{"id":5,"date":"2009-05-08T14:40:17","date_gmt":"2009-05-08T22:40:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/?page_id=5"},"modified":"2009-06-07T23:22:06","modified_gmt":"2009-06-08T03:22:06","slug":"lms","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/lms\/","title":{"rendered":"LMS"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/span><\/p>\n

PROPOSAL FOR CAA’S LMS<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Introduction and Purpose<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

This proposal will provide a high level overview for the project entitled CAA Learning Management System (LMS). The goal of this project is to support and augment the traditional face-to-face classroom employee training offered at the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) through the incorporation of a LMS. A secondary goal is to promote accessibility of information and enhance communication with employees who are geographically distributed in branch offices. A more detailed project plan and demonstration of Moodle will be provided to CAA\u2019s Senior Management following the initial review of this proposal by the Vice President of Human Resources and Learning.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Selecting a LMS <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

In selecting a LMS for CAA, the two goals of the project stated above were considered along with industry research on selecting and using educational technology. Additional items considered when selecting and recommending a LMS included cost, support, resources, students, ease of use and interactivity. While many LMS provide similar features and fulfill these considerations, the main advantage of Moodle lies in cost.\u00a0 <\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

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Moodle as a Solution<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Moodle is an acronym for Modular Object-Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment (Perkins & Pfaffman, 2006<\/span>) and it is currently being used by over 2000 educational organizations to deliver online courses and to supplement face-to-face classes (Cole, 2005). The adoption and use of Moodle amongst such a large population speaks to its reliability and functionality. A LMS system can be expensive to purchase and maintain, however the advantage of Moodle is that it is a free, open-source software program which provides many of the same features as competitors (Cole, 2005; Perkins & Pfaffman, 2006<\/span>). Moodle can be run on the CAA web server and eliminates the need for a license to a proprietary product. With a LMS, CAA employees in regional offices could participate in selected workplace training via the internet and LMS in lieu of attending face-to-face classes at head office. The cost savings associated with a free open-source LMS in conjunction with reduced employee travel costs (airfare, hotel, meals etc) and travel time would depend upon the number of courses placed on the LMS and would require further detailed analysis. <\/span><\/p>\n

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The feasibility for the LMS to be added to the project load of one of our existing project managers requires investigation. Two Learning and Development resources would be assigned to the project and thus, other strategic initiatives within the organization may need to be reprioritized should the proposal for CAA\u2019s LMS be approved; in addition, the monetary costs of delaying such projects would need to be further considered. Alternatively, incorporating a budget for contract positions for the role of Project Manager and two Learning and Development positions is presented for consideration. Existing computer equipment and software would be used. Other budgetary expenses to include are training courses for the Learning and Development Team, reference books, and a general spending account for such necessities as graphics for the LMS learning modules.<\/span><\/p>\n

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In terms of resources and support, the web server would be the responsibility of the IT department. Members of the Learning and Development Team would be responsible for creating the courses, administration and providing general day-to-day user support. The rapid changes in policies, procedures and government legislation require that CAA employees continually upgrade their skills and knowledge. However, the geographical distribution of regional offices has traditionally hindered sharing of information, communication, discussion and collaboration. The features of Moodle such as discussion forms, assignments, real-time chat, glossary, quizzes and wikis are intended to close this gap (Perkins & Pfaffman, 2006<\/span>). This interactivity is intended to enhance employee development through the sharing of ideas and responding to others, thereby deepening their understanding (Chickering & Gamson, 1987).\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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The reality of new and changing information for CAA employees necessitates the need for rapid development of learning modules and ease of use for both course developers and end users. Moodle is considered quite intuitive (Perkins & Pfaffman, 2006<\/span>), thus suggesting ease of use. However, consideration must still be given to time lines for the Learning and Development Team to become proficient with Moodle and for employee adoption. To help offset this learning curve, the recommendation is to roll out the use of Moodle\u2019s features in stages; thus, providing a staggered release and incorporation of these features. Help guides and tutorials can be found on the Moodle website, which speak to the functionality and stability of Moodle. In addition, a supportive Moodle community can be accessed as needed. <\/span><\/p>\n

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Conclusion and Next Steps<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

This high level proposal is intended to provide preliminary details on the incorporation of Moodle within CAA. A detailed project plan would be developed and would outline project milestones and dates, define roles and responsibilities of all stakeholders, assign a Project Manager to lead the implementation and identify a Project Sponsor. The next steps would involve presenting this high level proposal to all Senior Management for review, conducting a demonstration of Moodle and seeking corporate approval for this project.<\/span><\/p>\n

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References<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Bates A. W. & Poole, G. (2003). A Framework for Selecting and Using Technology. In A.W. Bates & G. Poole, Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Education (pp. 75-108). <\/span>San Francisco<\/span>: Jossey-Bass. 4. Retrieved on <\/span>May 12, 2009<\/span> from<\/span> https:\/\/www.vista.ubc.ca\/webct\/RelativeResourceManager\/Template\/module1\/Bates-Poole-Chapter4.pdf<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Chickering, A. W. & Gamson, Z. F. (1987) <\/em>Seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education. American Association for Higher Education Bulletin, 39(7)<\/em>, 3-7. Retrieved on <\/span>May 12, 2009<\/span> from <\/span>http:\/\/www.aahea.org\/bulletins\/articles\/sevenprinciples1987.htm
\n<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Cole, Jason. (2005) Using moodle: Teaching with the popular open source course management system. <\/span>Sebastopol<\/span>: O\u2019Reilly Media Inc.<\/span><\/p>\n

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ISTE. (2008) National educational technology standards for teachers. Retrieved on <\/span>May 6, 2009<\/span> from<\/span> http:\/\/www.iste.org\/Content\/NavigationMenu\/NETS\/ForTeachers\/2008Standards\/NETS_for_Teachers_2008.htm<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Moodle Website. Accessed at http:\/\/moodle.org\/<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Perkins, M. & Pfaffman, J. (2006). Using a course management system to improve classroom communication. Science Teacher, 73(7),<\/em> 33-37. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Retrieved on <\/span>May 19, 2009<\/span> from http:\/\/hegel.lewiscenter.org\/users\/mhuffine\/projects\/sci_pdf\/moodle_in%20_the_classroom_NSTA.pdf<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PROPOSAL FOR CAA’S LMS Introduction and Purpose This proposal will provide a high level overview for the project entitled CAA Learning Management System (LMS). The goal of this project is to support and augment the traditional face-to-face classroom employee training offered at the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) through the incorporation of a LMS. A secondary […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":600,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-5","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/600"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":95,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5\/revisions\/95"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jungetec565\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}