Learning Management System Proposal - UBC Blogs

As a web based system, Moodle offers many tools that teachers need. It can be used totally
online, or to augment a face to face learning environment. Using course templates, teachers can
easily upload course content in a variety of formats. Resource pages allow teachers to provide
structure in the form of headings and units, links to existing web pages, podcasts, video, or other
online materials. Review for students requiring additional scaffolding of concepts, or extension
materials ensure all students get the support and challenge they require. Activity pages allow teacher
to include assignments, chat forums, lessons, quizzes, surveys, or any number of similar learning
situations. Moodle allows for easy navigation throughout any course site, allowing students flexibility,
direction and support. Teachers can easily move from teacher to student role, allowing ease in both
course construction and editing. It has been designed to support modern pedagogies based on
social constructivist theory, (Itmazi, Gea, Paderewski and Gutierrez, 2005)... [and] in general it is
easy to use, install, and maintain.
This ease of use and flexibility of design is what teachers need. Time is a key factor when
introducing any new technology and Moodle is relatively easy to jump into. This ease of
implementation is another factor why Moodle is a good fit for our district. As teachers begin to use
the LMS, they are easily able to share knowledge because of Moodle’s common delivery platform.
This involvement in a knowledge community fosters confidence and reduces the time teachers
require to implement the new technology. This local support model is what drew users to Moodle in
the first place (Delinger and Boora, 2010).
Students will have far less issues due to their already ubiquitous use of technology in and out
of the classroom. Moodle access from home, at school, or via any web browsing tool (smart phone)
allows students to take their learning with them. Discussion forums email and other collaborative
tools allow students to stay in touch with learning and each other. Parents have increased access to
course content, feedback and grades, something lacking in the traditional classroom setting.
Moodle must work as it is gaining in popularity. From 2006 to 2008 registered Moodle sites
more than doubled worldwide, while the number of users nearly tripled (Martinez and Jagannathan,
2008). Croy and Smelser (2009) report that when asked to indicate overall preference, 81% of the
faculty at the University of Northern Carolina preferred Moodle. These numbers clearly indicate that
Moodle use continues to grow. Our students are likely to use Moodle once they leave our school
system and being familiar with its many affordances prepares them for success.
Cost
As an Open Source system, Moodle is cost effective on a number of levels. Unlike other
proprietary software the cost of licensing is almost nothing, while changes, modifications and
improvements occur without pay. With its continued growth and popularity, the array of free online
help, in the form of websites, wiki’s and videos, continues to grow. Many say that the cost savings is
not the key Moodle advantage, but it is rather access to various innovative tools that interface with the
Moodle platforms (Martinez and Jagannathan, 2008).