Students Tool Set: The Components and Features of LMS

20 Learning Management System All components of an LMS to support instructors, students, and administrators can be ca- tegorized in general into Ullman Rabinowitz, 2004; Robbins, 2002: author- ingpublishing tools, virtual community, and data management . Content AuthoringPublishing Tools These tools allow the instructor to publish files to a section of the LMS for students to read or download, or simply publish a list of hyperlinks that students can click through to read additional materials online. Some systems also allow the students to upload files, but this functionality is frequently avoided as bandwidth and server space limitations can quickly complicate hosting the LMS. In addition, these tools facilitate the creation and publication of Web pages — typically, template-driven forms consisting of text and images. Audio or video streams also may be accessed through the LMS, usually by means of a hyperlink. The most common example of these tools is the creation of online tests. Test-authoring tools, in particular, support a variety of question formats e.g., multiple choice, short answer, essay, etc.. Some tools only support text forms, whereas others support the embedding of graphics and hyper- links into the test. A key benefit of LMSs is the capability for knowledge experts – with little or no programming experience – to author knowledge content quickly, without the assistance of third-party suppliers or information technology resources. A strong LMS offers easy-to- use, automated authoring applications embedded in the system, including a WYSIWIG editor that eliminates the need for HTML knowledge. In addition to the content authoringpublishing, an LMS should also provide assessment tools. In order to link learning to individual performance, the LMS must assess the learners prior knowledge and what he or she learns from a particular course or learning object. Robust management and reporting features that analyze the effectiveness of courses and individual learning objects must be available. The system should be able to accommodate multiple assessments of varying levels of difficulty and security. Virtual Community Communication and collaboration functions E-learning is more effective when the learner interacts with the technology, a coachmentor, or other learners. In addition to the self-study mode, the LMS should pro- vide the ability for learner collaboration, coaching by subject matter experts, and the crea- tion of learning communities. Every LMS enables instructors and students, individually and as a group, to communicate online. Communication and collaboration can be facili- tated through synchronous as in chat, whereby two or more people exchange text mes- sages in real time, or it can be a virtual classroom that usually includes chat with a white- board, andor PowerPoint slides. The communication can also be asynchronous, as in a threaded discussion bulletin board and Wiki collaboration notes, whereby multiple users enter text comments based on a general question or in response to a previous user’s comments. Data Management