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The Innovation Bank: Project Group Formation and Much More. Gill Harrison, Stephen Griffin and Linda Broughton Leeds Metropolitan University. Introduction. Final-year group projects in Innovation North (Faculty of Information and Technology) of Leeds Met Using Web technology for
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The Innovation Bank: Project Group Formation and Much More Gill Harrison, Stephen Griffin and Linda Broughton Leeds Metropolitan University HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Introduction Final-year group projects in Innovation North (Faculty of Information and Technology) of Leeds Met Using Web technology for Formation and subsequent support of groups Involvement of employers Pilot this year, much improved for next year Available to other institutions HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Final-year group projects How are your groups formed? (a) self-selection (b) tutor-directed (c) randomly? HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Final-year group projects How are your projects generated? • tutor suggestions • student suggestions • employer suggestions HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Supported by CETL ALiC (Active Learning in Computing) HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Introduction More than 700 students Previously • publicising of projects • formation of project groups • involvement of employers were supported by large face-to-face “networking” events, plus paper (e.g. post-its) Could technology help? HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Northern Technology Institute Commercial offshoot of Innovation North NTI - collaborator and supporter NTI and Faculty together initiated a student project called the “Innovation Bank” HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
User requirements – to link: Staff Students Projects Groups Employers HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Stakeholders • Faculty academics • NTI • Developers (student project group) • Students • Employers HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
What the stakeholders wanted Academics • Advertise projects • Form groups and record membership • Track non-engagement NTI • Promote employability • Foster links with employers Developers • Provide tools for project management and social networking HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
What they got HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
What they got HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Built using Drupal - Open-source content Management System based on PHP and MySQL HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Feedback from • Staff • Developers • Students • Employers at a Focus Group meeting HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Focus Group meeting Stephen Griffin Linda Broughton HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Feedback summary Staff Did publicise projects Aided group formation but this was not entirely satisfactory Developers Tools and facilities not much used after initial stage Employers Ease of use vital Employers should be able to track projects and people Students and developers Other facilities, e.g. a profile and links to sites like LinkedIn HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Plans for the future New version of Innovation Bank: • To address the feedback points • To be used in 2009-10 at Leeds Met • To be available to other universities HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
The future has come The improved Innovation Bank HE Academy ICS Conference 2009
Conclusion Useful support tool for running group projects, with lots of potential for adaptation and improvement HE Academy ICS Conference 2009