Mr. Joseph Picard
Director of Education
CSDECSO
7515 Forest Glade Dr.
Windsor, ON N8T 3P5
Re: Proposal for the implementation of Moodle (LMS) 
As a student currently enrolled in UBC’s MET program, I have the opportunity of working with innovative technologies while studying research-based frameworks to assess and evaluate technological tools and appropriate contexts for them. With the selection of appropriate technologies and careful planning and training, it is very possible to create an ‘ideal’ learning environment that aligns with the 7 principles outlines by Chickering and Ehrmann (1996). In light of this, I would like to propose Moodle (Modular Object Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment) as an LMS for our school board. Undoubtedly this will generate a lot of questions about why Moodle is the ideal LMS choice and how we are going to support it. To frame this conversation and provide solid reasoning as to why I am proposing Moodle, I will refer to the Bates and Poole (2003) SECTIONS model for selecting and using technology.
Student (SECTIONS)
The CSDECSO student population is made up of primarily students from rural areas with pockets of kids from urban areas in the bigger centres. Recent surveys shown that they are quite technologically savvy, The student senate representatives have indicated that students desire greater access to class content online, especially after hours. They are currently using web 2.0 tools and social media like youtube, twitter, prezi, etc., but would like a central area to host, share and provide centralized access to the links and content they create. As Moodle is ideal for blended learning, this would be my recommended deployment approach for the CSDECSO context.
Ease of use and Interactivity (SECTIONS)
The consistency and intuitiveness of the user interface throughout the various modules will allow students to easily engage with the content through various activities within the LMS. Furthermore, because of Moodle’s modular design and open source nature, there are hundreds of modules available, at no extra cost, to extend Moodle functionality. I have personally installed modules like the OUBlog, OUWiki and can attest to their ease of use, robustness and effectiveness in the virtual classroom context. To assist teachers in using the platform, there are extensive help files available throughout the platform, as well as user guides and reference guides available from the Moodle website.
Cost (SECTIONS)
A very attractive reason to adopt Moodle is that it is an open source and free LMS platform. There is a significant cost-savings compared to commercial LMSes that have a per-seat licensing, vendor lock-in, support costs and paid update / upgrade paths. The IT department can collaborate with the Moodle community when extending the platform with modules, or troubleshooting, etc. Moodle has a very active community and discussion forums with a great deal of depth.
Teaching and Learning (SECTIONS)
In the CSDECSO context, a blended learning model will ease both teachers and students into the online learning realm. Because of the Moodle architecture and extendability, educators have a great deal of control over the layout, the presentation of activities, the choice of activities as well as the way in which it will make these available to students. As Chickering & Ehrmann (1996) detail in their fourth principle, “Good Practice Gives Prompt Feedback”, Moodle is ideally equipped to help educators meet this principle with its large offering of built-in tools and even larger module repository.
Interactivity (SECTIONS)
As interactivity in a virtual environment is a critical element to student engagement, Moodle goes far beyond ‘reading, viewing and listening’. It offers a variety of methods that encourage engagement. Students can collaborate with each other in discussion forums, wikis, blogs, surveys, etc. As an educator gains mastery of the Moodle environment, they will be able to go well beyond ‘standard’ LMS elements and include additional https://moodle.org/plugins/ that will provide different activities and different and innovative ways to connect with students.
Organization (SECTIONS)
As we already have a mature network infrastructure in place, we are well positioned to implement a Moodle LMS solution. As we have recently established an updated technological vision for the school board, administration is seeking to build capacity and has planned for additional IT positions. While Moodle is a new addition to the services, the savings gained from implementing this solution can be used to offset the purchase of technical training or even the services of third party Moodle experts to ensure a smooth launch.
Novelty (SECTIONS)
A Moodle LMS platform will be a welcome change for students and educators alike as it will enhance the current activities and provide a unified launch point for many of the current activities that are already happening. As much as Moodle may be ‘new’ to our environment, it should be noted that Moodle has been around for over a decade and is currently used in over 236 countries by 70 million users offering over 7,5 million courses. The CSDECSO students may be ‘digital natives’
Speed (SECTIONS)
Launching a Moodle LMS platform for the CSDECSO context will be a relatively easy and quick deployment from a technical perspective. The Moodle LMS platform comes with installers for various Operating Systems and also has many themes available for customization. There are guides and tutorials to further personalize branding and theming as well as connectivity features (i.e. LDAP) to integrate quickly into existing Student Informations Systems.
In conclusion, I feel our school board will be well-served by a Moodle LMS platform. It will provide a highly flexible, stable and easy-to-use virtual environment for teachers and students, built upon a well-tested, cost-effective and popular platform. I have experienced the feature-rich Moodle platform first hand in both a full online course model as well as blended learning and I have no doubt that it would facilitate the transformation of our pedagogical practice of encompassing Fullan’s (2012) ‘6Cs’ of 21st century learning while allowing our school board to move towards meaningful learning in a digital environment, based on constructivist strategies.
Yves Mainville
Technopedagogy Coordinator
References
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.
W, A.W. and Ehrmann, S.C. (1996). “Implementing the Seven Principles: Technology as Lever,” American Association for Higher Education Bulletin, 49(2), p. 3-6.
http://sph.bu.edu/otlt/teachingLibrary/Technology/seven_principles.pdf
Martinez, M. & Jaqannathan, S.(2008). Moodle: A low cost solution for successful e-learning. Learning Solutions Magazine. Retrieved June 17, 2010 from http://www.learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/71/moodle-a-low-cost-solution-for-successful-e- learning
Moodle (2013). Moodle Homepage. Retrieved from http://docs.moodle.org/en
Perkins, M., Pfaffman, J. (2006). Using a Course Management System to Improve Classroom Communication. Science Teacher, 73(7), 33-37. Retrieved from http://20100829131520_6025161.webstarts.com/uploads/moodle_in_20_the_classroom_NSTA.pdf