Dear Mr. Steve Cardwell, Superintendent of Vancouver School District,
Currently, the Vancouver School Board (VSB) is creating a selection of blended classes (classroom and online learning) designed for secondary schools. As a representative of classroom teachers in the district, I understand the needs of the students and the schools. During monthly professional development opportunities, I have collaborated with teachers from across the district and discussed blended classroom learning and appropriate platforms. This proposal explains why Moodle is the most efficient digital learning platform for the district.
Rationale for Moodle
Using Bates & Poole’s (2003) SECTIONS model for selecting and using technology, we can evaluate why Moodle is the best instructional design for this district. We specifically developed this platform for an English 10 class in a mainstream face-to-face (f2f) Vancouver school.
Students, Teaching and Learning, and Interactivity
We wanted to choose a platform that would suit students’ different learning styles. Moodle offers a multitude of teaching and learning opportunities. These opportunities are achieved through wikis, discussion and chat forums, voice tools, web conferencing, social Web 2.0 tools, course content uploads, student work submissions, student blogging, and online quizzes and announcements. It provides asynchronous and synchronous learning through student-to-student and student-to-teacher communications. In addition, a community of practice can be easily formed through the creation of visible or separate groups, where students can complete Moodle activities within these groups. For example, the site can present story excerpts, case studies, or other discussion prompts to promote dialogue and debate. This function allows students to work closely together on Moodle activities within their group and increases individual participation that may not be achieved in a class setting. When we tested the site, students and teachers appreciated the rich variation of methods this site offered.
Ease of Use and Reliability, and Speed
We wanted a platform that was easy to use and reliable for students and teachers. When we tested this site, students were able to accustom themselves to the layout and begin working on the course content within 20 minutes of use. Moodle also runs on various computer systems, including Windows and Mac OS X. Therefore, students were able to access this platform from a home computer or a school computer. As well, staff and site administrators were able to develop the site easily and upload course content promptly.
Cost
We were aware that the school district is currently in an $8 million dollars deficit and does not have the money to contribute to additional learning opportunities. As open-source software, Moodle provides many similar opportunities compared to other LMS systems but at a low cost. According to Learning Solutions Magazine, the average cost of ownership per learner for Moodle is $16.77. Total cost of ownership includes all costs associated with the computer hardware and software, administrative costs, training and development, maintenance, and technical support. These costs can be provided by the yearly school budget or from applied grants. The site administrator or teacher can do maintenance during professional development allotted time or during preparation blocks. As well, many schools have a full-time technical support worker. Most schools in this district have at least two computer labs and adequate computer resources, which can help with transitioning into blended learning classrooms.
Organizational Issues and Novelty
We wanted to choose a platform that provided few organizational issues. Moodle is a recognized instructional design that is supported and used by many schools and administrators in the Vancouver district. In addition, regarding novelty, many teachers have already incorporated Moodle into their daily lessons because of its ease of use and reliability.
Efficiency
Although cost was an important issue, a key motivation for choosing Moodle over other LMS designs was how it addressed efficiency. The Vancouver district would appreciate a low cost but not if it substituted for design quality and efficiency. In this case, Moodle is open-source, yet it also affords e-learning and community of practice. The technological tools that we use to teach a class are “more than mere tools for the means-end purposes of solving problems…[but instead] agents in the evolution of practices that bind individuals together in intellectual communities” (Middleton, 2001, p. 1). Moodle is a technological tool that creates a constructivist learning environment, where “knowledge is individually constructed and socially constructed by learners based on their interpretations of experiences in the world” (Jonassen, 1999, p. 217). This instruction assists the learner in creating experiences that will facilitate learning, while still meeting the requirements for BC Ministry of Education’s (2007) Personal Learning Outcomes for English 10 or any other courses.
Indication of Practice
We installed a trial Moodle site during the second term of a school year. To evaluate the site, we developed a rubric using Bates and Poole’s (2007) SECTIONS model, and Moodle met or exceeded all the expectations. Students and teachers felt that Moodle created a seamless transition from the face-to-face classroom to the online classroom. Students were also excited to use this technological tool and were even more engaged with the course content. The varied features, like discussion forums and wikis, allowed students more opportunities for participation and ownership of learning. In the future, we would like to continue using the Moodle site for the entire school term, as we feel it would be equally successful in enhancing the learning experience.
Conclusion
According to Joseph C. Panettieri (2007), the differences in LMS systems are the user interfaces, custom features, services for course building, integration of other on-campus systems, and licensing and pricing. Students and teachers support this platform because they enjoy using the interface and the available custom features. Moodle provides feedback and assessment for students, and it creates opportunities for collection and collaboration that enhances learning experiences. Teachers are able to easily upload and integrate previous course content from their course websites and wikis. Also, Moodle does not affect the district’s budget negatively. Therefore, Moodle suits the needs of the students, the teachers, and the Vancouver School Board. Overall, Moodle can achieve the most successful blended classroom for this district.
References
Bates, A.W., & Poole, G. (2003). Chapter 4: A framework for selecting and using technology. Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher education: Foundations for Success. 77-105. San Francisco: Jossey Bass Publishers.
British Columbia Ministry of Education. (2007). Integrated Resource Package: English Language Arts 8 to 12. Retrieved June 4, 2011, from http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/course.php?lang=en&subject=English_Language_Arts&course=English_Language_Arts_8_to_12&year=2007
Jagannathan, S., & Martinez, M. (2008). Moodle: A low-cost solution for successful e-learning. Learning Solutions Magazine. Retrieved June 4, 2011, from http://www.learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/71/moodle-a-low-cost-solution-for-successful-e-learning
Jonassen, D. H. (1999). Designing constructivist learning environments. Instructional design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory, 2, 215-239.
Middleton, J.A. (2001). From manuscript to multimedia: How technologies transform education research. Current Issues in Education [Online], 3(2). Retrieved June 4, 2011, from http://cie.ed.asu.edu/volume3/number2/
Panettieri, J. C. (2007). Addition by Subtraction. In University Business. Retrieved June 9, 2011, from http://www.universitybusiness.com/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=845&p=3#0