My LMS (Moodle) Site experience was indeed a journey in fundamentals, frustrations, and fun. It not only taught me the ins and outs of Moodle itself, but it helped me explore the important facets of web-design and online course management/theory. Although I’m sure that I didn’t fully integrate all the requirements fully, I am quite proud of what was completed. I was particularly happy when I finally realized that the GUI splash page was simpler to create than I had first imagined.
Fundamentals
As this was a course for my Grade 5 students I rarely thought of my site as a stand-alone to offer those that could not physically attend my school. Interestingly enough, I wanted my site to be something of an add-on to what I already offer…much like that of an online portion of a blended learning environment. I feel it important to recognize this fact, as I have always been fascinated how online teachers “develop a sense of trust and safety within the electronic community” (Anderson, p. 350) The ability to facilitate a f2f discussion, let alone online, is difficult enough at the Grade 5 level sometimes. I applaud the effort of the MET faculty for making it seem so effortless to create this fundamental aspect of online learning. I tried to make sure I added into my site an ice breaking activity and an “introductions” segment, which hopefully will allow my students to get to know one another a little better.
In addition to John and my fellow classmates and their thoughtful sharing of ideas and facts, Anderson (2008) was probably the best source of information and inspiration for me…at least in text form. The main reason for this was his ‘Theory and Practice’ seemed to go beyond the tools and focus more on the underlying, universal principles of what makes online learning work. One of the reasons I had so many forums and discussion threads for students in my site was based on Anderson’s idea of assessing students based on their posts and discussion comments (p. 362). I wanted to create a place for students to ask questions about the site and about the content, but to also encourage them to comment on others’ posts. In this way, it offers greater opportunities for the construction of knowledge to occur.
I tended to fill my discussion forum in order to balance the amount of content found in my modules, which could have been greater in retrospect. I didn’t want to overwhelm the students with too much and although the material is directly related to the curriculum it could have utilized more online web 2.0 tools. I used Google docs, and had the students searching through YouTube vids, but could have incorporated more. There were a few tools that were introduced to me over the semester that I regret not taking advantage of. Perhaps in my own classroom – or somewhere in the future – I’ll be able to use them more meaningfully.
Frustrations
Upon reflection of the entire experience I would have to say that Moodle has always seemed to frustrate me. I say always but really I’ve only experienced it in etec 565. I’ve never had an opportunity, or a reason, to use it before then. I don’t even know if I ever will again, but I did learn about a few things during my engagement with it…namely…my patience level. I found it archaic looking, and it didn’t offer an HTML rookie like me any ‘sizzle’. What I mean by that is that I enjoy being able to see the fruits of my labour look a little more appealing. I use WordPress for my personal blogging site and I find that its overall look and user friendliness much easier to stomach. Although Moodle has greater options and can truly call itself an LMS, I would still like it to look a bit sexier.
The Quiz option is a perfect example of why Moodle is a far superior LMS candidate than any WordPress site I’ve ever used. As well, the fact that feedback can be created, automatic start and stop times for tests, activities, etc. can be created make it a pretty robust platform. I have recently looked into an LMS site called Schoology and find that it has many of the qualities that I’m looking for in terms of functionality and what I like to call the ‘eye candy effect’. It boasts some pretty cool features and some of the applications attached to it are great…even an online tutor! I’d also like to check out Edmodo, as their Facebook-like feel would probably be very attractive to the kids I teach. In the end, Moodle offered no sense of ‘buy in’ for me, which when you’re teaching 10 year olds, you need.
Fun
Although it might not look as slick or sleek as I’d like it to, and I did come across some roadblocks, I did manage to have a little fun with Moodle. I enjoyed the overall experience and would like to start experimenting with similar technologies, as I feel that it is so important to offer students/parents/schools the affordances of what LMS sites bring to the table. Absentee students, parent involvement, instant feedback are all wonderful advantages that can be realized using a platform such as Moodle.
Reference
Anderson, T. (2008a). Towards a theory of online learning. In T. Anderson & F. Elloumi (Eds.), Theory and practice of online learning. Edmonton AB: Athabasca University.