Switching jobs from one university to another might seem like it wouldn’t be a big deal, and in some ways, it isn’t. But in the world of higher education, particularly in the realm of Learning Technology, changing institutions can actually be quite significant.

Institution and LMS ‘Switcharoo’

Although my expertise in supporting Moodle was helpful in identifying user patterns in Learn, I still have much to learn (predictable pun intended) about this new LMS. Juggling the intricacies of one LMS while understanding the administrative workings of a university required me to ‘unlearn’ years of ingrained knowledge to make room for the new processes (and oddities!) associated with my new institution. It’s rarely mentioned, but this involves a significant mental exercise. Occasionally, I catch myself using Moodle terminology with colleagues when discussing issues — fortunately, they patiently always remind me of the correct terms as I shake off the proverbial Moodle dust off my brain.

Higher Education Challenges

Of course, your past experience will always be used as a benchmark against your current one, and whilst I can find pros and cons in all of them, I recognise that working in higher education comes with challenges, irrespective of the institution. It is without a doubt that the higher education realm is currently trying to navigate financial challenges – and I sometimes wonder, in light of what I’ve just mentioned regarding the change of institution, what does the merge of two universities may imply for employees, the administrative processes and their ways of working in general (see BBC News article on university mergers).

Welcome to DLAM

Joining DLAM has been a refreshing change from my previous role as a first-line support analyst. Here, I engage more closely with third-party services and have grown more familiar with them. I’ve also learned about ITIL and participated in accessibility testing, which proved challenging. I realised that my understanding of and exposure to accessibility tools had been frankly limited until then, so discovering how a simple change in CMS plugins can significantly impact the user experience for people with specific accessibility needs was an eye-opener. It prompted me to think about my own limitations in emulating situations that users with disabilities face and how our department could collaborate more effectively with our community to improve testing and reporting.

Finally…

On a lighter note, we are nearly at the one-year mark since my return to Edinburgh. Having moved back in January, I am thrilled to spend another year ‘French colonising’ my favourite city in the world. In fact, September marked my 14th year living in Scotland — so much for my confident “Don’t worry, Mum, it’s only for one year!” before starting my Erasmus exchange at the University of Edinburgh. I guess that officially makes me a lying, deserting daughter. Oops.

Here’s to a successful first year at DLAM (with a big thank you to my lovely colleagues) and to another year of being a proud Scottish lassie!

A desk setup can never be complete without a French layout keyboard, and a good baguette or croissant wrist rest.

Reflections on My First Year (and a Bit) as a Service Coordinator, and Other Shenanigans / Digital Learning Applications and Media by blogadmin is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution CC BY 3.0

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