By providing services and support to B.C.'s post-secondary sector, we can do together what one institution may find difficult to do alone. BCcampus promotes this in two ways:

Collaborative Programs and Services:

BCcampus and partner institutions work collaboratively to plan, coordinate and deliver collaborative and partnership programs and services aligned with shared services. These programs and services integrate information and educational technology in ways that create system efficiencies and maximize the service that institutions can provide to their students.

In collaborative programs, students may take online courses and programs from many institutions (teaching or participating Institutions) even though they receive a credential from a single institution (their Home or Credentialing Institution). The shared virtual learning space for students and the means for connecting the participating institutions in the collaborative online program, is hosted and supported by BCcampus.

 With collaborative services, institutions coordinate existing resources to deliver online learning or student services beyond what any individual institution could provide on its own.

 We currently have three programs offered under the Collaborative Program model, with more on the way. The current programs are:

• Applied Business Technology Program (abt.onlinecollaborative.ca)
• Information and Communication Technology (ict.onlinecollaborative.ca)
• Aboriginal Early Childhood Education (aece.onlinecollaborative.ca)

In addition to the above collaborative online programs, there are also collaborative services for learners currently supported by BCcampus. One such service is AskAway, B.C.’s provincial post-secondary library virtual reference service, that allows B.C. learners, educators and researchers to chat with librarians and get research help from wherever they are.

Shared Services:

BCcampus works with vendors, open source providers and institution partners to provide educational shared services for online teaching and learning. By gathering needs and requirements, BCcampus hosts and supports learning technologies for the benefit of B.C.’s post-secondary system. Shared services typically reduce software and infrastructure costs by pooling demand and negotiating system-wide licenses and services.

For most shared services BCcampus underwrites a significant portion of the costs associated with their provision, with a balance struck between incentives for participation and contributions from institutions for operations.

BCcampus currently provides or supports the following educational shared services:

• Adobe Connect, a web conferencing system.
• Desire2Learn (D2L), a learning management system.
• Moodle, an open source software learning management system. 
• Blackboard Collaborate (previously Elluminate) a web conferencing system.
• QuestionPoint, the supporting technology for AskAway, B.C.’s provincial post-secondary virtual reference service.
• Kaltura, a multi-institutional streaming video shared service implemented in fall 2011 as a pilot project.

BCcampus is always considering new shared services based on system demand. Here are some examples:

• WordPress (content management system) - in limited production Fall, 2011
• WriteAway (online tutoring and writing support service)
• Anti-plagiarism applications – gathering input and evaluation
• Syllabus management – gathering input and evaluation

BCcampus welcomes institutional expressions of interest around participating in new or existing shared services. For more information on Collaborative Programs and Shared Services, please call:

Lawrence Parisotto

Director

Telephone: 604-412-7715

Email: lparisotto@bccampus.ca