Broad overview of LMS, its history, debates and future. Considerations to make when selecting an LMS for your organisation

1. An introduction to the LMS
Learning to Love the
LMS?
8 April 2021

2. Let’s get started
What adjective do you associate
with an LMS?

3. Most contentious 3 letters in e-learning?

4. • Software that enables
organisations to plan, deliver,
and evaluate online courses
• Host platform for online courses
(self-hosted or as SaaS –
Software as a Service)
Learning Management
System (LMS)
Learning
Management
System

5. From Local hosting to
Cloud hosting

6. Why would you need one?
One-stop shop for delivering an online
course:
• Content
• Activities
• Communication
• File storage
• Assignments
• Grade entry
• Calendar
• Administration
• Plugins: Plagiarism checks, E-proctoring, Videoconferencing, Games,
Chatting, Open Badges…
Teachers

7. Why would you need one?
Consistency
• One login and password
• One way to access resources, upload assignments etc.
• Communication with peers and teachers
• Consulting feedback on assignments and exams
• One calendar
Students

8. Why would you need one?
One system to manage online courses
• Harmonization across courses
• Data security, back ups, user rights
• Technical support
• Integration with IT systems
• Consistency
• Adding courses, students, teachers, (parents)
• Assignments
• Analytics
Institutions

9. LMS
CMS
E-learning
Authoring

10. • Unloved …

11. Unloved …
• Straitjacket
• Disempowering
• Walled garden (closed)
• Centralized
• Symbol for the
commercialization of
education

12. But what is the alternative?

13. Personal learning
environment
Facilitates functions
important to learning:
• Discussion
• Help and support
• Creativity and
sharing

14. Combination of tools
• Notetaking tools
• Cloud storage
• Videoconferencing
• Chat
• Wiki
• Virtual Learning Assistants
• …

15. LMS and Informal Learning
“Students were frustrated by Moodle because
they did not find the discussion forum and chat
room for active interaction among themselves
and lecturers to be user-friendly; instead, they
opted to create a WhatsApp group for
convenient discussion and sharing of ideas.”
Mpungose, 2019

16. Experience in Rwanda
• “Take your students where you are” vs “Go where your
students are”
• Conversational learning
• Chat bots
• WhatsApp
• 2 Pilot studies

17. SCORM
• Sharable Content Object
Reference Model
• SCORM is a widely used standard
for the creation of e-learning
modules.
• SCORM makes e-learning
content shareable across
platforms
• LMS = SCORM player
• Newer protocols: xAPI
(Experience API), AICC

19. Halfway point
What do you take
from this webinar so far?

20. Testimonies

21. Examples of LMS

22. Differences
• User friendliness
• Open vs closed (source code)
• Range of activities
• Integration of multimedia
• Gamification possibilities
• Branching/ Differentiation
• Analytics and Reporting tools
• Pricing

23. Big Tech
LMS
Cloud
computing
Collaboration
Communication
Productivity
Content
Development

24. “In North America, Google
Classroom is one of the top
four solutions, alongside
Canvas, Schoology, and
Moodle. The picture outside
of North America is different,
however, with a much
greater relative adoption of
Classroom.”
Source: https://philonedtech.com/
Feb 21, US, K-12

25. Historical LMS in North America (K12 and Higher Education - Total
Enrolment)
Source: https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/1100957/

26. Learning Equality (non-profit)
Free
Focus on distributing and hostingOERs via
low-bandwidth and offline channels
Explore pre-organized libraries of open educational
resources (KhanAcademy,TESSA, Sikana,
PhET Interactive Simulations…) distribute
selected contents offline with activities,
assessment…
Focus on self-paced learning
Kolibri

27. Edmodo

28. Moodle
• Moodle's Founder and Lead
Developer Martin Dougiamas
• Martin’s (Modular) Object-Oriented
Digital Learning Environment
• Dictionary definition of Moodle
• First version released in 2002

29. Moodle
• Biggest open source LMS
• 251 million registered users
• 35 million courses
• https://stats.moodle.org/
• Moodle Pty (for profit company)

30. Reasons for selecting an
LMS
• Digital skills of trainers and trainees
• Your partners’ preferences or choices
• Your own skills or willingness to explore and
experiment
• Locking-in (ease to change from one system
to another)
• Type of learning (pedagogy, openness)
• Cost (full cost of delivery)