International Conference on Computer Systems and Technologies – CompSysTech’2003
Development of a Web – based Course on Informatics via Open-source Software Package MOODLE Lina Yordanova, Georgi Boychev, Yanka Tsvetanova, Vania Hrisuleva, Gabriela Kiryakova Abstract: The current study discusses the implementation of an Open-source Learning Management System platform MOODLE for establishment of Web-based course on Communication and Information Systems subjects. Our shared experience about searching, choosing, installation and implementation of an Open Source platform is a good example for starting with e-Learning development as the used strategy led to success. Future work could be encouraging and training students to use the designed and created course. Key words: e-Learning, Open-source, LMS platform, Web-based course.
INTRODUCTION When a teachers’ team is going to develop a Web-based course for the first time, many questions arise concerning the evaluation and a choice of a Learning Management Systems (LMS) platform that can be adopted easily and quickly in order to benefit all advantage of distance learning. Obviously the commercial e-learning products are generic solutions, which can be implemented usually without conflicting with current systems. Nevertheless the developers of LMS are motivated to build their own platforms because of many disadvantages of existing software platforms [2, 3]. In our days another approach to start with creation of a Web-based learning system could be attempt to implement a tool that is an Open Source or free software, to join to the developer team and to speed in this way the whole process of establishing LMS. The aim of the current study is to evaluate whether this approach is workable in case of building a LMS for Communication and Information Systems (CIS), a subject studied in Agriculture Faculty, Trakia University by students in the fourth degree of Agricultural Economics bachelor course. The current work is a part of establishment of the Virtual Computer Laboratory “John Atanasoff”. OPEN-SOURCE LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS In general the usage of Open-source software is considered as speeding the process of developing of systems from different kind and increasing the productivity of scientific investigations. Customizable and free, Open-source is becoming serious competition to the commercial Learning Management Systems (LMS) vendors. The advantage of Opensource solutions goes beyond cost savings. Learning Management requires a degree of customization and having access to the source code developers can make appropriate changes in the source code to adopt it to their needs. Recent year indicates a remarkable degree in the development of Learning Management systems platforms. Many studies pay attention to evaluating of available platform and describe the systems themselves as well as their advantages and disadvantages as developing environments [1, 3, 4]. The most reasonable seems to be comparison of the platforms according to the e-Learning models, services necessary for efficient training [1]. The access to the LMS platform source code could be also a base for comparing them. There are many open-source packages that can be used for creating Web-based courses like Fle3, .LRN and MOODLE discussed in [4] competing with commercial wide disseminated platforms like Blackboard, Intralearn, Docent, Ecollege, WebCT etc [1, 3, 4]. The LMS platforms usually support the creation, storage and presentation of learning materials in a structured way. Some of them also include usage of statistics for the system as a whole that is useful for evaluation of course effectiveness. The current study started with a choice of one of the next Open Source platforms described by Keenoy [4]: -
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International Conference on Computer Systems and Technologies – CompSysTech’2003
Future Learning Environment (Fle3). Fle3 is a server software for computer supported collaborative learning and supports learner and group centered work. This LMS encourages learning through debate and collaboration with tools that allow communication, discussion and debate among the members of the learning group. Teachers give a few starting objects and topics for discussion, and learners develop the workspace. .LRN. Based on a modular architecture LMS combines a variety of technologies. Users are registered with the classic login system. There are many types of resource material, which are currently divided into three main categories - Interest Groups, Forums and News. One of the interesting characteristics of the .LRN is its flexibility in personalization of the environment - teachers and students are able to change almost any settings that concern their account. Modular Object–Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment (MOODLE). MOODLE is a software package for creating internet-based courses and web sites. This LMS platform is built in PHP and supports many types of database management systems like Mysql, Postgresql etc. Each student or teacher has only one account for the whole system and each account can have different access rights. Teachers of a course have full control over the course content. Three course formats are available and a wide array of possible course activities. MOODLE does support event notification in the form of PHP script that runs periodically according to teacher choice. IMPLEMENTATION For reaching an answer weather to buy or build LMS for implementing e-learning Laura Fransis and Randy Emelo offer a useful approach [2]. Taking such decision goes trough an algorithm that clearly have showed us that we need to customize an existing product because there are less than 500 users in our future system, we are teaching our students to proprietary business skills. Customizing requires fewer resources and a smaller degree of commitment than starting from scratch. The choice of MOODLE The third of the LMS platforms shortly described above, MOODLE was our choice and subject of interest. The attractive features of consideration were: According to the full description this platform allows to be adapted for many operating systems (Windows, Linux, Sun and UNIX) and software environment (Mysql, Postgresql, MS-SQL Server, Oracle and Access). MOODLE can be installed at an institutional server and allows establishment and maintaining of courses from different categories kept in a catalog at a portal page. This way can be covered wide area of subjects and topics. MOODLE supports more services than others concerning course activities. The teacher arranges the activity modules in order the students will use them. The order is flexible and editing is possible in any time. The available modules are: Assignment, Choice, Forum, Journal, Resource, Quiz and Survey that answer the needs of our course project. Available course formats (Weekly, Topics and Social) give the templates for course setting, which facilitates the teacher design work. There are opportunities for uploading files of various formats that allow usage of materials from previous ordinary courses and easy extension of existing courses. Link to the web directory that contains the files could be given also. MOODLE supports many languages with opportunity to add extra ones. Originally Bulgarian language is not available but the text in course activities appears correctly in Cyrillic. Only some menus in the home page and page for setting courses come in Latin. Installation and setting Installation of MOODLE was performed in Windows, at Relation Database -
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International Conference on Computer Systems and Technologies – CompSysTech’2003
Management System Mysql and Apache Web server. EasyPHP module makes easier the Moodle installation process. The setting of courses was done after creating a data directory and database, server settings and configuring the LMS. The user defined as administrator of the system maintains the system environment on the institutional level as well as user access and accounts via the admin page. The tutor of each course creates and edits his course content online, and follows the events from course activities. As MOODLE is an Open-source a partial translating of language settings to Bulgarian has been done which can be noted in the figures. The items of main menus and messages are implemented in Bulgarian by our team. Learning objects. Structure of an example course The main page of the created e-learning site is shown on Figure 1. In the main menu could be included topics of the seventh types of modules. Only one course is developed so far: Communication and Information Systems (CIS). It is accessible from the main page for users identified as guests and registered users with a course key.
Figure 1. The home page of the e-learning site. For the CIS course was implemented Topics format with the next modules: Forum, Resource, Quiz and Assignment as shown in Figure 2. As learning objects are considered: lectures like Resources, tests like Quiz and exercises like Assignment. The lectures included in the course are of the type resource. Each of them can be uploaded file of various type; text directly typed into a form (in plain or HTML format) or link to URL. The used materials in the course follows the lecture of the corresponding subject CIS. Tests are of the type Quiz, which consist of multiple choice, true-false, and short answer questions and graphical objects can be added. Tests allow some attempts and each attempt is automatically marked. The teacher can choose whether to give feedback or to show correct answers. Grading facilities are included. Tasks for students are of type Assignment. Students are able to upload their files to satisfy requirements till a pointed date. Afterwards the teacher can view each file and then record a grade or a comment and students will receive notification via e-mail. -
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International Conference on Computer Systems and Technologies – CompSysTech’2003
Forum topic includes a discussion on the Internet usage. Students should be encouraged to fill out their user profile and to take part in discussions. This will enrich their knowledge on the considered topics. Additional activities would be included in the course – choice, journal, survey. The choice could be used for quick polls or class votes considering the question of the teacher. A survey could be predefined for evaluating and understanding the class and the student’s attitude to the course.
Figure 2. The front page of the course on Communication and Information Systems CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE WORK The following conclusions could be made: The used strategy of implementing an Open-source LMS platform led to successful establishment of a Web-site and creation of a Web-based course. The less cost strategy means short time consuming and free of charge. The time for developing is decreased and future usage and maintaining is facilitated. The used LMS platform is flexible, platform independent and facilitating LMS developing remarkable way. The maintaining many events and activities could make the course very attractive for the students. Using a platform for LMS the teacher can create online materials as well as design the course exactly as he prefer. Usage of a ready LMS platform allows to teacher to concentrate on the course content and design of learning activities and knowledge assessment for students. The course developing process should be a team project never the less a course could have only one tutor. The structured design of a course has to be according to the e-learning model and training goals Complete instructional materials and learning contents of the course will be a meter of further work. As Bulgarian language is not among the available languages translating -
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International Conference on Computer Systems and Technologies – CompSysTech’2003
the whole list of system messages could be useful for other possible users of MOODLE. So this is one of the future tasks. The extension of the course list is planed also. The idea for joining the developing team of MOODLE and contribute for Bulgarian version fits to the general idea of Open-source. As an important task is considered motivating and training students to use designed and created courses. REFERENCES [1] Colace, F., M. De Santo, Member, IEEE, M. Vento, Models for E-Learning environment evaluation: a proposal, [Online]. http://www.ssgrr.it/en/ssgrr2002s /papers/330.pdf. (Accessed April 30, 2003), 2002. [2] Francis, L., R. Emelo, Buy Versus Build: A Battle of Needs, [Online]. http://www.learningcircuits.org/2002/jan2002/elearn.html (Accessed May 2, 2003), 2002. [3] Hristov, Ts., St. Smrikarova, A.Vasileva, A. Smrikarov, An approach to Development of an e-Learning Software platform, proceedings of the International Conference on Computer Systems and Technologies (e-Learning), 2002, IV.5-1. [4] Keenoy, K., G. Papamarkos, SeLeNe Report: Existing Learning Management Systems and Learning Object repositories, Birkbeck College, University of London, [Online]. Available: http://www.dcs.bbk.ac.uk/~ap/projects/selene/reports /LMS_LOR_Report_15Jan2003.pdf, (Accessed April 2, 2003). 2003. ABOUT THE AUTHORS Assist. Prof. Lina Yordanova, Department of Informatics, Mathematics and Physics, Trakia University, Stara Zagora, Phone: +359 42 28012838, E-mail:
[email protected]. Assoc. Prof. Georgi Boychev,PhD, Department of Informatics, Mathematics and Physics, Trakia University, Stara Zagora, Phone: +359 42 28012636, E-mail:
[email protected] Assist. Prof. Yanka Tsvetanova, PhD, Department of Informatics, Mathematics and Physics, Trakia University, Stara Zagora, Phone: +359 42 28012838, E-mail:
[email protected]. Assist. Prof. Vania Hrisuleva, Department of Informatics, Mathematics and Physics, Trakia University, Stara Zagora, Phone: +359 42 28012884, E-mail:
[email protected]. Assist. Prof. Gabriela Kiryakova, Department of Informatics, Mathematics and Physics, Trakia University, Stara Zagora, Phone: +359 42 28012884, E-mail:
[email protected].
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