This is such an interesting area, and I'm both reassured and
disappointed that the present situation in FE/HE is no different from
how it is in schools.

Becta are now pressing for interoperability between MIS and VLEs, and
this is, I believe, going to be part of the forthcoming rewrite of the
learning platform conformance regime. I'm not sure exactly what they'll
mean by interoperability though, probably something less than the
read/write access you and I are both looking for.

With an open source VLE, there's nothing to stop a competent MIS
programmer coding the stuff to get things in and out, and rumour has it
some of the commercial houses are working on this for Moodle in schools.
And there's an embryonic schoolforge-uk project to try and do much same
in an open way - see
http://www.schoolforge.org.uk/index.php/Management_Information_and_Administration_Systems
I don't suppose there's any open source MIS used in HE/FE is there?

It's also worth reading the Becta report on "School MIS and value for
money"
(http://www.becta.org.uk/corporate/publications/documents/mis_%20report(revised-for-web).pdf)
- apparently things at the moment are 'suboptimal'! Becta are pressing
for interoperability here, with a UK version of the Schools
Interoperability Framework - see http://www.sifinfo.org/

Miles Berry
Deputy Head
St Ives School, Haslemere
www.stiveshaslemere.com



Ken Smith wrote:
> Back in 2002 Jisc ran a project to evaluate the possibilities of full 2 
> way, real time, integration of VLEs and MI systems.  The Idea was to make 
> a true managed learning environment with admin staff being able to 
> interrogate the VLE via their MI system and teaching staff being able to 
> check student records(lateness, abscence etc) via the VLE.  The result of 
> the trial, according to the JISC, report was a qualified success.  
> However, annecdotal evidence from the people who took part in the trial 
> says that it was an unmittigated disaster.  Apparently even systems 
> supplied by the same company could not be made to talk to each other 
> without a huge chunk of middleware being written.
> 
> I have heard nothing about progress in his area since that time so what I 
> want to know is:
> Does anyone know of a virtual learning environment which provides that 
> level of 2 way, real time integration with a MI System?  and if so what is 
> the VLE? what is the MI system ? and are bolt on goodies required to make 
> it work?
> 
> I do know that there are systems which will enrol students and set up and 
> populate courses using MIS data but does anyone go further than that? 
> 
> ***************** List information: *****************
> Remember - replies go by default to the entire list.
> Access the list via the web on http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/vle.html
> To unsubscribe, email [log in to unmask] with the message: leave vle
> 
> 

***************** List information: *****************
Remember - replies go by default to the entire list.
Access the list via the web on http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/vle.html
To unsubscribe, email [log in to unmask] with the message: leave vle