................................................... 22 Change Management.................................................................................................... 23 Professional Development ............................................................................................ 24 Big Data ......................................................................................................................... 24 Early Stage Best Practices ................................................................................................. 25 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 29 About the Author .............................................................................................................. 30 About Wainhouse Research.............................................................................................. 30 About the LRM Alliance .................................................................................................... 30 End Notes .......................................................................................................................... 32

Figures Figure 1 LMS, LRS, and SIS Contrasted............................................................................... 7 Figure 2 LRM in Primary / Secondary Education and the Lifecycle of the Learner ........... 8 Figure 3 LRM Support Areas ............................................................................................ 13 Figure 4 Siloes of Data -- With the Learner Outside Looking in....................................... 15 Figure 5 Student Information Consolidated and Accessible to all Stakeholders............. 20

Tables Table 1 Needs to be Addressed by LRMs ......................................................................... 14 Table 2 LRM Benefits by Stakeholder .............................................................................. 18

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Introduction Education Today Many technological tools have been designed to solve a specific functional requirement, whether meant to support institution, educator / learner, or classroom needs. Some of these have been terrific point solutions that have enhanced teaching and learning and improved institutional efficiency and productivity. But they have not yet delivered on one very big idea: how to foster the essential relationship between the learner (at the heart of it all) and the community of stakeholders meant to mentor the learner, most notably the educator. Everyone involved in the world of education understands that enormous, tectonic shifts are taking place these days. Debates take place daily in both educational circles and the court of public opinion regarding how to “fix” an industry that, because of its sheer size and scope – as well as the many different viewpoints regarding how to do it best – often seems unfixable. And even worse, yesterday’s panaceas (Online learning! Flipped classrooms! Mandated testing!) become today’s question mark: “Oh it’s working over here, but why hasn’t it solved the big issues?” The pressures on higher education are many: justifying the cost of a two- or four-year degree plan; controlling operating expenses; improving outcomes; retaining learners; and mapping career paths to an evolving job market to name a few. These issues affect both public and private post-secondary educational institutions to varying degrees. In particular, higher education faces challenges in retaining students, particularly those whose families have insufficient knowledge of financial aid opportunities – and / or endure forced interruptions in their post-secondary educational experiences. As a consequence, this has a tremendous impact on degree attainment. Approximately 21% of American adults over the age of 25 – 44 million individuals – have some college credit but lack degrees. 1 The pressures on primary / secondary We set out to take a modest online education are no less intense. Teacher program and grow it very aggressively. burnout, regular introduction of new We had to lower costs and create more paths of access and higher quality for standards and curricula, testing mandates, students for whom college is not a confusion regarding the Common Core, guarantee. The Learning Relationship and to put it bluntly, disrespect (at least in Management platform is a means of the U.S.) for what traditionally was a welldoing this. regarded profession have combined to – Dr. Paul LeBlanc, President, SNHU create a field in flux. Education never has been so challenged to retain its best and brightest while absorbing societal changes and evolving workforce requirements. While the gloom and doom from politicians and policymakers might lead some to believe the “unfixable” will remain unfixed, the fact is, those involved in the business of education are asking some key questions. From Clayton Christensen and Michael Horn 2 © Wainhouse Research, 2016

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to “the Daniels” (Pink 3 and Willingham 4) and many others, a series of new frameworks, approaches, and fresh thought leadership has brought about a remarkable discussion concerning how to make education work at every level. These and other thinkers understand that a system designed in John Dewey’s time, meant as Todd Rose puts it “to organize and teach children to become workers who could perform industrial tasks in ‘a perfect way,’” is not well suited to individualized learning – meeting the competencies and interests of every learner. The norms – “to sort students by ranking them based on their performance in a standardized curriculum … compels every student to do exactly the same things the average student does.” This results in what Rose calls an “averagarian” system – one that is a “narrow and ruthless system based on a nineteenth century notion of ranking.” 5 Clearly the status quo has never been less helpful than now, where the intersection of social and workplace needs requires approaches more suitable to a vastly different landscape.

Educational Technology Today Fresh thinking has introduced new hope that some legacy approaches to education (problem-based learning, project-based learning, competency-based education, sageon-a-stage teaching, online / distance learning, blended learning) might provide a jumpstart via emerging tools and techniques. On the other hand, newer concepts (massive open online courses, flipped classrooms, and hybrid learning) might take teaching and learning to new levels. Some, but by no means all, educators have placed many eggs in one basket – technology – with the belief that adaptive learning, collaborative technologies, cloud-based technologies, and 1:1 and BYOD initiatives might help to create lasting change. Thus a wide variety of technological approaches are steadily evolving to address the systemic challenges facing education. The problem with counting on technology alone, however, is that most technology platforms are siloed, designed for specific administrative, functional, or teacher needs. The Learning Management System (LMS) platform – a kind of operating system for courses – was invented almost 20 years ago. Its workflows have made the lives of college professors infinitely easier, but in many respects the LMS is a point solution specifically designed to manage courses only. LMS systems are structured from the point of view of an instructor’s needs, but neglect the needs of the learner and, in some instances, the institution. 1 Meanwhile, the Student Information System (SIS) – which predated the LMS by some years – functions as large data repositories, not platforms for managing teaching and learning. In this case, they support the needs of the institution and its various functional areas, but not the needs of the learner (and often not the needs of the instructor).

To be fair, some LMS platforms have begun to introduce learner-centric functionality in the past few years, such as mobile clients, real-time collaboration, and social media feeds. But the LMS platform remains at its heart a tool for instructors to deliver classes.

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The LRM Platform This leads us to an emerging platform designed from the ground up to reflect the lifecycle of the learner: the Learning Relationship Management (LRM) platform. The key elements of LRM embrace the concept that every learner is unique, and will have This emerging category of tools is more his/her own unique pathway or process, as focused on student success and more integration with other platforms. We it were, but that such a process cannot be want to treat each student holistically viewed without also including the and individually, with integration across relationships with others that are at the all of our areas of information and core of learning. Thus any LRM platform services. may include a wide mix of the following – Dave Swartz, CIO, essential elements: learning pathways, American University learner profiles, learning communities, digital portfolios, analytics tools, social elements, coaching tools, flags and alerts, learning applications, and more. Think of LRM as a kind of operating system for the learner’s education. In many respects LRM is analogous to the Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) platform found in the business world – and one LRM solution, Motivis Learning, is actually built on top of the well-known Salesforce.com. 2 But while building on the personalization aspects contained in a CRM, LRM takes an asset-based approach to learning and achievement. It views people and relationships as assets, as well as student behaviors (motivation, preparation time, and actual work time). The result is learner-centric education, driven by a learner but with external mechanisms that ensure that a learner’s network can provide support on an ongoing basis. While we define the LRM platform a bit more later in this paper, one other important aspect of LRM worth mentioning is that it can support not only a learner’s goals, but an educator’s and an institution’s as well. In theory this should translate to a more intrinsically valuable educational experience for the learner, and a more successful program for an institution. Some LMS platforms provide some of what an LRM can provide, and some LRM platforms provide some elements of an LMS, but the two – along with the SIS – provide distinct functionality and advantages.

As a note, Motivis was created at and is an independent spinoff from Southern New Hampshire University, which continues to use the platform.

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Figure 1 LMS, LRS, and SIS Contrasted 3

At the higher educational institutional level, one approach can consist of creating an end-to-end lifecycle. This starts in higher education with marketing, onboarding, creating a learning plan, identifying career focus, offboarding, and graduation – though LRM can extend into alumni needs as well. Overlap exists in some respects between K12 and higher education stakeholders. A major difference is that for primary / secondary environments, the focus is less on careers at an earlier stage, and more on learner profiles, as shown in Figure 2.

The LMS definition has been attributed to Matt Pittinsky, Co-Founder of Blackboard. Also, while some minimal overlapping functions exist between an LMS and an LRM platform, certain types of pedagogical approaches, such as competency-based education, can be delivered with an LRM only, and mitigate the need for an LMS.

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Figure 2 LRM in Primary / Secondary Education and the Lifecycle of the Learner

The timing of the relatively new 4 LRM class of products could not be better. Many of those interviewed to provide background for this paper indicate that LRM is an essential element of reinvention – one that up to now has never been available. The result is that LRM solutions have the potential to play in the sandbox with the major educational reform movements taking place – and more to the point – help institutions at every level evolve to address 21st century learner needs.

Methodology To best understand the market drivers leading to LRM adoption, Wainhouse Research conducted in-depth interviews with a representative set of early evaluators and / or adopters of LRM, exploring their experiences and attitudes. The mix of institutions we chose provides a sample of both higher education (private and online universities) and primary / secondary schools (public and also a private program). These included: •

American University



Bryan University



Concordia University Chicago



Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU)



Teton Science Schools



Verona, Wisconsin Area School District

The term as coined in 1999 by Dr. Mark Milliron and first used in print by the Gates Foundation in 2012 (which now refers to the concept as Integrated Planning and Advising for Student Success, or iPASS). Fishtree was the first commercially available LRM (2013) though others were in use in programs beginning in 2011.

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Walker Elementary / West Allis-West Milwaukee, Wisconsin School District

We also briefed with a higher education consultant who is an expert on competencybased education and who has deployed an LRM, Charla S. Long (former Founding Dean, Lipscomb University College of Professional Studies). And we met with a number of members of the LRM Alliance, an association of like-minded vendors building LRM platforms for the future (and the sponsor of this paper). Those interviewed include Epiphany Learning, Fidelis Education, Fishtree, and Motivis Learning.

Key Takeaway The LRM concept stands to be a transformative platform for institutions of higher learning as well as primary / secondary schools. This is for two key reasons: 1) it shifts the workflow paradigm, encouraging learners to be their very best in a non-punitive way, helping them reach their full potential; and 2) it can be an essential element in the larger discussion taking place at virtually every institution about improvement and reinvention. We are in a world where technology now allows vendors and relationships of every kind to surround us as individuals – whether Amazon knows our purchasing patterns, our browser ads are correlated, or we are making purchasing decisions. We customize our experiences around desires and goals and objectives, and this process is increasingly profound. Education was largely built around a proscribed pathway that you did not help to create, but that was created by faculty and institutions. This paradigm increasingly will be challenged, because building one pathway is the least sensible thing you can do given the complexity of students and complexity of learning. We need systems that recognize variability. – Dr. Paul LeBlanc, SNHU

We are developing a framework for student development, which was essential before we began to identify requirements for particular tools. Then we found this emerging category of tools, which is focused more on student success and integration with other aspects of education – consistent with what we want in a project. We want to treat each student holistically and individually – via services that enable us to treat the student more wholly. – Dr. Scott Bass, Provost, American University

We want to ask the hard questions: Will people have an opportunity to grow and learn and become something better? Why does tuition have to be so high? Why is online learning not perceived to be as good as brick-andmortar education? We chose an online model and want to have high graduation rates, and we believe the LRM solution will help us reinvent education and achieve our goals. –

Eric Evans, President and COO, Bryan University

Every educational institution interviewed is on its own path in determining how to adopt LRM. A large sense of excitement exists concerning the concept of the LRM platform and what is possible in terms of the lifecycle of the learner. Several things are © Wainhouse Research, 2016

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clear: adopting LRM is a process, requires change management, and for many of the early adopter institutions, is a true partnership between vendor and educational institution.

Why LRM? Learning Theory and LRM There is no one size fits all to learning. After all the research into learning styles and how 1) they differ from student to student, and 2) they do not always mesh with particular teaching styles, a consensus is growing that the act of teaching is just one element of student success. To foster effective education, educators increasingly understand that a learner’s success starts with self-direction, which can and should be supplemented by the assets surrounding that learner that reinforce self-direction: mentors, peers, community, and choice. The net result is that these elements can contribute to a bigger picture that affects all stakeholders: institutional success. With the right data on hand – and effective windows into that data and what it is telling you – interventions can occur specifically as needed. Some interviewed for this paper commented about the frequency of unexpected occurrences that can derail an educational plan, particularly at the undergraduate and graduate institutions. Thus the elements of personalization, community, and data help the LRM platform become the uber platform for learner success. These concepts are not revolutionary. They dovetail with the competency-based education movement, notions about 21st Century Skills, and the latest thinking about cognition and how students learn to think. As Daniel Willingham put it, “It’s naïve to pretend that all students come to your class equally prepared to excel; they have had different preparations, as well as different levels of support at home, and they will therefore differ in their abilities. If that’s true … it is self-defeating to give all of your students the same work.” 6

Learners and LRM LRM thus fits in with the idea that it is possible to take a more holistic perspective into what is possible for every learner. Todd Rose, in The End of Average, calls for transformation of his “averagarian” architecture of the existing system into one that values the individual student. His approach calls for three key concepts: 1) granting credentials, not diplomas; 2) replacing grades with a focus on mastering competencies; and 3) letting students determine their educational pathways. 7

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Technologies and LRM Advances made in the customer relationship management (CRM) industry have created an opportunity that demonstrates the We've talked about disruption to the greater need for an LRM – as education industry of education, but we haven't pleads for more holistic views into learner talked about the powerful impact of a needs. This is where LMSs are not up to generation that knows search engines the task: with their focus as credit-bearing, and apps and handheld devices. teacher-centered course delivery systems, – Dave Swartz, CIO, their DNA does not map to the needs of American University the learner’s lifecycle. Many LMS vendors have begun to bolt onto their platforms learner-centric functionality, but there is much that these platforms do not lend themselves to provide, and they will be slower to adapt to the true needs of studentcentered learning (as described later in this paper). In parallel with the evolution of CRM systems, consumer-based technologies have established an ecosystem in which the degree of personalization that wraps around each individual is something almost expected – and certainly welcomed when managed appropriately. Like many things in life, such consumer-based technologies (mobile devices, social media, and apps) can be a force for distraction, or if properly used, a force for good. Certainly learners’ understanding of and comfortableness with technologies underscores the changing nature of the student population. Drawing upon consumer-based The fundamental challenge: we believe technologies ironically enables the LRM people are disconnected from local platform to counter the idea that places. How do we reconnect them to educational technology might diminish the become better citizens and more role of the educator. If anything, LRM engaged with the world?” shows that the role of the educator is as – Dave Swartz, central as ever, only it can expand that role American University by helping an educator (or advisor or mentor) become more consultative, and by providing more data intelligence than what is presented by simple gradebooks. So, an LRM platform can in fact shift the educator’s focus back to what matters most: relationships and engagement between learner and educator. At the same time, because status and mentoring and activities are digitized, LRM can provide the equivalent of an audit trail on relationships, and a method to measure relationship activities versus outcomes. LRM, unlike an LMS or SIS, can provide a true feedback loop to assess just what kinds of interventions and interactions make a difference.

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LRM Capabilities and Key Elements Every LRM thus far is unique, but they all contain some or all of these elements: •

Pathways that help students define purpose and directions -- flexible learning paths that over time may include assignments, project planning, feedback loops, links to standards, and other elements.



Learner profiles – a dynamic, living, breathing representation of who the learner is, was and may become based on information accumulated over time, learner progress, individual learning styles, and more.



Scheduling tools for learners and educators alike, providing tools for event / deadline creation, and prioritization / time management.



The ability to create learning communities – established, defined sets of stakeholders that are central to deepen a learner’s engagement with his/her education, incorporating social elements that can vary between mentors, counselors, teachers and even alumni.



Portfolios – digital representations of student work that reveal the connectedness of learning opportunities – and learner accomplishments that can matter to mentors, educators, peers, and even prospective employers



Analytics that are interconnected with actionable alerts and flags, enabling an institution to understand effectiveness (when a learner may have achieved something notable) and when a learner may need assistance. Some LRM platforms collect analytics on assigned learning activities and content. On top of that, LRM analytics at their best enable advisors or educators to understand the historical record of interactions with learners, flag those needing the most help at any given time, let them recommend apps and mentors appropriate to each individual student, all while connecting each stakeholder to one another to ensure they are working on consistent pathways for the learner.



A coaching hub – a means of accessing information for all students via comprehensive dashboard – and providing direction / guidance / interventions as necessary.



Digital badges, which are micro-credentials that enable learners to demonstrate skills levels.



Content modules, also sometimes called learning apps, an approach to templatebased authoring tools for apps. Some platforms provide educational success modules, personality inventories, professional skills, or career advancement modules. Adaptive, personalized learning modules can be designed by instructors from original content and/or pulled from open educational resources.

What LRM addresses is the need to surround a learner with coaching, out-of-class academic support, degree planning, community, and mentoring, as shown in Figure 3. © Wainhouse Research, 2016

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Figure 3 LRM Support Areas

The LRM Alliance is a resource for a more complete definition and understanding of this nascent platform, while our focus here is on the market drivers and specific needs as expressed by early adopters.

Market Needs for LRM The needs these early adopters express, as stated earlier, reflect the broader dialogue taking place in the community of educators. How those needs are addressed may vary based on educational level and by LRM – every LRM is unique. Just as every institution is unique. While an American University or an SNHU may talk about reinventing itself, a Concordia University Chicago may talk about giving its learners the very highest amount of support, and a Bryan University may focus on making online learning as effective as face-to-face teaching, while the Wisconsin schools may simply focus on individualized learning paths and competency-based education. In all cases, however, the essential needs remain very similar, as shown in Table 1.

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Scaled personalized learning



Primary / Secondary Education 

Personalized learning pathways





Ability to connect learners (to places, other people)





Ability to structure education so that the learner owns responsibility for his / her education





Increased mentoring opportunities





Streamlined support systems





Ability to wrap the institution (and its support systems) holistically around the learner at every stage





Streamlined technologies for students and all stakeholders





Cost efficiencies to reduce tuition rates





Support for improving online learning outcomes





Increased opportunities for interventions





Ability to replace outmoded methods of managing student data





Need

Higher Education

Table 1 Needs to be Addressed by LRMs

Early adopters seek a means of supporting their learners by consolidating siloes of data and using technology to build a comprehensive view, which results in a more individualized experience for learners and an ability to be more proactive on the part of educators and administrators.

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We have all of the categories of professionals: a career system, professional advisors, registrar, financial aid, mental health, peer counselors, tutoring, and RA's. For each of the professions there has been developed a data system that serves that specialized constituency. They are all top drawer systems, a few made internally. But they do not communicate with each other. We have no integrated dashboard. – Dr. Scott Bass, American University

How do we reduce the bureaucracy? One way is to take the burden off of students who might be precarious and struggling. And how do you scale with a promise of high touch student support? You deploy a lot of technology and use it to build a 360 degree view of the student. We need systems that recognize variability. – Dr. Paul LeBlanc, SNHU

We recognize students are having difficulties in adjusting to college life and their variety of behaviors are more accentuated than in the past. Our systems that serve undergraduates have 36 different siloed databases. Students arrive without familiarity with these sort of technological systems. A disconnect exists between this generation’s students and the robust systems we offer. – Dave Swartz, American University

As mobile as they may be, and though comfortable with a certain degree of technology that is pervasive in consumer life, these learners nonetheless do not need to be interacting with multiple systems and databases. Institutions recognize that they cannot be agile when data resides inside siloed systems. Those siloes can affect the very support structures they are meant to help: faculty, advisors, and staff, who get frustrated at the inefficiencies introduced by disparate systems. These inefficiencies prevent them from giving learners the very best support.

Figure 4 Siloes of Data -- With the Learner Outside Looking in

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The need to address the disconnectedness of the learner is a theme we hear over and over from the educators interviewed. Student success is now understood to be dependent upon creation of a web of links between learners and a larger community. This sensibility is felt in many post-secondary institutions, even more than in primary / secondary education, that today’s learners (adult, veteran, working adults, families) need more support in part because there is more to navigate when it comes to creating an effective degree program. The fundamental challenge is that we believe people are disconnected from local places. How do we reconnect them to become better citizens and more engaged with the world?

People long to be in relationship with other people. Fidelis’ approach recognizes this need, and allows learners to be surrounded by encouragers and supporters who they know and trust in addition to randomly assigned support staff with whom they have no pre-existing relationship.

– Nate McClennen, Vice President of Education and Innovation, Teton Science Schools

– Charla S. Long, Higher Education Consultant, Go Long Consulting

Being learner-centric becomes a matter of using an LRM solution to motivate learners in ways that may be new to many organizations. Where the grade and homework have been relied upon as the primary motivators in mainstream education, LRM is built around a more broad view that progress can be promoted and measured within a larger context. This means an entirely new set of motivators. And because learners vary, the best motivators will vary by learner – and by educator. At the end of the day, learners are no less stressed out than their parents in the workforce. The LRM platform becomes the tool for an institution to tackle that stress fully by proactively managing the student experience and anticipating and addressing problems before they arise. The net result should be on retention rates – one of the biggest issues colleges and universities face today.

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When you shift to a learner‐ centered system, the challenge is how to keep learners motivated and inspired to complete the curriculum. Quality, studentcentered curriculum is the first priority, and platform tools such as badging, social networking, notifications is the second priority. – Nate McClennen, Teton Science Schools

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We are seeking a truly real-time measurement of competency and progression, with the ability to capture capstone events and eventually the capacity to automate what happens after events. Dr. Thomas P. Jandris, Senior Vice President for Innovation, Dean of the College of Graduate and Innovative Programs, Concordia University Chicago

We have metrics for success and are watching our retention rates. We are better than many other schools but not where we should be given the quality of our students. These are hard-driving students that choose a setting like this. Without appropriate guides we have students who can get highly stressed, and they try to do too much in too short a time. This may lead to burnout. So we have to learn to pay attention to the pace and, in a timely fashion, aid and guide our students. – Dr. Scott Bass, American University

Benefits of LRM Platforms Truth be told, it is far too early to quantify the benefits of LRM. These platforms are still in the process of being understood and adopted. Having said that, those in pilot programs or in full deployment are remarkably consistent concerning what they expect to receive in the way of benefits. Learners, faculty / staff, and institutions each may experience different or similar benefits. Need

Learner

Faculty / Staff

Institution

Improved graduation / progression rates







Holistic, soup-to-nuts support for learner







New, fresh approach for learner-institutional interactions











Organizational transformation

5

Conversion of accepted to enrollments



Prevention of melt (loss of student after enrollment) 5



Ability to address learners based on their specific needs







Collaboration between mentors and engagement with existing and evolving support networks







360 degree learner plans, activity, and engagement visible to all stakeholders







Common as an issue among for-profit institutions

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Need

Learner

Faculty / Staff

Institution

Reduction of systems that are marginally valuable







Streamlined communications to learners







Consolidation of faculty technologies (one dashboard) and reduction of tools







Improved online programs











Achieve quick compliance with mandated processes and programs Table 2 LRM Benefits by Stakeholder

Consolidation of Technologies After the basic ability to create agreed upon learner pathways, perhaps the single biggest benefit stakeholders expect – and certainly likely to be most directly perceived by an institution, less obvious perhaps to learners – is the ability to consolidate technologies and improve the experience of those technologies. In higher education, this is an especially crucial benefit, where a campus can have dozens of different access points for all stakeholders. But even in K-12 education, organizations like Teton Science Schools – which deals with distributed students – expect LRM to help them consolidate the number of digital tools in use. At every level an LRM solution provides a new way for learners to engage with both technology and a school. Meanwhile, some schools expect LRM to help them leapfrog beyond basic tools like pen and paper, Google Docs, and Excel spreadsheets – where data that may be contained within an LRM solution can be captured more gracefully and with less manual effort. Our learners love the contemporary, Facebookinspired interface. The UI feels fresh. They navigate Motivis comfortably. They like the progress bar and functionality and cleanliness. It all feels about ‘them’ because it tells them ‘where are you, what are you working on’. My sense from the beginning is that there has been a positive reaction to it.

Our goal is to keep students focused on our mission of place-based education, as we have good data to suggest that it increases learning, engagement, and investment to make the world a better place. To prevent distraction from this mission, we are fans of technology consolidation: comprehensive, studentcentered, simple, and flexible systems are far better than a collection of hundreds of digital tools.

We are replacing ad hoc dashboards and Google spreadsheets and Excel. We used to manage all of our relationships with Google spreadsheets. And this replaces email and regular SMS texts. We wanted all of it to happen in Fidelis: peer-to-peer collaboration and messaging, and our LRM is the tool that allows us to have a village to graduate the students.

– Dr. Paul LeBlanc, SNHU

– Nate McClennen, Teton Science Schools

– Kurt Hayes, Bryan University

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Such consolidation of tools is expected to improve the student experience in a very big way. For one thing, fewer tools mean fewer “clicks-to-get-work-done.” Think of what the concept of single sign-on (SSO) has done to reduce context switching, then multiply the value of SSO exponentially to understand the value of that consolidation of tools. In addition, faculty and staff get tools that make them more efficient – and better able to help learners. It’s nice to have different modes and means, and far better than what we were doing with Google and spreadsheets. We started personal learning networks (PLNs) five years ago, with paper, then went to Google Drive, Google Docs, and Weebly. Some tasks were performed using various other apps. But it did not allow parents to dig in to and see where students are. And it was hard for staff, with nine different teams each using different technologies. – Stacey Lange, Academic Dean, Walker Elementary

We are trying to get our staff into learner profiles, and taking it one step at a time – but hearing positive feedback. They like that the information is all in one spot and the fact that it will grow with the students, and won't change once they enter high school. We have so much excitement about creating learning paths for our learners. – Ann Franke, Director of Curriculum and Instruction, Verona Area School District

Students use Google tools to integrate with the Motivis solution. My hope is that Motivis will be able to serve any other needs outside of document creation and editing for students. Students are keenly aware of complex steps to get something done, so the fewer clicks the better. – Nate McClennen, Teton Science Schools

Consolidated student information – with the links between the different stakeholders – should equate to students at the center of their educational experience. Figure 5 illustrates what is possible in terms of consolidation of student information – and how everyone benefits in such a scenario.

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Figure 5 Student Information Consolidated and Accessible to all Stakeholders

Independent, Successful Learners As the LRM solution is based on a technological platform, it’s easy to become enchanted by its technological benefits, overlooking the practical benefits. These start with onboarding and then creating motivated, independent learners who are self-starters, continue with enabling a custom experience, and end with where we started: learners who are more successful than they might otherwise have been.

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We are developing independent, selfadvocating kids who enjoy learning. They are taking control of their learning and figuring out that ‘this is how I learn best.’ Our kids going on to middle school are demanding the teachers change how they present material. We’ve created these little monsters! (Said with a smile).

This is a way to deliver mini learning objects, apps for the students, which can address their academic mindset or likely academic perseverance. New students get two ‘onboarding’ learning apps that are completely self-paced. This gives them a mental model for what's coming, and starts to introduce some ideas we want to get across to break through our students’ non-cognitive opportunities (show them you can learn anything if you try).

– Stacey Lange, Walker Elementary

– Kurt Hayes, Executive Director Academic Outcomes and Curricula, Bryan University

The students want to customize their week(s). This means they need to be able to customize how and when they are setting their own deadlines, not just due dates but actual length of time and time of day they will work on each component. For the K12 sector, this is a critical function to support students as they develop executive functioning skills. – Nate McClennen, Teton Science Schools

Data-Driven Decision Making The concept of LRM is aiming high and those who are embracing it are aiming equally high. This starts with the ability to make data-driven decisions based on ongoing metrics that serve as meta-views into the school’s performance and micro-views into each learner’s progress. The benefits apply to both online and face-to-face teaching and learning. Online Ed can create the same commitment in an online student that is found in “on the ground” students. Society and technology have merged. You can have deep, meaningful relationships that build that bond. Without technology and the right staff and mindset, we would be doing online learning from eight years ago. But when we do this right with the same commitment, we see graduation rates outperform. – Kurt Hayes, Bryan University © Wainhouse Research, 2016

We will have some metrics regarding the use of Epiphany Learning. We will follow the number of teachers and students who have learning plans, but the bigger metrics will be to impact achievement in a positive way for all students. Every school district in the country asks, ‘can we close student achievement gaps?’ The personalized learning piece of it is so important to meeting the needs of every student and helping them grow. – Ann Franke, Verona Area School District

We have always looked at our success through academic data. We went with Epiphany Learning because it provides not just potent knowledge, but the higher level skills and dispositions we can address – Tracy FischerTubbs, Principal, Walker Elementary

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Organizational Transformation Besides the benefit of better metrics, those interviewed for this project describe a desire to use LRM to help them overcome the challenges they face in the coming decades. For some, like Walker Elementary, it’s to take a brick-and-mortar, face-to-face approach to personalized learning plans and embed an LRM solution within the organization. For others, such as American University, it’s to examine their service levels and attempt to establish an entirely new approach to how they deliver services to their student body. Within our school, each student has a learner profile, which helps tailor their education. All have personalized learning plans, from K to 5th grade. Classes are co-taught, and most of our classrooms are in two grade spans so students loop with teachers for at least two years.

We now have a powerful CRM that supports our advisors. They are the single most critical people. We are combining an up-to-date gradebook with (the human touch). We are extremely proactive. As much of an advisor’s time is spent on life issues as on any academic questions.

– Tracy FischerTubbs, Walker Elementary

– Dr. Paul LeBlanc, SNHU

We don't just look at topics, subjects, and textbooks. We look at how each student will be supported from the get-go in mindset, meta-cognitive learning, and academic persistence. And we look at how in the program we can reinforce those things. We teach the whole student. Every staff member gets that – this is part of how we now treat our learners. – Eric Evans, Bryan University

These many benefits, as expressed by those we interviewed, suggest a cakewalk that is not likely to be real. Change requires planning, management, and shifts in both workflow and culture. American University, in fact, reports that it has looked at how The Cleveland Clinic – renowned among healthcare providers for its innovations – delivers services to aid its own reinvention. The following sections describe the challenges organizations are addressing as they implement LRM’s and early stage best practices that may be useful to organizations wishing to explore deployment of an LRM.

Challenges Organizations in the process of adopting or exploring LRM report facing the same challenges most organizations experience in adopting other technologies: change management. How do you change workflow processes? How do you ensure success via that change management? And what questions do you ask as you begin to determine how to be a data-driven organization? Obstacles abound, and they are worth noting before we describe best practices. A short list in rank order of importance is as follows: © Wainhouse Research, 2016

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Change management



How to ensure those needing to learn the technology receive the professional development necessary to make it effective



How to use data most effectively

Change Management While some organizations embrace change, no one wants change without empowerment and support in making new things happen. How many educators complain that they were provided a technology dictated to them by others, without the training and support necessary to embrace that technology? This has been an endemic problem since computers and the Internet were first introduced into the classroom. While appliances like projectors and TV’s were simple enough to understand, software and rich functionality open up so many possibilities it’s important to achieve the right balance between “locking down” how people will use the technology, while leaving open creativity and customization to maximize ROI. Even before addressing the technology issues comes the need to address the organizational challenges and the human challenges. Again, some universities envision achieving big things with LRM, from new approaches to online learning to transformation of their campuses and service delivery models. Getting there is neither a straight line nor a minor effort. And the implications are large – where universities like Bryan University and SNHU are using LRM to help defy the stereotypes held by some towards online programs and (in the case of Bryan) for-profit institutions. We believe in challenging traditional boundaries and in the innate greatness of people. All people have the opportunity to grow and learn and become something better. We want a high graduation rate. And our big vision is to change the mindset among educators in how to get it done. The goal is to meet students where they are. Though some of our students are on-campus, the goal is not to create a residential campus. We are using online learning and an LRM solution to challenge and drive our own niche.

This is a large-scale enterprise change. It requires a lot of planning. We’re not naive enough to think that what we are proposing isn't much larger than what we just did. The LRM platform will be the glue that ties it together and provides the UI that meets student where they are.

The scope of organizational change and cultural shift is our biggest challenge. It’s not one to be undertaken lightly – it’s a major change in structure. That creates resistance. Professors belong to national associations. They have their own professional standards and identity. What happens to that? It parallels the academic guilds and siloes. Identity is aligned with their service (and LRM requires another level of behavior).

– Eric Evans, Bryan University

– Dave Swartz, American University

– Dr. Scott Bass, American University

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Professional Development In a more granular sense, it can be challenging to foster change among learners, faculty and staff, and even the community. Professional development is a challenge when educators are busy – and an LRM solution by its nature is a platform that, because it can do so much, requires PD. I think the biggest challenge may be the human aversion to change as you transform K-12 systems from teacherdirected to studentdirected. It is easy to create curriculum, but we are challenging ourselves to implement a more powerful approach that connects students to communities in relevant and meaningful ways. – Nate McClennen, Teton Science Schools

For Personalized Learning to really take off, some of the best models we've observed include built-in collaboration time. It's hard to find that. We are going to need to get more creative about how to make that time. People have busy schedules … and there are two issues: 1) teachers started to create their own ways to approach PL and have plans, a challenge in itself; and 2) one of our challenges is to get some of our staff to have the willingness to give up their old ways. People understand that in order for the district to move forward, we can't have 50 different ways to do things. – Betty Wottreng, Director of Technology Services, Verona Area School District

You have to have every single staff member on board and 100% committed to helping these students succeed. From the excelling students to those who are underperforming. – Kurt Hayes, Bryan University

Similarly, for institutions that depend on local funding (such as K-12 school districts), we are told that getting parents and school boards to understand how beneficial LRM can be is a challenge. Thus organizations need to be purposeful at every stakeholder level regarding change management.

Big Data The other very large challenge has to do There is an enormous amount of data out with data. All of that data can intimidate there and the challenge is taking that data learners, educators, and administrator and making it useful. You have to have the alike. Knowing how to use the data to be right mindset, think critically, and ask the actionable is the key. SNHU has a very right questions. If a race car is in the hands of the average driver will you get all of its large staff, as an example, focused benefits? specifically on identifying what to be collecting as data – and how good use of – Dr. Paul LeBlanc, SNHU that data can help to drive outcomes. This is not a simple process, and requires rolled-up sleeves and brainpower. As with any technology with lots of data, some may have questions regarding security and longevity of that data – and secure interactions between learners and mentors. The © Wainhouse Research, 2016

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Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)6 allows for interactions between learners and mentors because the student invites mentors into their experience. FERPA says the school shall not share the student’s information – that is where the firewall exists to prevent violation of data security. Data also play a role at the foundation of the LRM platform. If well used, data supports automating certain processes that are part and parcel of personalized learning. This is what Fishtree, one of the LRM Alliance members, calls “data backtracking,” where the data over time grows in complexity and richness, and helps the LRM solution automate support, particularly for competency-based education. The instructor still leads the teaching and learning process, but automation surrounds relationships and workflow. As with any platform that contains data, most LRMs allow for role-based data access to provide another layer of security. Information such as grades may be kept private to the learner and specific types of mentors or administrators, while other information may be shared more broadly.

Early Stage Best Practices Best practices, as expressed by LRM early adopters, start with some of the same issues organizations face when adopting large-scale software platforms. Determining how best to structure or modify workflow may be one of the lessons best learned from others. But there are many others – each one reflecting how particular institutions are attacking the challenges of introducing LRMs into their world – or targeting overall change management. Below is a short list of items suggested to Wainhouse Research as key items to think about if you are considering adopting LRM. Wrap around the learner a complete 3600 perspective / support system. SNHU’s LeBlanc likes to talk about the mix of life questions and academic questions that come to play with their LRM. Plan plan plan and be strategic. This may require reinvention if you do not already The advisor stays through the entire have a competency-based education program, hip-to-hip with the learner, and is informed by good data analytics, focus, or a personalized learning predictive analytics for each student. This program, or a services orientation. Every gives us a good sense of risk factors. university and school interviewed for this report talks about the importance of -- Dr. Paul LeBlanc, SNHU being strategic. In some instances this can get very programmatic, as in American University’s Reinventing the Student Experience (RiSE) initiative, or SNHU’S data-driven efforts, or Bryan University’s focus on LRM as a means of driving its online programs.

6

FERPA

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We didn't want students to change grades or schools and new teachers have to start all over. We were charged with forming a committee to determine elements to be standardized on, and decide how are we going to manage all of these learning plans? The committee work we did last year was critical to success. You have to define what you want to have your plan consist of. You cannot offer PD and PL without something concrete. – Betty Wottreng, Verona School District

We have looked at other industries that have gone through a lot of change – and looked at the Cleveland Clinic, with its strong service ethos. We are professionally centric and recognize how important our students are. Now we are about to enter into a design mapping experience with our prospective LRM provider, looking at different personas. This is helping us look at an integrated service model to address the different kinds of students here. – Dr. Scott Bass, American University

Introduce your LRM in stages and start with the right people. This is truly an incremental technology as it requires some new behaviors (though mapping those to change management as is the case at American University and Bryan University may not be a bad thing – this will depend on your institutional profile). Many say growth may be organic – driven on its own in a viral fashion, not driven top down, thus this requires staged deployment. We always tell those adopting new technologies to seek champions. In the case of an LRM, it starts with advisors, career counselors, and educators but fans out as appropriate to the institution. I want in the assessment phase facultydriven assessment as relates to higherorder thinking skills, as we think faculty engagement in the assessment component for higher order thinking skills is important. So we’re working with Fishtree to build out their product in a further way. – Dr. Thomas P. Jandris, Concordia University Chicago

The programs we've done with students have been pretty good on the whole. Students like it, and it’s a nice portal for them. The faculty are not using this yet, but our academic advisors are definitely in. The plan is to add faculty next, then after that admissions, financial aid, and career services, and finally employers. – Kurt Hayes, Bryan University

Balance metrics and people. Don’t privilege one over the other and don’t privilege engagement with the technology over engagement with people. An organization should emphasize both.

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Metrics and data should focus not just on a learner's engagement with technology, but also engagement with other people. When people withdraw from relationships, there is usually a major issue. Metrics should embrace items like, "I sent you an email but haven't heard back from you" or "it took you longer to reply than normal." In contrast to other systems, LRMs allow for the collection of data that is relationship centric, which provides the earliest indications of changes in learner engagement. – Charla S. Long, Go Long Consulting

We developed a framework for student development. We took every year of the student experience, assuming an average progression to BA, and developed the framework around each of those years. Then we identified developmental milestones that represent intermediate expectations leading to retention, graduation, and satisfaction. We can see how many students have reached those milestones. For those who haven't, we can create flags as reminders that designate what they should be working on. We’ll have an entire matrix that lays it out year by year. – Dr. Terry Flannery, Vice President Communications, American University

Make your metrics about specific incremental items and longitudinal items. SNHU has massive resources applied to metrics, while understanding that the harder work has to do with the questions to be asked. American University as described above has produced a framework that includes intermediate markers, which should evolve over time. Teton Science Schools focuses on how their learners behave and handle the responsibility of being part of an LRM. Our early metrics for success are the student's ability to submit assignments, understand their learning path, schedule their week, and read and respond to feedback or general announcements. In addition, we are looking at the quality of the student work and the level of student engagement. – Nate McClennen, Teton Science Schools

We have 35 people on our analytics team. We wanted a learning platform that puts the student at the middle of things, and that helps us understand that experience in all the ways we can. Classic LMS platforms were meant to supplement teacher-centered classrooms, and had limited data analytics, such as did someone post a document? We wanted to build a system that puts a student at its heart. So when we built Motivis, our LRM, lots of people said we'd love to license this. – Dr. Paul LeBlanc, SNHU

© Wainhouse Research, 2016

My intention with a prototype of an undergraduate K-12 teaching and learning class is to pilot it and do a rather quick efficacy study, measuring the results of the experience our students have in the pilot program against the experience of students enrolled in the same course who are face-to-face only. Then in August we will launch our entire teaching and learning Master’s degree using the Fishtree platform. –

Dr. Thomas P. Jandris, Concordia University Chicago

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Structure workflow processes differently and build the PD necessary for success. This may require that faculty and staff complete required modules and work with specific mentors who themselves are trained to help them adapt to a new platform and a new approach. You are changing workflow, technology, and interaction points not just with learners, but with one another. There is no solution that compares to the LRM platform in either higher education or K-12 education when it comes to offering what is possible for a holistic, relational view of learners and those who surround them with support. We have a couple of required courses: Personalized Learning, and an Introduction to the Verona Personalized Learning Plan. Once staff have gone through those two courses, they get log-in information. We also have PL coaches who work with the staff. The hard part is not in learning to use Epiphany Learning (our LRM). The hard part is reflecting on practice and thinking about making some changes in practice to be more adaptable to PL. – Ann Franke, Verona School District

It was pretty easy for our people to use our LRM. True, it required individuals to learn yet another system but by providing adequate training and helping to load content for faculty, we did not receive complaints. – Charla S. Long, Go Long Consulting

Focus on learner success. Everyone interviewed What counts is how much recognizes the value of student motivators. Those effort students are willing to vary by organizational personality: Bryan focuses on give us. learner motivation; Teton Science Schools on – Eric Evans, connecting learners to place; Concordia University Bryan University Chicago and most of the other universities on particular needs of their unique adult or distance learners. . Focus on an integrated services model. LRM is a remarkable tool for organizational transformation, which means learning new approaches to delivering services. Think of your organization as a services organization. American University, as an example, has invested the time and effort to take a very close look at renowned healthcare provider Cleveland Clinic.

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Conclusion Many organizations are unaware that LRM is available today, and that its functionality and use cases are quite different from its cousins, the LMS and the SIS. It is in the position to address many of the issues faced by all levels of education, whether public or private, online, face-to-face, or hybrid. The key to helping overcome challenges faced by education will be in what educators do with it: how they create learning pathways and how networks of stakeholders ensuring learner success are established. The goal is for LRM to become the vehicle for the most valuable metrics of all: learner engagement, milestones, and improved understanding regarding when mediation is required, and when it is not. We did not go out looking for an LRM platform. I didn't even know that term. We just had this need around personalized learning and Epiphany Learning met the need. – Ann Franke, Verona School District

© Wainhouse Research, 2016

This is the new online, the new way to connect students. Our challenge is that our vision is not yet, but will be, addressed by the technology vendors. – Kurt Hayes, Bryan University

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About the Author Alan D. Greenberg has more than 25 years of experience as consultant, analyst, communicator, and strategist in the field of educational and collaborative technologies. He has authored dozens of reports, analyses, research notes, and profiles related to distance education, online learning and e-Learning, virtual worlds, web and video conferencing, interactive whiteboards, Learning Management Systems, and lecture capture, and he is editor of the free Wainhouse Research Blog. Alan also consults to colleges and universities as well as regional networks on matters related to adoption, policy, and deployment of these products. He can be reached at [email protected]

About Wainhouse Research Wainhouse Research, www.wainhouse.com, is an independent analyst firm that focuses on critical issues in Unified Communications and Collaboration (UC&C) and collaborative educational technologies. The company conducts multi-client and custom research studies, consults with end users on key implementation issues, publishes white papers and market statistics, and delivers public and private seminars as well as speaker presentations at industry group meetings.

About the LRM Alliance - Sponsor of this paper

The LRM Alliance is a consortium of pioneers that are leading the effort to bring LRM platforms to bear in taking learner-centric education into the 21st century. Alliance members consist of individual competitive companies (listed below) who share the vision that working together for the benefit of the educational community and all of its stakeholders will lead to success for all. © Wainhouse Research, 2016

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Designed around field research on blended learning environments, Epiphany Learning is the first student-centric personalized learning platform that empowers learners by promoting student agency, supporting growth mindsets, and creating authentic relationships. The application is designed with the Learner Profile at the center, therefore it provides a real-time holistic view of the student. Learners create, own, and maintain their profile, giving all teachers and guardians visibility from their own voice, and increasing transparency between the student and all stakeholders crucial to their long-term success. For more information, visit epiphanylearning.com.

XL Academics offers customized software solutions to foster, monitor and support meaningful learner/mentor relationships in a safe, cost-effective virtual environment. For more information, visit xlacademics.com.

Fidelis Education's LRM enables end-to-end learning lifecycle management and fills in the gaps between LMSs (the classroom) and SISs (the transcript and filing cabinet). Our mission is to change how the world learns by making it fundamentally personal and relational. Currently, Fidelis has over 50 implementations and 200,000+ users. For more information, visit www.fidelis-education.com.

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Fishtree is a next generation learning platform, combining adaptive learning with powerful analytics, content recommendation and personalization engines to create the ultimate in digital instruction. Fishtree delivers a solution to empower teachers, engage students and support parents; with the single aim - drive better learning outcomes. The platform is leading the industry in allowing teachers to build wonderful, rich lessons and easily adapting to every learner. For more information and get access, visit www.fishtree.com.

With proven success at College for America, Motivis Learning is the only provider to develop a fully-integrated suite of learning tools—think LMS, SIS, community engagement and more all in one agile platform. No integrations (unless you want them). No data silos. No confusing user experiences. Just a crisp 360-degree view-of-student to help educators help students. Everyone succeeds.

End Notes U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (2014), factfinder.census.gov Clayton M. Christensen, Michael B. Horn, & Curtis W. Johnson, Disrupting Class (2008) 3 Daniel Pink, A Whole New Mind (2005) 4 Daniel T. Willingham, Why Don’t Students Like School? (2009) 5 The End of Average, Todd Rose (2015), p. 167 6 Willingham, p. 21 7 Rose, p. 170 1 2

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