Flexible, robust, low cost e-learning platforms

“Open Source” software is software which is provided by developers without any licence fee charges, and is generally also provided with an option for anyone to further develop the software as long as the developments also remain Open Source. (For more about the Open Source movement, click here).

The Open Source movement has been particularly successful in the creation of learning management systems. This is because (a) many Open Source developers and project leads are part of universities which have a strong knowledge of learning and education and (b) because the concept of easy access to learning fits with the social constructivist ethos of Open Source communities.

Open Source Learning Management Systems (LMS) are now well enough developed, in our opinion, that they can compete with the best commercial off-the-shelf LMS providers at a significantly lower total cost. Yes, you do still need to budget a cost for Open Source – even though the licence is free, there is resource required (as there is for commercial LMS) for implementation, customisation, hosting and maintenance.

Other than the cost benefit, there are a number of other reasons why we often recommend Open Source tools to our clients:

• You can “own” the system and have complete control over the implementation (unlike commercial tools where you general only licence the technology, and have to return to the commercial provider for any upgrades).
• You, or your chosen implementation partner, can modify any part of the database or code, meaning that you can make your LMS do whatever you need it to. No more waiting years for a nationally-provided or commercial tools to catch up with your requirements!
• The major Open Source LMSs have very large communities of developers, meaning there are more brains developing and more users testing, than most commercial providers can offer. This means that Open Source systems generally develop new features at a fast rate and are very stable.
• The systems are very user-configurable “out of the box” meaning that you can usually change branding, layout and show/hide functions without the need to hire technical developers. This allows for a rapid roll-out and fast return on investment.

We can help you find the right Open Source learning management tool for your needs, and there are at least 10 robust, widely used available, all of which have different strengths.

It may be the obvious choice, but we like Moodle because:

• There are hundreds of quality assured third-party modules so that you can quickly add specific functionality.
• It is proven to handle very large scale organisations. For example, the Open University has been running Moodle to support over 200,000 learners.
• There is a very active community forum, so often help is only a couple of clicks away.

We can help you to:

• Explain to your organisational stakeholders how Open Source can be of benefit, and to dispel any myths that may exist about the risks of Open Source.
• Create a business case for your open source LMS implementation, and create a requirements specification.
• Painlessly transfer learning data from your existing LMS to your new Open Source system.
• Work out how much customisation you really need to your LMS on day one (we recommend keeping it simple to start with!)
• Customise your LMS functionality and design to meet your exact requirements.
• Find the right hosting and maintenance partner for your Open Source system.
• Support you to implement your LMS, with anything from ad-hoc consultancy and coaching to a full turn-key implementation, including project management, change management and user training.