My primary goal for this course was to better learn how to implement and maintain a learning management system (LMS) course.  I felt I was able to understand the functions of an LMS much better after completing this project. The learning management system (LMS), which facilitates the rapidly expanding e-learning/blended-learning industry, has been one of the fastest-growing technology-adoption phenomena in the 400-year history of higher education. As with industry, education is still in the process of developing a true understanding of how best to maximize the capabilities of the LMS to teach and train efficiently (Pugliese, 2012).

From my own experiences taking and working with online courses, I held the opinion that ensuring course quality is something instructors need to prioritize. Relevant literature supports my ideas and finds that 3 key lessons learned when implementing Moodle courses are: Put course quality front and center; Ensure that there are quality guidelines and ways to implement them during and after the transition; Communicate, communicate, and communicate! (Chao, 2008) I spent a large amount of time thinking about what I wanted to include in my course and spent a great deal of time ‘playing’ or testing out the options within Moodle. The Moodle infrastructure is vast and due to it’s open source nature, Moodle it is everchanging. This makes planning and expertising yourself with Moodle something that can take a great deal of time. While keeping the completion of course milestones in mind, I made a point to prioritize my conception and planning time since adequate thought, planning, and time must be allocated to all the elements of the project. (Chao, 2008)

Effective e-learning design, as a lowest common denominator, will embrace nimble, interoperable, modular infrastructure in ways that make learning contemporary, relevant, and engaging (Pugliese, 2012). In developing a course it is important ensure that your course isn’t simply a duplication of something you taught before or a copy of a course you have taken. Certainly inspiration of many elements in the course come from my own learning experiences and I felt it helpful to include even some of the content explored in ETEC 565. I felt it important to afford students the opportunity to explore web 2.0 applications and to incorporate a section of my course on digital storytelling. Going outside the LMS using web 2.0 tools can allow for more student engagement, more effective collaboration, and more active learning in general (EDUCAUSE, 2010).

Creating an online course is a challenging concept that requires substantial thought and careful attention to design. With the advent of easy-to-program web scripting languages and simplified digital authoring software, teachers are playing a greater role in the creation of learning materials and designs. Furthermore, the popularity of open source course management systems with pluggable modules and point-and-click configuration has allowed teachers to experience unprecedented freedom of design (Berggren et al., 2005). Depending on many factors (culture, language, age, sex etc.); people often see, hear, and perceive the world in different ways. This means that the forms and approaches they take to learning and communicating are very different. Just as there is no set formula for making a great story, there is also no set formula for developing a great course. Exploring the content within Moodle on my own, gave me an opportunity to provide myself a  map and  illuminated some of the possibilities. I am delighted with the skills the project enabled me to attain and look forward to building on these skills with further exploration of LMS technology in the future.

References:

Berggren, A., Burgos, D., Fontana, J. M., Hinkelman, D., Hung, V., Hursh, A., & Tielemans, G. (2005). Practical and pedagogical issues for teacher adoption of IMS learning design standards in Moodle LMS. Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 2005(1).

Chao, T. (2008). Moving to Moodle: Reflections Two Years Later. EDUCAUSE quarterly, 31(3).

EDUCAUSE. (2010). Seven Things You Should Know About LMS Alternatives. EDUCAUSE Review. Retrieved January 17, 2014, from https://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7062.pdf
Pugliese, L. (2012). A Post-LMS World. EDUCAUSE Review, 31(3). Retrieved January 17, 2014, from http://www.educause.edu/library/learning-management-systems-lms