Moodle: The online learning management system

In the earlier years I built my course websites in the server in the School of Physics (and elsewhere as well). These were very simple websites that did mundane things like displaying texts, files and links only. The Moodle, introduced in USM around 2007, offers much functionality that is much superior to those course websites I built earlier. Moodle allows many course-related events be managed online smartly so that lecture hours can be spared for only lecturing purpose. If a group decision has to be made, Moodle is the platform to do it much efficiently than counting the show of hand in the class.

One of the very useful services offered by Moodle is the online assignment submission function. Lecturers can enforce the deadline for last submission, grade the assignments online, and display the grades very conveniently. This means of assignment submission is efficient, saves papers (and trees). I reckon that every lecturer who requires their students to submit assignments should all do it via the Moodle as a contribution to saving the Earth.

The Moodle also provides a function called ‘Wiki’, in which students can freely edit an encyclopaedia-like entry related to a particular concepts or keyword related to the course. Students are encouraged to edit or add in Wiki entries, so that the content of these entries can be perfected over time as a result of collective effort. This is such a wonderfully new concept for teaching and learning, thanks to the brilliant invention of the Wikipedia model. I tried to encourage the use of Wiki in my calculus and linear algebra course once. Except a few rare enthusiasts, the Wiki drew little response from the students, probably due to the lack of familiarity to edit Wiki entries (so was I a stranger to edit Wiki entries). Anyway, I gave it a go but failed to achieve any admirable effect. Despite the failure experience, I reckon editing Wiki by students as a strategy for collective learning could be very effective if it is properly made used of.

Complimenting a course with a website is not the most important factor for a successful teaching. Nevertheless the adoption of such a smart means, as I have experienced it first hand, certainly helps to make good teaching a more plausible task.