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We need to "raise the bar" in web-based resources.
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Mon, 03/23/2009 - 12:06
Hi guys,
Ok, this is going to be a bit of a personal plug but coming from the same motivation that got me into developing elearning resources in the first place.
I think Web 2.0 and the incredibly fast advances that have been made in web technology in general have left a lot of elearning behind. I also think that, from what I've seen for EFL/ESL, we really need to push for better, more effective resources that capitalise on these advances. In other words, we need to be more demanding of elearning developers.
Ok, here comes the plug...
For example, I'm working towards creating a framework that fully integrates Flash learning applications with a learning management system that you may already know of or even use called Moodle. I was quite surprised to find out that Moodle doesn't provide up to date support for Flash, even though Flash is the de facto platform for elearning. It seems to be the same across several other learning management systems.
If you're not sure what I'm talking about or if you're curious and because I'd rather show you than write paragraphs of explanations, you can see some examples of the framework in action on my Demo Course. Select "Login as a guest" for guest access.
Tue, 03/24/2009 - 18:22
#2
I have been working with Moodle LMS for quite a long while, setting
up dozens of installations and providing technical support to tens of
courses for our clients, and we use Flash-based quizzes inside Moodle
by importing them as SCORM packages - this lets you pass the
scoring/quiz results to Moodle seamlessly. You can see some examples of
such quizzes at our website: http://www.elegantelearning.com/tests.html
Best wishes,
Wed, 03/25/2009 - 05:50
#3
I've never had a problem with using Flash in Moodle tbh. Most eLearning software that outputs Flash (Captivate, AuthorPlus, presumably ElegantElearning etc) is SCORM compliant and is easy to embed. For stand-alone Flash applications it is easy enough to embed the Flash content as an object or have it open in a pop up window.
Saying that I had a look at your demo moodle - you've done an impressive job at producing new swf activities. Have you released this activty type in moodle.org?
Fri, 04/17/2009 - 19:50
#4
Re SCORM: My experiences with SCORM have been less than inspiring. The SCORM specification is for self-contained learning objects that communicate via a limited Javascript wrapper. If all you want to do is display media and text and get the user to do multiple choice, multiple matching and gap-fill activities (SCORM only supports 6 types of activity), then go ahead and use SCORM.
If, on the other hand, you're interested in opening up learning objects to web services, APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) such as Flickr, YouTube, Facebook, Google Maps, Google Earth, Google Talk and other Internet telephony services, streaming media services, interactive media servers, libraries of learning resources on bucket servers, peer to peer services, SCORM won't be able to help you there.
Personally, I'm interested in avoiding the traditional classroom/lecture model of learning (i.e. present information then give a test on it AKA "dump'n'pump" or the "savings and loans" learning models) and offering something a little more interactive, communicative and exploratory. In other words, to capitalise on learners' natural curiosity and desire to learn through exploration and experimentation.
Moodle offers the added advantage of having its learning model based on a social networking philosophy, which I think is ideal for learning foreign languages.
Just my $0.02! :)
My gripe with Moodle (tell me if they have change things since I looked into it some 4-6 months ago) is that is not completely a Web-based app. You need to download there program and find a server to host your site. They had a demo course online to play with but its not the same as finding out if your own materials would work with the app.
The Flash thing does surprise me tho....