UNSWide Timetabling

1. UNSWide Timetabling An Overview for Academic Staff

2. UTES Objective • To provide staff with an understanding of the background and context for University-wide timetabling • Provide staff with an understanding of how the changes may impact them and their academic unit • To provide staff with an overview of new business and system processes • To provide a quick overview of myUNSW services for teaching staff This presentation is part of the Student Services User Training, Education and Support program.

3. Scope for 2007 Timetabling • Kensington campus [except AGSM] • Other campuses in future years • Courses with very small enrolments [< 10] can be scheduled by school with casual room bookings • Standard main sessions [S1 and S2] initially • All teaching activities

4. Key Objective • To produce a timetable that is equitable, effective and complete; takes into account the needs of both students and staff; and maximises the efficient use of space and resources • To provide the best opportunity for students to fulfill their academic objectives by producing a student timetable which facilitates enrolment in core courses and maximises choice of elective courses where possible

5. Key Principles • Address historical structural inequities and inefficiencies in the timetable • Level the playing field for new offerings • Drive timetable by established need and policy • Improve options and choices for students, especially combined degree students • Reduce extent of 'ambit' booking of teaching space e.g. hoarding, phantom bookings, poor match to class size

6. Principles [continued] • Improve ability to undertake 'what-if' scenario planning to investigate options in relation to new campuses, buildings, equipment, programs, courses or student numbers, teaching practices, and to support such changes • To develop a transparent understanding and University-level view of the timetable (and the factors that drive it)

7. Governance/oversight • Timetable will be based on policy and operational guidelines which were endorsed by the Academic Board in June. • Co-sponsored by DVC Academic and Chief Operating Officer • Reference Group established for stakeholder guidance with general and academic staff membership from each of the Faculties • Academic Services Committee of the Academic Board to provide policy and operational oversight

8. Change Impacts • The timetable will change! • Classes will be scheduled on different days/times, and in different locations • Teaching staff will teach on different days/times and in different locations • Schools' timetabling activities will change: • Room bookings will not be rolled forward • Scheduling requests rather than direct timetabling and class scheduling • Detailed and accurate information to be provided up front

9. Students • Existing on-line self-service enrolment continues to apply, based on a planning timetable produced ahead of enrolment using school requirements and previous enrolment data to validate assumptions • Better choice • Better support for combined degrees • Should be relatively seamless to students

10. Staff • Allocation of teaching staff loads to remain responsibility of Heads of School • Teaching staff should be identified with scheduling requests where known to ensure clash-free timetables • Overall preference will favor clumping of staff timetables where possible • Staff will be provided with a research day, a break between 11 and 3, no late finish/early start • Acceptable to swap staff between classes after timetable is produced • Team teaching arrangements will be supported

11. Special Staff Constraints • Approved individual staff availability profiles will be recorded where necessary • Reasonable accommodations will need to be based on individual circumstances of staff member • Need to be limited as result in trade-off on other fronts • Pro-forma to be provided to academic units in the near future – provides for notification of availability for part-time staff, restricted availability for full-time staff in special circumstances, accommodations for staff with disabilities, requests for spread teaching timetable • Forms returned by 22 September for Session One

12. Meetings • Each faculty will have a teaching ‘black out’ period in which to hold meetings including Faculty committees and School meetings and seminars • Committees will need to be interleaved where appropriate into this timeslot • Small group activities may need to be scheduled into the timeslot where taught by casual staff • Attendance at major University committees will be accommodated in the timetable where possible

13. Space • No roll-forward of CATS bookings • Specialist teaching space incorporated with appropriate controls • Precinct preferences specified with scheduling requests. These are defined at the level of individual buildings (with surrounding buildings called on as alternatives where necessary)

14. Teaching Hours/Times • Core daytime teaching hours: • Monday -Thursday 9.00 – 18.00 Friday 9.00 – 16.00 • A range of other time bands, including evening time bands or early morning, may be specified with scheduling requests • A choice of postgraduate bands is available e.g. evening, early evening, late evening, afternoon

15. Systems • Syllabus Plus Course Planner scheduling software • Mature product used by many Aust and OS institutions • Highly configurable to suit the timetabling priorities and objectives of an individual institution • myUNSW Term Planning is UNSW's way of collecting scheduling requirements for use by Syllabus Plus without requiring schools and faculties to become S+ users • Sits alongside other complementary myUNSW services • Familiar look and feel

16. UNSW Business Process • The timetable will be based on a combination of clash-free requirements, school scheduling requests, staff profiles and special requirements • Data Collection Phase • Term planning • What's running in 2007? • How is each course structured? • Which courses are centrally timetabled? • What are the requirements for each course's activities (size and duration, teaching week pattern, room characteristics, equipment, precinct, time band/s)? • Who's teaching them (large-group activities at least)? • Specials: combined activities, interleaving, try to schedule some classes close to lecture or in parallel

17. Business Process • Scheduling Phase (09 Oct to 16 Nov) • Five to six weeks of trial timetable generation. • Scheduling will be performed progressively by scheduling activities according to priority groups i.e. most difficult to schedule activities such as large lectures and specialist activities first • Trials released to staff for feedback • Last chance to correct errors (but no preferential changes)

18. Business Process • Provisional timetable published to staff 17 November (including provisional teaching schedules) • Corrections require justification, times most unlikely to change • Schools may request change of room via CATS • Schools may swap staff internally • Schools may bid for leftover space for classes that are not centrally timetabled • Final class timetable published 1 December

19. Business Process • Operational Phase (December 2006 onwards) • Timetable remains stable, but classes may need to be closed or created in response to enrolment demand (or lack of it) • Cancelled or closed classes release resources automatically • Larger rooms booked through CATS when enrolments approach capacity • New classes are pending only: can suggest time range as well as usual requirements • Response to auto-schedule request in minutes • If successful, class is activated, and user notified by email • If unsuccessful, SARU will be advised and will schedule manually by progressively relaxing constraints • Schools remain responsible for managing quotas (up to assigned room capacity), communicating changes, updating class notes, reserve capacities etc.

20. Key Dates

21. myUNSW Services for Lecturers • Options available will vary depending upon access assigned • Three roles ‘Lecturer’, ‘Academic Enquiry’, ‘Service Centre’ • Apply for access via regular NSS access form • Also provides a range of informational links

22. Teaching Schedule • View personal teaching schedule • Must be attached to class records as instructor • Will be enhanced to provide a week by week view in future [as will the student personal timetable]

23. Enrolment lists • View enrolment lists for courses and individual classes • Can be printed or pasted into Excel

24. Class Utilisation • Class Utilisation site provides a summary view of classes and enrolments with colour coded alerts when classes are reaching capacity • Refreshed several times a day • Class Utilisation site -my.unsw.edu.au/classutil/

25. Class Maintenance • Class Maintenance allows you set up and manage your classes • Access depends on instructor role assigned on class record

26. Class Enrolment Management • Class Enrolment Management allows you to close classes,move students between classes and message all or selected students in a class • Students may be sorted in a variety of ways and selected/deselected

27. Messaging • Default text is inserted for close, move and message functions but is editable • Signature block can be saved • Messages to <100 students within the hour, others overnight

28. Further Information • Scheduling and Academic Requirements Unit (SARU) • timetabling@unsw.edu.au • Sarah Thomson s.thomson@unsw.edu.au ext. 58757 • Lester Mata lesterm@unsw.edu.au ext. 58040 • Nicola Plume n.plume@unsw.edu.au ext. 58056 • CATS • Marie Pruze m.pruze@unsw.edu.au ext. 54997