Overview

Background

This project will include all details and the project plan for the deployment of Learn Ultra Base Navigation (UBN) on the 28th of June 2022. The UBN project is currently in the testing phase with the Staging release now being under review by EA's, Lt's and the project team.

Ultra Base Navigation allows for a more modern, intuitive navigation that provides quick access to the most critical information from across all courses. It creates a more engaging, efficient, and enjoyable experience for students and academics, without them having to change their courses.

The UBN project was started via project TEL074 in 2021, with the purpose of researching and testing the Learn Ultra Base Navigation updates in order to make a go-no-go decision on the upgrade. Once a suitable timeframe was found and it was decided to proceed, the full UBN plan and deliverables were formulated and agreed upon.

This follow-on project elaborates on all info on scope, risks and the key objectives to manage the Staging and live roll-out of the Ultra Base Navigation. It will be one of the first projects to deliver on the full upgrade from Blackboard Learn to Learn Ultra.

The Learn Ultra upgrade forms part of the VLE Excellence programme (VLE Excellence | Project Management (ed.ac.uk)) which, through platform upgrades and improved design, will support teaching that is both inclusive and accessible.

Scope

This project entails the successful and timely delivery of the Ultra Base Navigation in June 2022. The project will has first deployed the Ultra Base Navigation to a testing environment, followed by a Staging release. This is done to test the upgraded design and features in a simulated live environment. This will allow us to iron out any bugs or inconsistencies before the Ultra Base Navigation is deployed to the wider University from the 28^th of June – 1^st of July.

The UBN project is spread across 3 stages:

Phase One – UBN Staging release & Communication - NOW COMPLETED

20/03/2022 – 18/04/2022

• Project roles, responsibilities, governance and timeline confirmed;
• UBN section of the communications plan populated and UBN blog topics, authors and publishing dates established;
• Monthly blog post and other key stakeholder information sent out regarding the UBN project;
• UBN section created on https://www.ed.ac.uk/information-services/learning-technology/virtual-environments/learn;
• Sharepoint updated with relevant information about the UBN upgrade;
• Decisions made by the core project team on the below:
  • Profile
  • Organisation
  • Messages
  • Marks
  • BB Assist
  • Tools
  • Login page
• Login page redesigned with the Blackboard template available and Nicky Greenhorn’s background design;
• Testing done on Blackboard Learn Original and “Ultra Course View” to make sure the UBN changes haven’t adversely affected these pages;
• Configuration criteria and design checklist set for the UBN release set;
• The standard testing documentation will be provided and populated by the Service Owners to ensure the feasibility of the upgrade;
• Ultra Base Navigation to be pushed to Staging – from 18/04/2022
• (As part of the technical project, a review is done on all integrations to see whether they are still in use or not, and if so, whether they are still required. If the integrations are no longer supported, alternative functionality will be found together with the Schools or they will be informed of the change)

Phase Two – Staging review

19/04/2022 – 28/06/2022

• Users / testers migrated from the testing environment to Staging;
• The Staging environment will be made available to all Schools and Deaneries. As such, a process of managing setting up users needs to be confirmed with the team, as well as a process around the gathering of feedback;
• User acceptance and scenario testing on the Staging release done by the Service Owners;
• Remaining bugs and general inconsistencies captured and resolved by the Service Owners;
• UBN paper taken to the ITC, KSC and SEC
• Change freeze on Staging implemented one month ahead of the Production release date (Friday the 27th of May) in order to prepare for the UBN launch and to ensure this goes smoothly;
• Sign off provided by the core project team on the Staging release (4 weeks before the Production release) to proceed with the deployment of the Ultra Base Navigation;
• Communication around the launch of the Ultra Base Navigation continued;

Phase Three – UBN live release & ongoing review

28/06/2022 – Ongoing

• Ultra Base Navigation goes live for all courses from 28/06/2022;
• Ongoing evaluation as part of the Learn Ultra project to review and capture further improvements we can make to the Ultra Base Navigation which could be planned for a next release. This includes capturing feedback from staff and students from Colleges and Schools engaged through Learn Ultra work streams
• Creation of the closure report and activities + learnings shared for the further roll-out of the Learn Ultra project
• Communication regarding UBN will be ongoing and become part of the further roll-out of Learn Ultra

Out of scope

• Any further bespoke feature / design requests within 4 weeks before the Production (live) release
• The Ultra Course View is a separate project, which is an Early Adopter’s piece
• The full upgrade to Learn Ultra courses
• Any pilots with Schools to test new Learn Ultra course functionality
• Testing or rollout of changes to course structure and other functionality resulting from the full upgrade to Learn Ultra
• New integrations that may be possible will be considered either as follow-on service work or a later project

Key roles

• Programme Manager: Lee-Ann Simpson
• Business Lead: Stuart Nicol
• Business Lead: Myles Blaney
• Technical Project Manager: Colin Forrest
• Technical Lead: Joe Currie
• Communications Officer: Lee-Ann Simpson and Ellen Groen
• Learn Foundations Lead: Jon Jack / Wesley Kerr
• Project Team Learning Technology Advisor: Paul Smyth

Objectives and Deliverables

Benefits

Upon the delivery of the VLEE001 project, the following benefits should have been achieved:

• An improved UBN interface which enhances the user experience for both staff and students;
• Upgrade of the interface to the most modern, supported version provided by the vendor;
• Increased VLE capabilities of our teaching staff to the benefit of our students;
• Should have closed the VLE gap between the University of Edinburgh and other universities that have already adopted Learn Ultra / Ultra Base Navigation;
• Increased NSS scores from students about our VLE derived from surveys
• Upon the roll-out of the UBN project, we can proceed with the full upgrade to Learn Ultra

Success Criteria

• The successful delivery of the Ultra Base Navigation that meets business requirements and hits success criteria outlined from the start;
• The upgrade takes place with little impact to users;
• Users, Schools and Colleges are well-informed of the changes ahead of the launch date;
• There is positive feedback on the change from both students and staff and there is limited reporting of bugs and other UX discrepancies;
• Successful delivery of all communication outputs and touch points as outlined in the UBN section of the communications plan