ICT INCORPORATION IN HIGHER EDUCATION:

E-MATURITY IN PLANESTIC PROJECT

Please cite as:
Osorio, L., Cifuentes, G., & Rey, G. (2011). ICT incorporation in higher education:
e-maturity in the PlanEsTIC Project. In Educacin para el siglo XXI: Aportes del
Centro de Investigacin y Formacin en Educacin (Vol. 2). Bogot: Uniandes.


Excerpt from the bookchapter: Educacin para el siglo XXI: aportes del Centro
de investigacin y formacin en educacin, CIFE Vol. 2 Ed. Uniandes (2011)

1. INTRODUCTION
The concept of e-maturity is used to refer to the level of progress of an institution in the
process of appropriation and educational use of Information and Communication
Technologies (ICT). From an institutional perspective, it is expected that ICTs represent an
opportunity to reach the mission, vision, and institutional objectives related to educational
processes. From this perspective, the incorporation of ICTs could have the characteristic of
an institutional educational innovation (Salinas, 2004; Collis, 2004), and this implies a
process of planning changes in three basic dimensions: pedagogical, organizational, and
infrastructure related.
Following an invitation by the National Education Ministry (MEN), the LIDIE
1
team
participated in the strategic design of PlanesTIC project, formulating strategic plans for the

1
The LIDIE team (Informatics and Education Laboratory for Research and Development), is part of the CIFE
(Education Research and Training Center) at the Universidad de los Andes. It has been working for the last 25
incorporation of educational ICT in Colombian Higher Education Institutions (HEI). The
projects intention was to combine efforts in order to trigger strategic planning processes
for ICT incorporation into the HEIs educational processes. Therefore, NIACEs team
2

concept of e-maturity was used to develop this project, and the HEI made a self diagnosis
with this instrument to assess the process of ICT incorporation. As will be seen later, this
instrument was used at different moment of PlanesTIC project, with the intention of
measuring the HEIs progress level. Furthermore, additional strategies such as case studies
were used, as a way to show the institutions maturity. This article presents the results
around the reflection about the manner in which focus on educational innovation and
strategic planning has a bearing on the educational incorporation of ICT, in the e-maturity
process, and in the HEIs which participated in the different phases of the project.
2. THEORETICAL AND CONCEPTUAL ELEMENTS
Higher Education institutions must become flexible and develop integration channels for
ICTs in training processes, in order to fit todays societys needs (Salinas, 2004). This
flexibility in projects, as Salinas sets it out, should be conceived as an institutional strategy
involving the whole organization, from a quality improvement perspective. This results in
educational innovation processes based on ICTs.
2.1. The ICT incorporation process: a challenge of educational innovation

years on Educational Informatics. One of LIDIEs research lines is the incorporation of ICT in educational
processes. One of the most significant contexts of intervention for the Laboratory was the opportunity to
design the strategies of HEI intervention within the frame of PlanesTIC project, since it made progress the
mentioned research line.
2
NIACE is a British institution focusing on education for adults. They created this tool (eLPS) with the
support of BECTA, a British company that designs assessment instruments for Higher Education. For further
information on NIACE and the eLPS tool, go to http://www.niace.org.uk/ and
http://aclearn.qia.org.uk/display.cfm?resID=18705 respectively.
There is no single answer to societys challenges. Each HEI must respond from its own
specificity and context. In order to respond to challenges, institutions must revise their
referents and promote innovative experiences in their ICT-based teaching-learning
processes. Educational innovation, as a shift in individual and collective representations ans
practices, is neither spontaneous nor accidental, but deliberate and voluntarily driven
(Salinas, 2004; Collis, 2001; Bates, 2004), committing the conscious action of the subjects
involved, both in its conception and implementation (Fullan, 2002 in Salinas, 2004; Bates,
2004).
Collecting the experiences of several higher education institutions regarding ICT
incorporation, Sangr and Gonzlez suggest:
ICT integration must be done in an explicit, planned and systematic manner,
involving the whole organization and their members on individual and collective
levels. Only then they will become a factor of change and improvement for the
university. The institutional approach of this issue requires an active participation and
the motivation of different agents within the institution, where faculty members and a
strong institutional commitment are very important. (Sangr y Gonzlez, 2004)
From the perspective of educational innovation, ICT incorporation in higher Education
institutions opens up fronts of change on the educational, organizational, management,
infrastructure, economic, and cultural levels.
2.2. The ICT incorporation process, a challenge of strategic planning
HEI are transforming, and ICT are contributing to it. Preparing a mechanism which allows
knowing or inferring the real impact of ICTs in this transformation, will provide
guarantees to one of the aims pursued by these institutions: quality education.
Strategic planning is understood as the process trying to systematize a way of
thinking thats very close to the strategists; starting from it, plans are created or
revised to implement more or less stable strategies to guide work within given
scenarios and horizons. (Galvis, 2007)
The institutionalization of the strategy of ICT incorporation in HEI follows an evolutionary
process that can be decomposed in three phases (Osorio y Aldana, 2007).

Graph 1: Phases of the Strategic Planning Process

The first phase involves the creation of a strategic vision for ICT incorporation.
In this phase, the goal defining a possible desired state regarding the role of ICTs in
educational processes in a given period of time must be set, allowing to strategically aim
such incorporation.
The second phase deals with planning. In this phase, the goal is to achieve the
best use of the institutions conditions and possibilities in order to progress towards the
vision. Therefore, it implies considering the strategies design and management.
The third phase is implementing the planned strategies, which involves defining
action plans at operative level. These action plans imply considering the activities,
resources, deadlines and people in charge, to ensure an effective and efficient use.
Assessment and monitoring is a transverse component of the three phases. Strategic
planning is a dynamic process which must permanently respond to changing conditions,
and thus requires being cyclically reviewed in each phase: vision formulation, planning,
implementing, assessing, and monitoring.
2.3. Dimensions to analyze and design of ICT incorporation processes in
HEI
The processes of ICT incorporation in educational institutions must take into account
educational, organizational, and infrastructure-related aspects. These dimensions are
defined below as an analysis and design framework of ICT incorporation processes in
HEI, as a result of the comparative review of six international frameworks. In particular,
they result from adapting eLPS and Certification for e-learning models (Wirth, 2006).
Educational Dimension: It is the core of ICT incorporation, including aspects
related to the training proposal, methodologies and didactic strategies, and therefore is
linked to the study plan and the conditions to guarantee educational quality. Pedagogical
model, training strategies, the expansion of offerings, and the quality of educational
processes are among the aspects included here.
Organizational Dimension: Deals with the processes and procedures on which
stand the HEIs management, organization and daily running, analyzing if it has the
necessary organizational structure to guarantee that the ICT use and development
procedures are clear and flexible. It includes aspects such as: support from directorship,
agents in charge, and evaluation. Also must be considered within the organizational
dimension, vision and ICT strategic planning aspects, economic and funding aspects, and
cultural aspects, that is, the way that values, beliefs and practices in the involved social
groups are affected.
Infrastructure and Equipment Dimension: It concentrates on long-term,
sustainable disposal of a stable and functional technological environment, validating how
the technologic infrastructure has been integrated and implemented in the HEI, which
services of technologic support are offered, and how technologic quality is defined and
guaranteed. It includes aspects such as technical support, eventual use of freeware, and
choice criteria.
2.4. Measuring and comparison of ICT incorporation processes e-maturity
The model ACL e-Learning Positioning Statement intends to diagnose the institutions
maturity regarding ICT incorporation (known in this context as e-maturity). One of the
advantages of this model proposed by NIACE is that maturity is considered as a process
implying some stages reflecting the institution. Unlike other models, the institutions
condition for each criterion is not defined by a numerical scale; in this case, five stages are
defined (Not yet started, Early stages, Developing, Established, Embedded), with a
description of the elements and conditions that the institution should have for being
considered in each of them. Thus, more precise criteria are available to determine the level
of progress in each category and criterion. The instrument considers the following
categories:
1. Vision and strategic planning: Pretends to diagnose the clarity of vision for
development of e-learning, the existence of a strategy to achieve the vision, the effective
communicating of this strategy and its coherence with other strategies as with local,
regional and national priorities.
2. Teaching and learning: Considers the teaching-learning processes and the technologic
availability of learning resources; development of learners ILT skills, and effective
electronic communication.
3. Staff development: This category considers the analysis and understanding of staff
development needs, making the best use of enthusiasts, and teaching and management staff
development.
4. Infrastructure and equipment: The elements considered in this category aim to
diagnose the institutions technologic infrastructure supporting the teaching-learning
processes. It includes access to computers and equipment, Internet connectivity, learning
platform development and technical support for staff and members.
5. Managing and implementing ICT and e-learning: This last category intends to
identify the actions taken by the institution to implement the ICT/e-learning strategy
described in category 1 (Vision and strategic planning). The elements in this category
consider the existence of an action plan to implement the strategy, monitoring and
reviewing the action plan, institutional commitment, and partnerships with other
institutions or organizations.
This instrument
3
allows to measure progress in the ICT incorporation process, as it
considers aspects that can be associated to educational innovation and strategic planning,
both crucial in LIDIE teams approach.

3
The instrument can be looked up in detail at http://comunidadPlanesTIC.uniandes.edu.co
3. STRATEGIC PLAN PROJECT FOR ICT INCORPORATION INTO THE
EDUCATIONAL PROCESSES OF COLOMBIAN HEI PlanesTIC
Within the framework of the National Education Ministrys (NEM) Pertinence Policy,
where the National Program of Educational Innovation with ICT use is included, several
strategic research lines have been defined aiming to the strengthening of ICT Use and
Appropriation.
Between 2005 and 2006,the NEM conducted a study on Virtual models in Colombian
HEI, which showed, among other findings, that less than 50% of the HEI polled stated that
they had a strategic plan to incorporate ICT.
Since 2007, considering the studys outcomes and acknowledging the Universidad de los
Andes experience in designing strategies for ICT incorporation as a support for its
educational processes, the NEM has made Science and Technology agreements with the
University, with the intention of combining efforts in order to implement strategic planning
processes for ICT incorporation into the educational processes of Colombian HEI
(PlanesTIC). This project has had the active participation of a significant number of
Colombian HEI. PlanesTIC Project considered three phases:
3.1. Phase 1: Guidelines to strategic plan formulation for ICT educational
incorporation in HEI
Guidelines were formulated as guidance for HEI, admitting and paying attention to the
scope of autonomy that defines them, on one hand, and on the other admitting, too, the
diversity and peculiarity of their experiences and contexts. This is why these guidelines are
expressed as reflections to mobilize toward action, grouped in seven categories of analysis
gathering fundamental aspects of strategic planning for ICT incorporation, based on
pedagogical, organizational, and infrastructure frameworks. When in contact with the
guidelines, HEI were expected to find advice to direct them to a continual exercise of
strategic planning for ICT incorporation, with an educational innovation approach.
The categories from which guidelines are presented cover all the stages of strategic
planning. This relation is presented in the following graph:


Graph 2: Guidelines and strategic planning phases
3.2. Phase 2: HEI accompaniment pilot
The objective of this phase was combining efforts to follow-up 28 HEI in the process of
formulating or reviewing their strategic plans of ICT incorporation (SPII), starting from the
use and validation of the guidelines formulated in the previous phase, and from the
implemented accompaniment strategy.
Management of this process emphasized on the following: 1) Integrality of three essential
components: strategic planning, ICT incorporation in education, and teaching-learning; 2)
conceptual and methodological understanding of the guidelines offered; 3) Approaching the
guidelines as an educational innovation; 4) Institutional autonomy acknowledgement. At
the end of this phase, all 28 accompanied HEI succeeded on formulating their SPII.
3.3. Phase 3: SPII implementation and HES accompaniment staggering
In view of the satisfactory outcomes and breakthroughs of the pilot phase, and the need for
follow-up from new institutions, the NEM offered a next staggering phase of
accompaniment, with the intention of accompanying 63 new HEI in their plan formulation,
and following-up the 28 accompanied in pilot phase HEIs while consolidating the
PlanesTIC community.
Staggering emphasized on the following aspects: 1) Growing with quality and autonomy. 2)
Acknowledging the HEIs diversity. 3) Resting on a close, guiding and effective
accompaniment. 4) Having a sense of regional and national collaboration.
During this phase, the 63 new accompanied HEI succeeded on formulating their SPII
(Strategic Plans of ICT Incorporation), as well as the PlanesTIC communitys
consolidation. On the other hand, the 28 initial HEIs implementation process was
monitored during the first year of their strategic plans implementing.
4. RESEARCH QUESTION
The PlanesTIC project succeeded in creating a common language for HEI to describe their
experiences in the educational incorporation of ICT. This same language made possible the
collaborative construction of the HEIs SPII during the accompaniment, implementation
and staggering phases. In this sense, PlanesTIC project gave directions to create the
guidelines and the accompaniment strategy for SPII formulation as a process of educational
innovation, from a strategic planning perspective. In turn, the e-maturity instrument was
applied at several moments in the process, which permitted to record HEIs perception
regarding their progress in the ICT incorporation process, and therefore information on the
e-maturity process on a national level was made available. All the above led to formulate
the following investigation question regarding the project:
In which way the educational innovation and strategic planning approach in
educational ICT incorporation affects the Colombian HEIs e-maturity process?
6. CONCLUSIONS
As has been seen across the findings, the three dimensions of analysis proposed in the
framework of this project are necessary for an appropriate approach. As with Borromean
rings, it is not possible to leave out any of these dimensions in the frame of educational
innovation and strategic planning, since this would mean neglecting essential elements in
the incorporation of technologies. Indeed, technologies by themselves dont represent
innovation. Organizational management requires a dialogue with technologic and academic
units, and pedagogical reflection without technologic and organizational management
support will be innocuous.
As was evident since the initial diagnose in 2007, the initial scene in the country showed a
lack of common referents to speak about ICT incorporation from a strategic view. Three
years later, a common framework has been developed in the HEIs, and this framework has
allowed them to generate inner movements at pedagogical, infrastructure, and
organizational levels.
In general, the implementer HEIs showed movements towards higher development levels in
the matrixs categories (developing, established and embedded) during the second moment
of self-diagnose. This fact shows that in the implementer institutions, the strategic planning
processes of ICT incorporation in educational processes have generated structural changes
allowing the development and consolidation of a planning culture to incorporate ICT with a
sense of educational innovation.
At pedagogic level
It is important to clarifythat at pedagogic level its not so easy to perceive movements in the
institutions, since implementing a curricular cross model and its appropriation by the whole
community take time. When comparing what happens to changes at organizational level,
where new units appear, or synergies and alliances take place between existing units,
changes at pedagogical level are slower and involve long-term action. In fact, we have to
remember that these plans have been built for a fve-year term, so not every change is meant
to happen at the same time.
At organizational level
This is probably the dimension which showed the most evidence of the movements that
were expected to occur in the Colombian HEIs as a result of the incorporation of the
educational innovation and strategic planning discourse. Indeed, if ICTs are strategically
included, this involves necessarily reorganizing teams in the institutions, achieving a good
communication between the authorities and the different units, and a spirit of alignment
between initiatives that previously were directed to maybe very different aims.
At infrastructure level
It is clear that since the projects beginning, the Colombian HEIs were very concerned
about developing the infrastructure input, since it supports both academic and management
activities, and it provides a more explicit evidence of the inclusion of technologies.
Anyway, besides issues like connectivity, license purchasing, bandwith expansion and
such, this dimension starts to integrate, this is, to come to dialogue with the revision of
teaching and learning models, and to depend on the organizational movements happening
within the institution.
What does the Educational Innovation and Strategic Planning perspective tech us about
ICT incorporation in higher education?
- ICT incorporation in Higher Education must be assumed like a deliberate planning
process, if one pretends moving and managing institutional change through an
educational innovation that responds to the current social moment.
- ICT incorporation, as a process of educational innovation, involves structural
movements which redirect the institutions vision.
- ICT incorporation, understood as educational innovation, requires the revision and
redesign of concepts and paradigms about teaching and learning.
- The new technologic and social achievements transform the formulation and
management of a strategic plan of ICT incorporation into a joint action on
pedagogical models, technology incorporation, and the revision of the
organizational structure.
- Strategic planning involves checking both the local and national environments and
not just the international scene precisely because only interpreting very well the
needs of the environment in which it works, an institution can attain a sense of
relevance and succeed in responding effectively to the problems to solve.
- Assessment and institutional reflection processes must be carried out periodically
at least once a year so that infrastructure-related and organizational aspects , and
pedagogical models are permanenently revised.
! Collaborative work, and the creation or subscribing to existing communities on the
subject (on strategic planning, e-maturity, pedagogical models, fundraising
strategies, etc.) is currently a must to carry out a SPIIs implementation. As
common sense points it out, isolation is dangerous.
! The ICT incorporation strategic plan requires the coordinate involvement of
directing, pedagogical, managing and technology-related authorities in the HEIs.
! The ICT incorporation plans design and implementation must be articulated with
the institutional planning.
! ICT incorporation in HEIs involves acknowledging and acting on the cultural
processes of the involved groups and individuals.

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