The answer to the question in the last post is five, or at least that is how many LMS vendors the Ministry has now selected as development partners for the Managed Learning Environment project. Announced on 10th February and in no particular order they are:
- A consortium comprising:Catalyst with “Moodle”; Dataview with “The KnowledgeNet”; and Spike@School with “Learning Caves”;
- Edtech with “Ultranet”; and
- Editure with “MyClasses”.
The Ministry has chosen to work with developers of learning management systems because the LMS is regarded as the central hub of the teaching and learning activity (curriculum and pedagogy). The above vendors will be funded by the Ministry of Education to further develop their products to meet the evolving interoperability standards. In turn this will mean that schools will be able to share resources and over time work seamlessly in the greater managed learning environment. Students will be able to enjoy the new style of learning opportunities and retain a digital record of learning that can mature and move with them.
An MLE includes facilities for online collaboration and publishing, file (digital) repositories, eportfolios, communication, content management and delivery, social networking, planning, course and assessment tools, federated search engines, identity and access management, parental portal, and all the commonly used student management system modules.
Schools can now purchase a learning management system and be reassured (for the above providers) that the ongoing development pathway will in part be directed, supported and funded by the Ministry of Education. The Ministry’s direct assistance to schools is limited to advice and guidance; it is not possible for the Ministry to make funding available to help schools purchase a learning management system.
LMS vendors that were not selected for the MLE tender will still be able to access the specifications to enable the required interoperability; however they will not be financially supported by the Ministry.
The MLE concept in New Zealand is still immature and the total development time will be several years. The first obvious change noticeable to schools is likely to be the availability of the Education Sector Federated Search from within the LMS. As enhancements become available other benefits will include:
- Better student outcomes from increasingly adaptive teaching approaches, with the student at the centre, and able to take advantage of the evolving technology;
- Increased family engagement through the provision of a parent portal and timely reporting showing learning activity and achievement; and
- Additional MLE modules and services available through the provision of funding assistance to take selected LMS vendors on an enhanced development path.
Tags: LMS
February 28, 2009 at 9:51 pm
Hi, Paul
I noticed your response on Jamin’s work. I, too have been involved in research into VLEs in the UK for several years now. – I started by installing single-room networks way back in 1982 and haven’t looked back since!
BTW – I use the term VLE in terms of remote or virtual access as opposed to an MLE which could be an internal learning platform with MIS.
You might be interested in my short report, now somewhat dated, at:
http://www.maximise-ict.co.uk/VLEs_Bill_Tagg_Report.pdf
However, whilst producing that report I came to understand something of the total confusion concerning e-Portfolios both in the UK and US.
I strongly warn against the thinking that the e-Portfolio can be embedded within a school’s VLE. From my studies into interoperability I do not think that an e-Portfolio will ever export/import perfecty and intact. – So what is the point of a student of say 7 yrs old having to rebuild their e-Portfolio? Or an adult worker changing jobs etc? I address this issue of transition in my blog:
http://efoliointheuk.blogspot.com/2009/02/when-do-we-start-with-e-portfolio.html
I agree with you completely on the point of teachers and back-end involvement. All my work over the last 46 years has been about “How can I make your job easier and more enjoyable?” I therefore see no reason to create an e-Portfolio system that adds to the workload of teachers!
March 3, 2009 at 9:47 am
http://flickr.com/photos/leighblackall/sets/1733041/show/