The Distance Education and Learning Technology Applications Advisory Committee and the Teaching, Learning and Technology Roundtable decided this summer to transition from Vista to the Moodle Learning Management System. This decision was made after the University experienced severe performance problems with Vista in 2008 after three years of using the software.
According to Vice Provost for DELTATom Miller, N.C. State and other UNC System schools began looking for open-source Learning Management Systems in 2007. LMS software is not under licensing constrictions and can be controlled more easily by the University’s technological staff.
“The flip side is that open-source software requires a higher degree of programming and technical support,” said Miller.
Moodle was created in Australia and is used worldwide. The University joined a pilot project through the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences in 2008 to try it out, and the software has received satisfactory reviews from faculty and staff.
Barbara Kirby, a CALS associate director, said Moodle seems more “user-friendly” than Vista.
“I like the chat, forums, groups and ability to upload resources, visuals and other materials,” Kirby said. “However, it can be challenging to learn the features of multiple systems, especially because technology changes so rapidly.”
Miller said support for Vista will end in June of 2011, and teachers are being encouraged to switch to Moodle between now and then. In the meantime, many students have different classes on both systems, and also have to keep up with WebAssign, MyPack Portal, course and professor Web pages and specialized programs like Maple for calculus.
Timothy Watkins, a freshman in animal science, said the University has too much diversity in its technology.
“It’s annoying to have to check up on five different Web sites for my classes,” said Watkins. “It’s easy to miss assignments just because you forget to check one of them.”
Lauren Briggs , a sophomore in math education, said she feels the Internet systems could use some centralization, although she doesn’t write off technology altogether.
“It would be a lot easier if everything for my classes was on one Web site,” said Lauren. “Some of the Web sites can also be difficult to use.”
While many teachers use the Internet and e-mail as their main point of communication between students, some still prefer to operate the “old-fashioned” way.
Reza Ghiladi, a chemistry professor, does not use any Internet software program but instead assigns his students problems out of the textbook and communicates information in class.
“I tried WebAssign one time and it was a nightmare,” Ghiladi said. “Technology is useful in many situations but sometimes you have to revert back to pen and paper. Especially in chemistry, it is important that students understand concepts and learn to work problems completely on their own.”
A recent study by the SRI International for the Department of Education examined the benefits of online versus classroom instruction from 1996 to 2008. Although most evidence was not conclusive, the report found that “on average, students in online learning conditions performed better than those receiving face-to-face instruction.”
Miller said technology amplifies both good and bad teaching. “I believe that when used well, platforms for online teaching are tremendous assets that can positively impact student learning with instant access to materials and instant feedback on homework and quizzes,” Miller said. ” Used poorly, they can be confusing, frustrating, and of little value if any to the educational process.”
