Archive for July 2011

The instructors who pilot tested Canvas and Moodle in Summer Track A provided informal feedback to me and all of it was overwhelmingly positive for both LMS’s.  I also got to listen to student comments about Canvas in a classroom, and was sent student feedback comments about their experiences taking a course using Moodle, and all these were overwhelmingly positive for both LMS’s as well.  A hearty thanks to our pilot testers and their students!

The Learning Management System (LMS) pilot group is still hoping to to engage more Faculty in the pilot and gather input from university stakeholders regarding the next LMS selection.  This is a great opportunity to find out what you like and don’t like about the potential new LMS’s, determine which one you prefer, and get your voice heard on which LMS will be chosen!

You can evaluate any of the four potential new LMS’s either informally, via teaching a class or classes using one or more them, or both.  Here are the four LMS’s being evaluated and their general overview/info. links:

• Blackboard Learn 9.1 - http://blackboard.com/Platforms/Learn/Overview.aspx
• Sakai 2.8- http://sakaiproject.org/learning-management
• Moodle 2.0 - http://moodle.org/
• Canvas - http://www.instructure.com/

MTU currently is hosting pilot test “instances” of Canvas, Moodle and Blackboard Learn, and can create a course or courses for you here on those pilot test systems. To test Sakai you can get a free mySakai test account <http://mysakai.rsmart.com> from rSmart. From their log in page just click on I’m a new user, sign me up!

If you want to test any of them, please contact Tom Freeman via courses@mtu.edu to verify your participation in these pilots.  Please let him know:

• the LMS or LMS’s you’d like to test
• if you want to use one or more as your LMS for a particular course you are teaching this Fall 2011 semester, so we can assist with student enrollments and hiding your Blackboard CE8 section from you students.  (Please provide course name and CRN if you can)

Your interest in our LMS search and selection process and willingness to participate and provide input is greatly appreciated.  We will be providing all participants with a survey/form to rate the various tools and functionalities of, and provide comments about, the LMS’s they test in the near future, and the results submitted on those forms will be tabulated to guide the selection process. Every effort will also be made to collect and keep any other comments obtained for later review.  If you have questions, feel free call 487-2223 or email courses@mtu.edu.

Tom Freeman
Instructional Design & Online Learning
Michigan Technological University