A reflection on building my first virtual learning environment

Over the past few months I went on an adventure that I believe has fundamentally changed the way I teach. Through the use of Moodle, I have created my first LMS unit of instruction. What follows is a reflection of sorts on the design and pedagogical decisions that I had to make as well as the theoretical foundations that I established to guide my thinking through this process. I also want to share with you some of the pitfalls that I ran into so that you may avoid my mistakes, should you embark on a similar adventure.

Some LMS’s are aesthetically pleasing and have a bunch of cool features for the teacher to take advantage of, and some are rather utilitarian. Often times, teachers won’t be part of the decision making process when a LMS is adopted for their district. At the outset of my design, even before my LMS was chosen, my chief objective was to use it as a ‘launch pad’ to discovery for my students. I did not want to limit myself to the tools provided within Moodle, I wanted to construct the most effective learning environment possible. I found out that this wasn't any one tool, rather it was a conglomerate of tools.

With this in mind, I set out to have a distinct structure to every lesson within the unit. This is why every unit has three parts to it. These parts have consistent names so that my students are familiar with what their expectations will be. Even though the content changes and evolves, students are supported by a good class structure which limits unfamiliarity.

One thing that any online course designer should keep in mind is to keep things simple. LMS design takes a TON of time and effort because since the lessons are scripted so tightly. Focus on big ideas and supplement those ideas with engaging activities for your students. Perhaps my greatest advice is to make activities open ended for students. The internet is a vast resource so there is no need to limit exploration with ‘seek and destroy’ lines of questioning. Challenge their creativity by allowing them free reign of their learning experience and they will surprise you with how engaged they will be with it. As educators we have a tendency to restrict learning environments, for fear of students learning in the wrong way. Perhaps the wrong way is the right way that we never thought of.