Reflection on Use of a Learning Management System

by Lee Putnam

The key project for this class was the implementation of an online course of study using a web-based Learning Management System (LMS) or Course Management System (CMS).  Use of either a LMS or CMS for the development and management of online or hybrid (classroom lecture and online delivery) courses is becoming popular.  There are literally dozens of companies that offer LMS/CMS websites, some of which are free for limited use and others are enterprise based systems that must be paid for.

For my project I chose to use CourseSites by Blackboard (http://www.coursesites.com).  My choice of CourseSites came at the end of a long quest that involved the investigation of and partial use of more that a half-dozen other LMS/CMS websites.  In the process of selecting an LMS/CMS that I liked, I investigated: Moodle (https://moodle.org), LiveText (https://www.livetext.com), enGrade(https://www.engrade.com), rcampus (https://rcampus.com), schoology (http://www.schoology.com), Udemy (http://www.udemy.com), Brainhoney (agilix.com/products/brainhoney/), and CourseSites. 

To be fair, I should state that moodle and livetext are LMS/CMS websites that are used at University of Guam, and graduate students at the School of Education are required to use both of the websites.  My investigation of the moodle and livetext websites has been limited to that of the student’s perspective of those systems.

Of the remaining LMS/CMS websites that I investigated I actually implemented the twelve lesson course using two of the sites: CourseSites and engrade.  I began implementation of my course, Maritime Search and Rescue in the Federated States of Micronesia, using the engrade LMS.  My intent was to use that implementation to satisfy the requirement for two projects, one required by ED634 and the other for a project required by ED638.  I learned that this cannot be done, that one project cannot be used to satisfy requirements in more than one class.  To rectify this apparent violation of academic code I began a new investigation of the CourseSites LMS.

This turned out to be fortuitous.  I had been dissatisfied with the product that I had created using engrade.  I found engrade to be fairly easy to get started with, but also found that it had some significant limitation that I could not seem to overcome.  CourseSites on the other hand was not as easy to get started with, as was engrade.  But, once I became accustomed to navigation of the CourseSite user interface I began to realize that CourseSite was the most robust and comprehensive LMS that I had yet encountered.

CourseSites by Blackboard promotes itself as a free, online learning platform that, “is a free, hosted online course creation and facilitation service that empowers individual K–12 teachers, college and university instructors and community educators to add a web–based component to their courses, or even host an entire course on the Internet. You even choose your own URL, so students can find your page easily.” (Blackboard Inc., 2014)

Bloomberg Businessweek reports that, “Blackboard Inc. provides enterprise technology and solutions for the educational industry.”  In their overview of Blackboard Inc. they also report that the company was founded in 1997, just two years after commercialization of the Internet, making it one of the oldest and most experienced companies providing LMS/CMS services. (Bloomberg Businessweek, 2014) 

I was first exposed to a Blackboard LMS as a student doing “distance Learning” through Florida Institute of Technology back in 1999.  The LMS that was in place then was much different from the one available through CourseSites today.  It was far more rudimentary in its scope of capabilities, it was entirely text based, and it had only basic social media tools (i.e. chat an IM).

Why have I chosen to discuss the history behind Blackboard?  Because I believe that before I am going to invest significant effort in developing a project, I want to be confident that my partner will be around next week or next year to continue the collaboration.  Blackboard has a seventeen-year corporate history in an industry that is only nineteen-years old.  The longevity of Blackboard gives me confidence that the company will still be around a few years from now.

What began a more than a decade ago as a rudimentary LMS has effectively grown into a quite robust LMS that I believe will meet the needs or wants of any educator interested in developing and managing a course online.

Now I would like to talk about my experience developing the Maritime Search and Rescue in the F.S.M course.  I must admit from the start, that I was at times overwhelmed.  Please to not get the idea that CourseSites was at fault here.  Rather, my ignorance of basic course development skills was my problem.  I am not by training a teacher.  Therefore, I have had no formal training in course development.  Because of this deficiency I found myself not only investigating a new tool, the LMS, but I was also struggling to try to understand what I was eventually going to produce using that LMS.

Fortunately for me CourseSites is designed to walk us through course development.  At first I did not realize this and struggled against that structured guidance.  Rather than beginning with a course syllabus, then progressing to lesson plans, and on to activities; I began with lesson plans.  The workflow was all-wrong and I struggled against the tool.  Once I cam to realize what I was doing and corrected my method progress was much better, I became more confident and was better please with my results.

Using CourseSites, I have developed a course that includes a dozen lessons on maritime search and rescue and how it is prosecuted in the Federated States of Micronesia.  Activities in the course include the use of Internet based multimedia application by the instructor as well as the students.  Examples of this include the use of vide and online presentation software to present material at a distance.   Another example is an activity that uses the communication power of GoogleEarth (http://www.google.com/earth/) to collaboratively share information between class members about the diverse island populations and resources in the region.

I found that this project has been the most challenging project that I have undertaken thus far.  While having been challenging, I also value what I have been able to learn for the effort.  I am not entirely satisfied with the product as it is now.  I feel that there is much that needs to be done in order for it to be a sufficiently professional enough product for publication.  In that I recognize that and that I now know how to complete the product that I would like to have, I am confident that I will eventually publish and actually implement this course for use in the region.  There is a need for this course and I am confident that using CourseSite I can meet that need.

Bibliography

agilix. (2014). brainhoney. Retrieved May 18, 2014, from agilix.com/products/brainhoney/: agilix.com/products/brainhoney/

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Bloomberg Businessweek. (2014, May 20). Software - Company Overview of Blackboard Inc. Retrieved May 20, 2014, from investing.bussinessweek.com: http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=25643

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Rcampus.com. (2014). Rcampus.com. Retrieved May 18, 2014, from www.rampus.com: https://www.rcampus.com

Schoology. (2014). schoology.com/home.php. Retrieved May 18, 2014, from www.schoology.com: https://schoology.com/

Udemy.com. (2014). udemy. Retrieved May 18, 2014, from udemy: https://www.udemy.com