The Problem

Are you an online or blended learning teacher who is tired of the LMS limiting your teaching style?

Do your students only log on when it is time to complete school work...if they manage to do that?

Does your LMS lack features that you and your students commonly use in your informal learning processes?

In my online, blended and face-to-face teaching experience, I have used several different learning management systems and have felt limited in my teaching practice by all of them. Yes, ALL of them. I have felt that my students were at a disadvantage because of the limitations of the LMS and that the technology did not represent 21st century learning competencies.

As we move forward into 2017 and the new British Columbia curriculum is gaining ground, educators are seeking a new and improved way to present information to students and have them engaged in meaningful construction of knowledge with peers and social groups (both online and in person) in a variety of formats. The "Big Ideas" need to be pursued in a "BIG" way, to better prepare our students for their own futures.

The Issues with Current Learning Management Systems

There are several issues with current learning management systems but the biggest one is that there are too many available as you have seen in the previous section. Many have features that display content but do not engage the learner. There are assessment tools but they are often summative in nature instead of formative. The list goes on!

Each educator and course developer will have different reasons their current LMS is one-dimensional, static or 'behind the times'. For me, in my teaching context, D2L has proven to have an outdated design, limited assessment tools, difficulty importing documents from popular sites (ie. Google documents) and poor discussion tools. I like the options in the new and improved D2L Brightspace but I do see many of the same issues arising.

David Becker, in his popular blog, Rethinking Learning, dissects the LMS stating that "the development of the LMS and an organizations decision to buy one, springs from constrained thinking about how we are supposed to learn, acquired from a school system developed to feed the industrial revolution. This worldview positions us as receivers of information and so it narrows our personal lense to a rational approach, supports only a small set of thinking tools and ignores most of the naturally occurring and richest learning opportunities we experience in our daily lives" (Rethinking Learning, 2014). I would agree with Becker's point about the stagnant nature of current learning management systems; however, I would argue that with some adjustments for personalization of learning experiences, the LMS has a place in our virtual and brick and mortar classrooms.

In the article "Is the LMS Dead" by Jon Aleckson, he argues "that many Learning Management Systems have too many features and try to be all things to all types of buyers" (Aleckson, 2012). While I would argue that there does need to be a distinction in platforms between business and education, one LMS should have multiple versions and custom features for different grade levels, schools and educators to create their own learning experience and to do so with autonomy. To do this, a formal training plan from the LMS provider needs to be available to users in a convenient and proactive format.

Take a moment to reflect on some of the key issues that impact teaching and learning negatively with your LMS? Can you envision a future LMS with more potential for real time learning?