11112009 Slide 1

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Slide Title
Presenter Details
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Funding bodies' concerns

• Funders think they want you to follow the agreed
  workplan
• But following a tight workplan doesn't fit
  innovation
• If you know what you are going to deliver, it's a
  production project, not an innovation project
• Funders want to make a worthwhile difference
• How do you know?
• Benchmark and change? - difficult
• What you provide is being used to good effect
  before the end of the project
• This was taken up and used

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Invention vs Innovation

• Invention is the production of something
  different
• Innovation is the adoption of an invention to
  make a difference in the way things are done
• So innovation is a difference that makes a
  difference
• Gregory Bateson's definition of meaning
• Innovation necessarily has an aspect of effective
  use
• ... and is a function of social change

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Disruptive and incremental innovation

• Clayton Christensen The Innovators Dilemma
• Companies do all the right things
• Find out what their customers want
• Carry out the RD needed
• Rapidly bring the new product to market
• Maintain good value for money
• ... and still get nixed by an upstart
• ... with a disruptive innovation

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Why?

• Disruptive technologies start beneath the radar
• They attract a market not being served
• Cheaper, but less functional
• More convenient/ quicker/ easier to use
• But has superior development potential
• Ignored while its technology and support
  infrastructure evolves
• Successful companies have well developed filters
  for screening out RD outputs that don't enhance
  their market position
• By the time disrupted incumbent market leader
  wakes up it's too late!

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Informal Learning is Potentially a Disruptive
Technology

• It appears beneath the radar
• It doesn't award degrees or other qualifications
• Typically ad hoc and short
• Cheap flaky business model "It's not a
  competitor"
• The lightweight technology and supporting
  infrastructure significantly lower costs
• Just in time convenient used straight away

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Informal Learning is Potentially a Disruptive
Technology

• Resources, activities and support can be found
  when needed
• Find others wanting the same thing at the same
  time
• But technology increases in capability and
  reduces in cost
• Incumbents are ignoring informal learning
• ... and they are locking out the technology it
  uses

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Cycles of Innovation

• Disruptive innovation
• A series of incremental innovations strengthen it
  
• Reaches the end of its 'improvability
• but probably disrupted already

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An Innovation Matrix
(also Business Models / Markets)
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Addressing the Dilemma

• Disruptive developments have to be separated off
  organisationally to survive
• ... but still 'available (maybe to the owners of
  the company)

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Technology Adoption Life-Cycle
Marketing Hi-Tech Discontinuous Innovation
Supported through its lifecycle by Incremental
Innovations
Main Street
Tornado
Assimilated
Early Market
TechnologyEnthusiasts(Innovators)
Visionaries(Early Adopters)
Pragmatists(Early Majority)
Conservatives(Late Majority)
Skeptics(Laggards)
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The CHASM and Sustainability
What should JISC Development do
...to get successful Pilots across?
into the CHASM
TechnologyEnthusiasts(Innovators)
Visionaries(Early Adopters)
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Technology Adoption Lifecycle

• Is this why many funded technology projects fail?
• What must be done to cross the Chasm?
• Organisations need to know it is valuable
• Then they will cover the costs of maintaining it
• ... whether through commercial or open source
  channels

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IDEOs Rough Innovation Pattern
Identify Problem / Opportunity
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How Do We Identity Problems?

• Work with existing communities for JISC these
  might be
• UCISA (have Identified Top 10 Issues)
• CETIS SIGs (start from existing Reference Models)
• AUA, HEA Subjects Centres
• Work with them to Map their Territory
• Start Rough and get Approximate Big Picture
• Fill in Detail over Time to Evolve Models
• Reflect on the Map
• Identify Problem Areas
• Agree Priorities
• Study Problems in the Real World

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Applying this in the e-Framework

• Technical development takes place in a vacuum
• There is always a human context
• A key aspect of the SOA approach is seeking to
  link ICT services to human tasks and context of
  use
• In JISC e-Learning Programmes this has been done
  through
• Reference Models
• Service Adapter Toolkits
• Demonstrators
• Pilots

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From Reference Modelling to Domain Mapping

• The-Learning Reference Models have now completed
• They have produced very useful resources as a
  starting point for any development project in
  their domain
• But Reference Model has narrower, normative
  associations
• Seeking reusable Domain Knowledge, that is
  relatively stable
• This forms the basis for Community to
• Identify and agree Key Problem Areas
• Collaborate with Developers (open source or
  commercial) in Co-evolving Practices, Processes
  Software
• Ensure Coherence across their Family of
  Applications
• Save re-doing the same work (differently) each
  time

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Process Models
Domain
Learner / Teacher / ResearcherNeed
Learning/Teaching/Research/ Process
Users Computer
Users Computer
Users Computer
Use Case 1
Use Case 2
Use Case 3
Many tasks require several people to work
together in a workflow.In such cases Scenarios
Process Models set this out, showing how people
and computers work together to accomplish the
task.
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Process Models
Domain
Learning / Teaching / Research / Process
Lightweight Application
User Interface
Application Specific Functions
Service A Interface
Service B Interface
Service C Interface
Service A Interface
Service B Interface
Service C Interface
Service A
Service B
Service C
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Service Usage Models
Users Computer/Portal
Use Case
Orchestration Web Service
Service A
Service B
Invoke
Invoke
Typically User Tasks need to call on several
services.Orchestration standards are emerging
for coordinating a set of services. The e-F calls
a coordinated set of services a Service Usage
Model.
Typically User Tasks need to call on several
services.Orchestration standards are emerging
for creating composite services.
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Emerging Tools to Support Process Modelling and
Development

• As well as standards to describe processes there
  is an emerging standard for graphically
  displaying processes
• The OMG has developed BPMN 1.0 now working on v
  2(Business Process Modelling Notation)
• Developers are incorporating it into graphical
  tools
• To model processes
• To generate executable code
• ICT support becomes flexible, easy to create and
  change, rather than set in hard to change system
• The lightweight composite application is easier
  to create
• Interchange between practice and process becomes
  easier

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Domain Maps Models
Domain Map (informal) or Model (formal)
Workflow/Process Models (Human Systems)
As-Is To-Be
Application(UI, application specific software,
service coordination)
Service Usage Model (a set of services organised
and coordinated to provide an function within an
application)
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Learning Design
Application Specific Layer
User Interface
Learning Design Engine
Service
Service
Service
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LD Problems

• Confusion of LD spec with implementation
  limitations
• "Too difficult for ordinary teachers"
• "No way of searching and previewing, and hence of
  sharing, UoLs"
• "It's too slow and doesn't scale"
• "Cannot change a run after it has started"
• But if don't resolve, can act as Showstoppers
• TEN Competence is taking the lead on this

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"Too difficult for ordinary teachers and
Learners!

• This is a question of providing usable authoring
  interfaces
• Learn from LAMS graphical interface
• Authoring used by Teacher with Students to create
  Activities
• This would greatly strengthen informal learning
  communities
• But LAMS functionality is simpler than LD
• Can we create something as easy as LAMS for LD?

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Proposal for LAMS-alike Graphical UI

• Draggable LAMS activity
• LD Activities LD Environment
• Some fields preset, some open
• Modify an existing editor to produce LD
  Components
• Create small LD components
• Activity Environment
• Fill in some fields
• Place ??? In editable fields
• In CP Organisation call it LDActivity or
  LDActivity-Structure, etc
• Save with Icon in a Content Package

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Proposal for LAMS-alike Graphical UI

• Create a separate Graphical editor which
• Reads in components and puts icons on a palette
• When dragged and dropped, adds element code to
  UoL
• Linking Activity icons in parallel or sequence
  creates Activity structures
• All editable fields, across all LD elements in a
  component, are presented in a single pop-up
  Property Box
• If people dont like defaults, can go back to the
  component editor and change them

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The Services Dilemma

• Limited number of explicit services constrains
  use
• But too many and you can lose interoperability
• and hard to get approval in standards bodies!
• Can we increase the range of Services that can be
  used in LD without losing interoperability (too
  much)?
• Could we create an open learning service
  element?
• LS Services are open on the LD Roles side
• Can they be open also on the Service side?
• What do others do? (How does BPEL handle it?)

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Finding Services

• Two ways
• Downloadable for local use
• Open source
• Commercial (pay for download)
• Available as an online service
• Free
• Commercial (pay for use)
• Need to be able to include references for one or
  both of these in a generic LD Service element

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Talking to Services

• Run time communication between LD Engine
  Service needed
• At set up time
• At launch of service
• On completion of use
• During use
• 1. needs special handling
• 2. 3. can probably be handled using existing
  property mechanisms in LD but need to define
  service interface
• 4. Is more complex and being explored by LAMS

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The Future of LD

• LD has a key role to play in the integration of
  services into learning flows
• LD learning flows parallel developments in
  process support
• Usability is a key issue
• Engage those who already need informal learning
• Work with them iteratively to create usable
  systems