Project Description: Blackboard Enhancement Initiative
The “Blackboard Enhancement Initiative” aims to improve the Blackboard, as a Learning Management System in Saudi Electronic University, by implementing new features and enhancing the user experience. This enhancement initiative focuses on addressing user feedback, integrating modern technologies, and creating a more engaging learning environment for students and instructors. As a project manager in an IT related organization located in Saudi Arabia, you, and your development team, must identify specific features such as improving user interface for better accessibility, integrating AI for personalized learning paths, and enhancing communication tools (forums, chat, etc.) to achieve the Blackboard enhancement initiative. The first stage of the project goes through several phases including planning, analysis, and design. The main activities are as follows:
In the Planning phase:
1. Scope and Objectives Definition.
2. SWOT Analysis (to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats).
3. Stakeholders Identification.
In the Analysis phase:
4. User Requirements Collection.
5. Use Cases Development (to understand user interactions).
In the Design phase:
6. New Interfaces Design.
7. Database Design.
8. Prototypes Creation.
The activities 2 & 3 are conducted in parallel. It is the same case for the activities 6 & 7; they are conducted in parallel. Table 1 illustrates the sequence of the activities. Table 1: Sequence of activities within the Blackboard Enhancement project
ACTIVITY PRECEDING ACTIVITIES Duration
1. Scope and Objectives Definition – #
2. SWOT Analysis 1 #
3. Stakeholders Identification 1 #
4. User Requirements Collection 2 & 3 #
5. Use Cases Development 4 #
6. New Interfaces Design 5 #
7. Database Design 5 #
8. Prototypes Creation 6 & 7 #;
Project Instructions:
1. You are required to complete the tasks given in the next pages.
2. You need to use any available drawing tool (not Word Processors) to draw the required diagrams.
planning Phase :
1. Suggest a proper system service request-SSR (as a table) and clearly describe the Blackboard enhancement initiative. (1 mark)
2. Create a Gantt Chart showing the project’s activities, durations, and preceding activities. (2 marks)
3. Construct a Network diagram to determine the critical path and expected completion time (in weeks) for the Blackboard enhancement project. You need to randomly generate the duration in weeks (values from 2 to 6) for each activity using https://numbergenerator.org/ (or any similar software) and fill in the last column in Table 1 above. (2 marks)
Analysis Phase :
1. Suggest at least eight functional requirements the user needs in the enhanced Blackboard system. The suggested requirements must help to enhance the functionality, usability, and overall effectiveness of the Blackboard. (2 marks). Conduct a brainstorming with your colleagues to suggest the requirements. 2. Based on the suggested functional requirements, draw the following diagrams:
Use Case Diagram. Suppose the key actors are the student, the instructor, and the system admin. (2 marks)
Level-0 DFD (1 marks)
E-R Diagram. You need to show the entity types, attributes, relationships, and cardinalities. (2 marks)
Design Phase :
1. Transform the E-R diagram drawn in the Analysis phase into relations and do the necessary normalization. (2 marks)
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