Course Site
I would be hard pressed to describe a more learner-centered (Anderson, 2008), constructivist, ISTE.NETS.T standard and performance indicator driven (International Society for Technology in Education, 2008), project based assignment than the creation of our own, personal, curriculum specific Moodle Site. We began so long ago with an introduction to Moodle that illustrated more of the challenges that can occur with technology rather than the intended goal of opening up for us the world of possibilities housed within a Moodle site. On the plus side we may have all collectively felt that there was only once place to go, and that was up.
Over the course of the term, it was logical to have assignments throughout that enabled us to explore Moodle’s affordances while building components of our overall assignment. For myself, there was a great deal of trial and error, with each new version being more polished and professional than the previous. From this perspective, a Moodle site can be somewhat personal and reflective of the designer’s own pedagogy. The options for structuring of content and the flow of activities is limited only by one’s own understanding of how the site can work. To aid in the creation of a site more in tune with one’s vision are the multitude of YouTubers who have posted videos on a vast array of ‘how to’ topics. The dangerous edge of this sword is that without keeping an eye of the time being invested, one can become drawn into desire to always make aspects of the site better. While this desire in itself is positive and ideal to a certain extent, there can be a negative undercurrent whereby time invested falls into a vacuum, constantly being sucked away from the naive designer.
My experience has been a positive one, so much so that I have changed my opinion on Moodle sites. My first introduction to Moodle came about three years ago and I remember my initial impression was that the creation, design and maintenance of such a site required time and design skills that greatly exceeded what I was prepared to offer or invest. Granted, that in these same three years Moodle revisions may have become more user-friendly and I may have bettered my design skills also. However, after this experience I would say that for me, especially given Bates and Poole’s SECTIONS analysis (2003), a Moodle site is now a strong LMS contender for consideration. While I may not recommend a Moodle Site for a teacher simply interested in integrating technology, based again on Bates and Poole (2003), I think that educators familiar with some LMS affordances and interested in exploring different platforms, Moodle should most definitely be included assuming of course that one’s own school board or district already hosts its own Moodle site. If one’s district does not already host a Moodle site then I would be leery to branch out alone on such a potentially intricate and involved venture.
References:
Anderson, T. (2008). Towards a Theory of Online Learning. In: Anderson, T. & Elloumi, F. Theory and Practice of Online Learning. Athabasca University. Retrieved from http://www.aupress.ca/books/120146/ebook/02_Anderson_2008-Theory_and_Practice_of_Online_Learning.pdf
Bates, A.W. & Poole, G. (2003). Chapter 4: A Framework for Selecting and Using Technology. In Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Education: Foundations for Success. (pp. 77-105). San Francisco: Jossey Bass Publishers.
International Society for Technology in Education (2008). National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers. Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/nets-tstandards.pdf?sfvrsn=2