Learning environments or learning platforms range from the traditional Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) to distributed environments constructed out of social web tools.

Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) can play a significant role in supporting the curriculum despite the ongoing debates which question their role and see them as institutional content silos. That the majority of the Curriculum Delivery projects used VLEs creatively, and in a way that integrates with a range of other technologies, is some testament to the fact that both staff and students have embraced them and value them as an institutional support. Seven of the fifteen projects are using Moodle to support their activities, and have reported that the modular and flexible nature of this software has been significant in their choice. KUBE and Making the New Diploma a success both have Moodle as the central element of their activities. This also reflects an increasing confidence in using open source solutions that have strong and active communities, and which are widely seen as a very viable option to commercial offerings, although CASCADE have documented their challenges in working with open source software, in particular in relation to the staff time required.

‘Our modifications to the existing Moodle assignment-handling module proved far more complex than anticipated. This was largely a result of working with open source software which, while it has many advantages, does not always have the most well documented and clean code. This was also exacerbated by unexpected impacts following the modifications we made to the code and resolving this issue was time consuming.’ (CASCADE)

Projects identified the following reasons for adopting technical solutions which had the VLE as a central component:

• Student familiarity with VLE and strong anchoring to institution for those away from institution (MoRSE, Making the New Diploma a success
•  To support contextualisation and scaffolding (MoRSE, Making the New Diploma a success)
• Seamless integration with other technologies, particularly e-portfolios – (COWL, KUBE ,  Making the New Diploma a success)

‘Having researched and listened extensively to our staff and students we chose to adopt Moodle as our platform because of its constructivist approach to scaffolding learning and its flexibility to integrate with other open source systems. This coupled with integrated ePDPs and ePortfolio tools enabled staff to provide their students with opportunities for effective interventions leading to increased student satisfaction, achievement and progression. As a result we have seen an increase in excellent practice in teaching, learning and support.’ Making the New Diploma a success

Making the New Diploma a success reported considerable cost savings in terms of staff time and licencing costs (approx. 50k per year) by using an external University host for their VLE. This provides an excellent example of shared services in the sector​​ and is likely to be the kind of approach that is increasingly attractive as institutions look for cost cutting opportunities.

However there is a growing consensus in the wider sector that VLEs need to be made more permeable to the wider web and to the distributed tools and services which learners use on a daily basis. The result is the emergence of a number of hybrid architectures, where VLEs are augmented by widgets or plug-ins.  In some cases learning environments are entirely composed of widgets (example) or are effectively widget engines themselves (example).

Learning platforms in use by projects

Relevant Delivery project outputs include:

• Atelier-D case study Using an Online Design Studio Environment 
• Atelier-D OpenDesignStudio (ODS)
• Atelier-D guide OpenDesignStudio
• Ateleier-D OpenDesignStudio Survey
• Cascade Case Study - Customizing open source software: benefits and pitfalls
• Cascade Case Study - Enabling staff to easily use a VLE to support course delivery
• Cascade Moodle guides
• Cascade Moodle resources
• Cascade Online assignment submission resources
• Cascade online assignment guides
• eBiolabs workflows
• G4 OpenLabyrinth vs DSim comparison
• Integrate Guide Exeter Learning Environment
• ISCC case study Year 1 at City University
• ISCC case study Year 2 at City University
• ISCC case study Year 2 context
• ISCC case study Year 1 at Middlesex Univesrity
• ISCC case study Year 2 at Middlesex University
• Lewisham moodle tips
• Lewisham lesson on how to moodle
• Lewisham PDP in Moodle
• Lewisham portal simulation
• Lewisham eME portal advertisement
• Lewisham Assignments in Moodle case study

Assets in the design studio include:

Personal Learning Environments project

Resources tagged with:

VLE

Moodle

Cetis Resources

The CETIS page on learning platforms has up to date information about emerging platforms and architectures