Learning Management System LMS
Learning Management System 5
• transfer of information to other systems, such as human resource information sys- tems,
• process charges for courses, such as tuition payments and transfer payments among departments,
• course catalog, and • skills management.
In details, Carliner 2005 also described: An LMS provides a central point from which learners access activities. It provides a
list of courses available, and lets learners enroll in courses. If learners must complete prerequisite courses, the system can check that. After learners enroll in a course, the
system can automatically generate an enrollment confirmation and, later, a reminder about the class. After class, the system can be used to test knowledge, record a
course completion, and send the information to the learner’s permanent employ- ment record, as well as send follow-up correspondence to the learner. For an e-
learning course, the system can launch the course, track student progress, record completions, and send the information to the learner’s permanent employment
record.
For administrators, LMSs can be used to manage both classroom and e-learning. For e-learning, the system starts the course after the learner registers in the course. For
classroom courses, the LMS can provide a variety of resources, including schedules for individual classrooms that is, facilities tracking capabilities and class lists for
instructors. LMSs can also be used to record and assess training satisfaction Level 1. In addition, LMSs can generate a number of reports, from the number of students
enrolling in particular courses to aggregated records of student performance in par- ticular courses.
Ellis 2001 gave a close-up description about LMS. According to him, an LMS provides a single point of access to disparate learning sources. It automates learning program admin-
istration and offers unprecedented opportunities for human resource development. It identifies the people who need a particular course and tells them how it fits into their
overall career path, when it’s available, how it’s available classroom, online, CD-ROM, if there are prerequisites, and when and how they can fulfill those prerequisites. Once
learners complete a course, the LMS can administer tests based on proficiency require- ments, report test results, and recommend next steps. In that capacity, LMSs are instru-
mental in assuring that organizations meet rigid certification requirements in such vertical markets as healthcare, finance, and government.
Ellis 2001 also mentioned the details of LMS capabilities as follows:
• Support for blended learning. People learn in different ways. An LMS should offer a
curriculum that mixes classroom and virtual courses easily. Combined, those features enable prescriptive and personalized training.
• Integration with HR.
LMSs
that arent synchronized with HR systems miss the boat. When systems are integrated, a human resources employee can enter a new hires in-
formation into the HR system, and the employee is automatically signed up for train- ing tailored to his or her role within the organization.
6 Learning Management System
• Administration tools. The LMS must enable administrators to manage user registra-
tions and profiles, define roles, set curricula, chart certification paths, assign tutors, author courses, manage content, and administer internal budgets, user payments, and
charge backs
. Administrators need complete access to the training database, enabling them to create standard and customized reports on individual and group perfor-
mance. Reports should be scalable to include the entire workforce. The system should also be able to build schedules for learners, instructors, and classrooms. Most impor-
tant, all features should be manageable using automated user-friendly interfaces.
• Content integration. Its important for an LMS to provide native support to a wide
range of third-party courseware. When shopping for an LMS, keep in mind that some LMSs are compatible only with the suppliers own courseware, and others do little
more than pay lip-service to learning content standards. An LMS supplier should be able to certify that third-party content will work within their system, and accessing
courses should be as easy as using a drop-down menu.
• Adherence to standards. An LMS should attempt to support standards, such as SCORM Sharable Content Object Reference Model and AICC Aviation Industry
Computer-Based Training Committee. Support for standards means that the LMS can import and manage content and courseware that complies with standards regard-
less of the authoring system that produced it.
• Assessment capabilities. Evaluation, testing, and assessment engines help developers
build a program that becomes more valuable over time. Its a good idea to have an as- sessment feature that enables authoring within the product and includes assessments
as part of each course.
• Skills management. A skills management component enables organizations to meas-
ure training needs and identify improvement areas based on workers’ collective com- petence in specified areas. Skills assessments can be culled from multiple sources, in-
cluding peer reviews and 360-feedback tools. Managers determine whether results are weighed, averaged, or compared to determine a skill gap. Businesses also might use
this feature to search their employee base for specialized skills.