Technical and didactic knowledge of the moodle LMS in Higher Education: beyond functional use

Higher education institutions at the international level have seen the need to adopt and integrate information and communication technologies to meet the opportunities and challenges of innovation in teaching and learning processes. This logic has led to the implementation of virtual learning environments called ‘Learning Management Systems’, the functionalities of which support flexible and active learning under a constructivist approach. This study measured didactic and technological use of Moodle and its implications in teaching from a quantitative approach by administering a questionnaire to a sample of 640 higher education teachers. Some guiding questions were as follows: Are teachers using the Moodle platform for didactic purposes? What strategies, resources and tools are teachers using, and what do they contribute to student-centred teaching? Are teaching strategies that are focused on collaboration, interaction and student autonomy promoted? The results coincide with those of other studies, confirming an instrumental and functional use of the platform, which is mainly being used as a repository for materials and information, while its pedagogical use remains limited. This is becoming a problem in higher education institutions, something that requires debate and reflection from a systemic perspective on the adoption and integration of technology in the classroo

Adventures in Student Interaction: Planned and Unplanned Audience Engagement

We like noisy classrooms, but it can be a challenge to get students to make that noise. Classrooms can be face-to-face sessions or in the virtual space and while the challenges are different in different environments, we have found that blending the virtual and face-to-face classroom often leads to collaborative student learning communities. In this session we share some of the tips and tricks that we have used to engage students in forming collaborative learning communities. While some of the tricks are in face-to-face teaching, we also use online technology and assessments to foster student collaboration along with problem-based learning. We have used planned and spontaneous activities to allow for flexible learning to engage with student audiences and we discuss here the value of both. We will invite some of our students to share their experiences of engagement in the face-to-face and virtual classroom. For much of this session delegates will engage in planning their own noisy classrooms and will share practice about how we foster group working and the technology that we use regularly. Technology included Slack forums, audience interaction software, Twitter and Moodle

Making it real: exploring the potential of Augmented Reality for teaching primary school science

The use of Augmented Reality (AR) in formal education could prove a key component in future learning environments that are richly populated with a blend of hardware and software applications. However, relatively little is known about the potential of this technology to support teaching and learning with groups of young children in the classroom. Analysis of teacher-child dialogue in a comparative study between use of an AR virtual mirror interface and more traditional science teaching methods for 10-year-old children, revealed that the children using AR were less engaged than those using traditional resources. We suggest four design requirements that need to be considered if AR is to be successfully adopted into classroom practice. These requirements are: flexible content that teachers can adapt to the needs of their children, guided exploration so learning opportunities can be maximised, in a limited time, and attention to the needs of institutional and curricular requirements

A Framework for the Comparison of Virtual Classroom Systems

The increase in demand for open and distance learning has resulted in many higher education providers investing in virtual classroom systems. These systems can be an essential component in the delivery of flexible and online courses. While many institutions correctly place a greater emphasis on the pedagogical development of flexible courses, poor selection or implementation of virtual classroom software can reduce the pedagogical effectiveness of such courses and in some cases render them unworkable for both lecturing staff and students. Changes in vendor offerings, the continual evolution of end user technology, developments in mobile devices and improvements in internet infrastructure and services have resulted in need for continuous evaluation of virtual classroom systems and their capabilities to provide ideal environments for teaching and learning. This paper provides a comparative analysis of two such virtual classroom systems (Adobe Connect 7 and Microsoft Office Live Meeting 2007) and examines their suitability in meeting both pedagogical and technological needs in Irish higher education. In doing so it suggests a comparative framework for other institutions engaged in the evaluation of virtual classroom systems

Insights From Three Online Art Educators: Strategies for Instruction, Interaction, and Assessment

Currently, the entire world is experiencing an unprecedented threat due to the outbreak of COVID-19, which requires the majority of K-16 education to be temporarily taught online. The three authors have been teaching virtual courses with a studio art focus for a number of years. We share our collective insights for approaches to instruction, interaction, and assessment in virtual courses that might help other art educators to achieve successful learning outcomes for their students. We learned that building a learning community and peer connections is of the utmost importance; we propose mixing asynchronous and synchronous methods and providing prompt and comprehensive feedback on students’ artwork. The authors encourage other art educators to stay open-minded to new and flexible teaching environments, transforming this crisis into an opportunity to incorporate innovations into their teaching that even more effectively meet every student’s needs

Flexibility in Online Teaching and Learning Spaces

This paper discusses the loose integration approach in building flexible virtual environments as a collection of several underlying technologies. The framework allows for the development of an open integrated environment which supports consistent human computer interaction, uniting existing supporting technologies at both the conceptual and interface level. The proposed approach provides flexibility in constructing online teaching and learning environments with respect to the requirements of the subject. It is suitable for developing flexible learning environments for subjects, which include in their curriculum a variety of computer mediated technologies and different modes of deliver

Any Time? Any Place? The impact on student learning of an on-line learning environment.

Original paper can be found at: http://www.actapress.com/Content_of_Proceeding.aspx?proceedingID=292#pages Copyright ACTA Press [Full text of this paper is not available in the UHRA]An increasing number of HE institutions are adopting virtual and managed learning environments (VLEs and MLEs), which offer flexible access to on-line learning materials all day and every day. There are multiple claims about e-learning enhancing learning and teaching (eg. [1] Britain and Liber, 1999; [2]Conole, 2002; [4]Allen, 2003; [5]Littlejohn and Higginson, 2003) such as supporting active learning, facilitative rather than didactic teaching and increased student motivation but these are not pre determined outcomes. Much depends on how lecturers use the available technology and how students respond to that use. This paper reports on a research project which has evaluated the students' own experience of on-line learning at the University of Hertfordshire. Using its own institution-wide MLE (StudyNet) academic staff at the university have been able to offer students on-line access to their study material from September 2001. Activities available for students using StudyNet include participating in discussion forums, using formative assessment materials and accessing journal articles as well as viewing and downloading courseware for each of their courses. Students were invited to participate in a questionnaire and focus groups to identify the characteristics of the on-line learning environment which benefited their learning

Adaptable and Collaborative Virtual Learning Environments Supporting Soft Skills

The adaptation of virtual learning environments (VLEs) into academic and business cultures has increasingly become a dominant factor in their operation. Often seen as avenues providing flexible solutions and attributing to new approaches in maintaining and applying learning opportunities, the implementation of e-learning has the potential to provide new approaches to satisfy the requirements of learning. However this powerful tool introduces an avalanche of ethical and social aspects to contend with. An incentive for the deployment of these environments is the promise of advancements provided through technology, such as improved usability and communication. There should be focuses on both the ethical and social aspects to deploying an educational community. Although their application is usually in a supportive role, alongside conventional teaching practices, the additional resources to maintain these environments can sometimes outweigh practicality and be limited when utilised. These environments should be seen as the opportunity to manifest wisdom and skill through innovative approaches and provide participants with efficient methods to self-reflect via each other. Are advancements in technology truly producing innovative and unconventional approaches, which provide a seamless transition from conventional classroom teaching? This paper examines the problems associated with the deployment of virtual learning environments to sustain knowledge through collaborative and adaptable learning and focuses on the problems associated with supporting soft skills online

Teaching with Moodle in higher education

Nowadays, with the use of technology and the Internet, education is undergoing significant changes, contemplating new ways of teaching and learning. One of the widely methods of teaching used to promote knowledge, consists in the use of virtual environments available in various formats, taking as example the teaching-learning platforms, which are available online. The Internet access and use of Laptops have created the technological conditions for teachers and students can benefit from the diversity of online information, communication, collaboration and sharing with others. The integration of Internet services in the teaching practices can provide thematic, social and digital enrichment for the agents involved. In this paper we will talk about the advantages of LMS (Learning Management Systems) such as Moodle, to support the presential lectures in higher education. We also will analyse its implications for student support and online interaction, leading educational agents to a mixing of different learning environments, where they can combine face-to-face instruction with computer-mediated instruction, blended-learning, and increases the options for better quality and quantity of human interaction in a learning environment. We also will present some tools traditionally used in online assessment and that are part of the functionalities of Moodle. These tools can provide interesting alternatives to promote a more significant learning and contribute to the development of flexible and customized models of an evaluation which we want to be more efficient

Contemporary learning environments: designing e-learning for education in the professions

Designing e-learning environments for quality professional education is a challenge for education designers, as the continuing practice of simply moving courses online can be surprisingly disabling. We argue that as universities strive to educate for excellence in professional practice, design approaches for the e-learning components must be conceptualized in a broader view of a contemporary learning environment involving integrated virtual and physical dimensions. These are comprehensively considered in an integrated way to facilitate learning experiences providing an emphasis on grounded practice. Our paper considers learning environments in the service of a broader understanding of a professional &quot;practicum.&quot; In providing the more flexible, immediate and evolving virtual experiences, e-learning as a feature must take account of a range of education design considerations we model in a framework of elements. These are outlined, and broader issues are illuminated through a comparative case analysis of educational technology developments at Deakin University in the two professional fields of teaching and journalism. The Education Studies Online (ESO) project and the HOTcopy newsroom simulation project exemplify elements of the approach recommended in addressing the challenges of quality professional education. We highlight the generative role of the education designer in adopting an integrative and strategic stance, when creating such environments. Implications for the selection and use of various e-learning resources and corporate e-learning systems become evident as we highlight the dangers of a returning &quot;instructional industrialism&quot; as we risk allowing courses to &quot;move online&quot;, rather than moving towards proposed features of contemporary learning environments. <br /