CTools launches with Sakai architecture

Updated 11:00 AM September 9, 2004

CTools launches with Sakai architecture

By Laura Bailey
News Service

A new version of course management software recently introduced to the campus brings together course management and collaborative workspace tools that will give users improved functionality, while also serving as the prototype for a national open source software initiative being led by U-M.

CTools was developed as the core product of the new Sakai Collaboration and Learning Environment (CLE) effort. Sakai is a community-source software project led by U-M, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University and Indiana University. The Sakai software project gives colleges and universities the opportunity to share development of new tools and software modules, while freeing them from the economic and development constraints of proprietary commercial software.

Tips for using CTools
About twice as many users as originally estimated will use the new CTools for the start of this school year, so the project team will continue to tune the system in the first few weeks of the term. System performance is tracked closely to see how it behaves under load, but users could experience slowdowns during peak usage times.Here are some tips to avoid or manage the slowdowns:
• Mid-afternoon is a peak use time; when possible, log in at other times.
• If CTools is working too slowly, try quitting the browser and logging out. Logging in again after a few minutes may get your session assigned to a less crowded server.
• Use an updated browser. A list of recommended browsers can be found on the bottom of the CTools gateway page: http://www.ctools.mich.edu.

For help with access or use of CTools, call the Usability Support and Evaluation Lab at (734) 615-5512. Leave a voicemail message during evenings and weekends.If you experience slow performance, e-mail Ctools@umich.edu. Provide a brief description of the problem and include information about the browser used, and how the computer is connected to the Internet (cable modem, DSL, etc.).

U-M is the first Sakai development school to launch a Sakai-based CLE. Joseph Hardin, chair of the Sakai Project Board, sees the new CTools as a model for open educational software.

"Open source models for software development like Sakai's that harness resources across multiple institutions enable us to reduce costs for any one school, and make it possible to quickly share innovative tools between the schools," says Hardin, clinical assistant professor at the School of Information and director of the Duderstadt Center's Collaboration Technology Lab.

"The four original schools and the over 40 partners that have joined us in the last six months are showing that such models can work," he says. "Michigan gets to be the first institution to turn the system on in a big way. We're the pathfinders."

By integrating course management and research collaboration tools, faculty and students have access to many resources all in one space. For example, users now have a private "MyWorkspace" in which they can store resources, and can be used to consolidate schedule and announcement information from all the sites of which they are members.

Both chat and discussion modes are supported for different forms of dialog. The new DropBox feature allows instructors and students to share documents within a private folder for each student.

"The people who have seen the new CTools are very excited about the new functionality," says Stephanie Teasley, research associate professor in the School of Information and director of the Duderstadt Center's Usability, Support and Evaluation (USE) Lab. "People have liked it so much, we are seeing about twice as many new courses being converted from the original CourseTools [to the new CTools] than we expected."

Initially, the larger than expected crop of new users may cause slowdowns or hang-ups at peak periods, Hardin warns.

"We launched the new CTools in early August," Hardin says. "Since then we've made several upgrades to optimize performance and functionality. The CTools team is committed to building a very robust tool for campus, so we encourage users to let us know what is working or not working for them."

During the 2004-05 academic year, CourseTools (Classic) will continue to be fully supported. Migration tools have been developed that allow CourseTools (Classic) sites to be moved to the CTools environment. This means faculty members with existing CourseTools sites can continue to use them and port them to the new system at their convenience.

"CTools is a crucial component of the Sakai community source development project," says James Hilton, associate provost for academic, information and instructional technology affairs.

"Beyond the four lead development schools, there are more than 40 other major universities that are evaluating the potential for Sakai-based CLEs on their campuses. The future we see is the one where we have it working smoothly here, and where all the schools enjoy the flexibility of software that can be easily imported from the many other academies in the community."

CTools launches with Sakai architecture

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