Elizabeth Wallace

Thanks, John and Frances, for your swift replies.  You've pointed me to some very good resources, and I appreciate the help. The links you sent will be on my weekend browsing list.

Right now, as you may have noticed, I'm moderating the Scheduled Seminar here in SCoPE on the WebCT/Blackboard learning management system "merge". If we want to talk communities, those two have huge followings. As Frances can attest, there's also a strong development community around Moodle, which is a major challenger.  I posed the question in the seminar about why people get so emotional over particular technologies, so if you have views on that, please step in.

Yes, John, I'll let you know how my presentation pulls together.

I've been asked to make a short presentation on online communities of practice and would like to show a diagram that explains the stages of community development (from planning and initiation to growth, maturity etc).

I've been dipping into some of my favourite texts (Wenger et al., 2002; Preece,  2000) but I'm wondering if there are some new models that have caught the imagination of the "community enthusiasts" in this forum. I'm on the applied end of things, and would really appreciate input from those of you who study the theory of communities more than I. BTW, shameless promotion of your own papers and published works is definitely encouraged!!!

In the opening discussion topic, we recorded out reactions to the news of the WebCT/Bbd event--let others debate whether it?s a merger, or a takeover. Almost immediately, we began to question whether this would encourage institutions to turn to Open Source solutions, such as Moodle.

Dan rattled a few cages by suggesting that Open Source is no cheaper than commercial packages, and went on to support his position with thought-provoking detail. Richard was inclined to agree, but Cindy argued that the investment in Open Source would benefit society. Andrew questioned why we weren?t putting teaching and learning issues and the need for innovation ahead of administrative costs.

Let?s pursue this question of whether Open Source is the best solution, in the face of what Alan calls ? behemoth like? proprietary platforms. Decision-makers at all our institutions are wrestling with this question. Dan has reminded us that ?one size does not fit all? so what are the issues where you work? Has the WebCT/Bbd event changed your organization?s attitude towards Open source? What criteria are guiding the thinking? Will Moodle or Sakai win the day?

So far, Sue wins the prize for the most understated reaction to the WebCT/Bbd announcement, with her admission that the news gave her ?great pause?! Compare that with Dennis and Amy?s shock, and Richard?s apparent glee that the two companies have created a dinosaur that will surely not survive against the agile Open Source platforms. And surely we must ask Alan, who finds the whole thing a yawn, where exactly he will plug in the mouse if he?s teaching out of a brown paper bag instead of using an LMS

When I opened this thread, I did so with a little hesitation, because I wondered whether it was useful to ask you to record your reactions. But having read the comments, I?ve become more curious about our attachment to particular technologies, and why changes in them evoke such strong emotional responses. Even Alan didn?t just yawn, he had a ? big gaping, groaning, drawn out yawn.? What is it about technology that touches us all?

I?m also wondering whether our reactions to this change have any effect on our willingness to adapt to whatever Blackboard is going to throw at us. If you were shocked at the news, have you stepped back to consider your next steps? If the news didn?t phase you, are you more willing to motor on and master the next innovation? Is there such a thing as ?innovation fatigue?, and if so, will it interfere with our work?

Were you shocked? Worried? Pleased? Indifferent? I?d like to welcome you to this two week seminar on the ?merger? between WebCT and Blackboard and invite you to share your reactions.

For the past few weeks, just about everyone involved in educational technology has been discussing the news from WebCT and Blackboard. Those are the proprietary learning management systems which seem to have conquered the world, and anyone who is not familiar with them, may want to visit the company websites for an overview.

If you have been following the discussions, you?ll know that some of the opinions reflect an institutional response; others have presented an industry perspective. As we begin this seminar, I?d like to propose that we focus for a short while on individual reactions.

My reasoning is that, often, after we read the views of the ?experts? on an issue, we conclude that our personal responses aren?t important, and we set them aside, instead of expressing them. In this forum, I?d like invite you to recall your very first thoughts on hearing the announcements. I hope some common themes will emerge from your individual reflections, and then we can use those themes to help us draw out the implications for our practice, now and in the future.

For me, the news came on Oct. 12th in an email to WebCT users from Carole Vallone, WebCT CEO. The subject of the message was Important Communication from WebCT and Blackboard. Frankly, I get one of these ?important? messages from WebCT several times a week and I almost didn?t read it. When I did, I was simply amazed. I had been at the WebCT conference in San Francisco in the summer and there wasn?t even a hint that changes of this kind were in the works. When I checked the WebCT website, I was redirected to the Blackboard website for a press release.

My first thoughts were of all the years I had spent building my expertise in WebCT, to add value to my own teaching and, later, to support other teachers. Did Carole?s announcement make that all worthless? Did any one else react the same way?