Introduction to LMS

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What are Learning Management Systems (LMS)?

a set of tools or software designed to deal with online interactions, virtual classrooms, and instructor-led coursework.

つまりIn other words, it is the place of "convergence" where education, learning, collaboration take place.

It is literally the classroom online - an online learning environment.

it supports the anytime-anywhere style of online learning that many institutions use.

What are some examples of LMS software?

Moodle

Blackboard

WebCT

Possible Goals (可能性の

could replace face-to-face teaching

allows instructors to effectively track student progress

allows instructor to track learner performance

also allows instructors to gauge what level a student may be at (for example, a child in the third grade may have a fifth grade reading level).

allows for exchange of content between instructors and students

allows for students to think independently and come to their own conclusions.

students take ownership of their learning

Key Takeaways

instructors can create online learning communities

rich interaction among peers

promotes collaboration

"critical" self-reflection

efficient and compatible with most OS

Common Tools used

Assignments

Lessons

Quizzes

Forums

Journals

Blogs

Survey

Chats

Wikis

URLs

Podcasts

Key Trends in LMS

Cloud-based LMS is quick and inexpensive way to deliver content to students. (Google Drive)

Personal Learning Environment (PLE) is customizable and user-friendly as it delivers content.

Gamification uses games to attend to and meet specific learning goals. (ABC Mouse)

Talent Management (TM) helps identify key skills of a student and additionally, gaps in their knowledge.

Creation of an LMS In the creation of an LMS, focus on the data and the collection of the data

LMS should be attentive to student needs and easy to use.

LMS should have a user-friendly interface (for not only desktop but also for mobile)

"Results indicate that ICT-based interdisciplinary learners prefer a self-directed and collaborative instructional modality, as well as teacher presence and interventions in the online environment. The types of student participation can significantly influence how students perceive ICT-based interdisciplinary learning design."

Interdisciplinary learning

In a short-term view, a challenge for interdisciplinary pedagogy is to integrate shared thematic and

methodological issues across the curriculum (Lee, 2007). This confronts students with the task of

applying knowledge, methodology, and values to more than one academic discipline (Lee, 2007). In a

long-term view, interdisciplinary techniques enrich the three dimensions of student learning: lifelong

learning habits, academic skills, and personal growth (Jones, 2009).

In an ICT learning environment, in this sense, an interdisciplinary approach plays a dual role.

First, interdisciplinary pedagogic methodologies become the core of developing technology-enhanced

learning in which a methodological challenge of utilizing ICT for students is to manage the diverse, and

at times, divergent perspectives of all the disciplines and stakeholders involved. Second, ICT-based

interdisciplinary learning requires advanced technological expertise to take advantage of, and to

progress the human-computer interactions, which are requisite for the successful outcome of the first

role.

When ICT is viewed through the prism of interdisciplinary learning, not only does interdisciplinary

pedagogy serve as a means of delivering learning content for collaborative, interdisciplinary teaching

and learning, but it can also provide an extension to communication and interpersonal interaction for

lifelong learning.

What is Interdisciplinary Learning? "transdisciplinary learning focuses on the outcomes of interdisciplinary learning, which come from students' participation in learning and

acquisition of knowledge and skills" (Park & Son, 2010, p. 83). Park and Son summarized the differences as follows:

Multidisciplinary learning highlights learning of various topics from diverse disciplines; while interdisciplinary learning has a mixture of diverse disciplines to solve a problem. Transdisciplinary learning, taking interdisciplinary learning a step further, facilitates collaborative learning through a shared conceptual framework. (p. 84)

The effectiveness of collaboration in interdisciplinary LMS

At the heart of collaborative forms of learning are constructivist ideas about the learning process. Essentially, constructivists posit that students generate knowledge and meaning through an interaction between their experiences and their cognitive systems (Woolfolk, 2001). By reflecting on those experiences, students construct an approximation of the world. There is no one constructivist theory of learning, but rather, a raft of learning theories that are united in the view that learning occurs in the

interaction between cognition and sensory experience. Social constructivists consider an additional dimension – how learning occurs through social interaction, tool use, and activity (Woolfolk, 2001).

Learner-Oriented Environments

In digital ICT's collaborative potentials, learning is seen as a search for meaning. Learning starts with the learner: that is, it is learner-centered –involving processes through which students are actively and collaboratively constructing meaning. In this way, the learning process is open to interdisciplinary modes of knowledge construction. Teachers focus on making connections between facts and fostering new understanding by scaffolding new ideas and concepts extending the schema.

Based on the LMS-based interdisciplinary learning framework (Figure 1), students' perceptions and experiences can be categorized into three sections: (1) individual students' learning experiences and self-study in the platform; (2) their experiences of interaction collaboration and communication via communication tools; and (3) their perceived participation types and frequencies.

The module/course structure could be characterized as being task-oriented, participation-driven, and collaborative.

In the article, "Enhancing Interdisciplinary Learning with a Learning Management System," the concept of using learning management systems (LMS) as a means of enhancing interdisciplinary learning was discussed. Park and Mills defined interdisciplinary learning as "a mixture of diverse disciplines to solve a problem" (Park & Mills, 2014) Although interdisciplinary learning is a relatively new concept to me, from the definition, I do believe that for a subject that draws its ideas from a variety of different sources that it would be beneficial to use a collaborative resource such as an LMS. In interdisciplinary learning, students, in a sense, are going through a collaborative process--pulling information from different disciplines in order to come to one conclusion. LMS is no different as it focuses on "delivering collaborative content" and promoting interaction and discussion among instructors and peers (Park & Mills, 2014).

LMS is not only restricted to collaboration, however; it is an extension of the learning process that goes beyond the four walls of the classroom. In a Spanish class, a teacher utilized LMS to create meaningful discussions and promote more interaction with the language among students; responses to questions posted on the LMS were then discussed that day in a classroom setting (Abreu & Knouse, 2014). I found this type of collaboration to be fascinating, especially in reference to the "lifelong learning habits" of interdisciplinary learning (Jones, 2009). In these lifelong learning habits, I believe we see material that is learned transitioning from being head knowledge to having more relevant meaning in a student's life. LMS further enhances learning in the sense that it creates more meaningful experiences and allows students and instructors a platform to freely share and explore ideas and experiences; the result is that students are able to confidently apply what they have learned to real world situations.

Abreu, L., & Knouse, S. (2014). Just-in-Time Teaching : A

Tool for Enhancing Student Engagement in Advanced Foreign Language Learning

Advanced Foreign Language in Higher Education. The Journal of Effective

Teaching, 14(2), 49–68.

Jones,

C. (2009). Interdisciplinary Approach - Advantages, Disadvantages, and the

Future Benefits of Interdisciplinary Studies. Essai, 7(1),

75–81. Retrieved from

http://dc.cod.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1121&context=essai

Park,

J. Y., & Mills, K. A. (2014). Enhancing Interdisciplinary Learning with a

Learning Management System, 10(2), 299–314.