Moodle is DePauw's new learning management system. It provides all the features we are already using in Blackboard, while also offering additional features and flexibility to enable faculty members to ultimately do new and creative things online.
Timeline:
During the 2007-2008 academic year, both Moodle and Blackboard will be available for faculty members to use for their courses.
Beginning fall 2008, Moodle will be the sole system for campus.
FITS is offering training and support throughout the year to help you learn how to use Moodle and transition your courses to it. We are also training a team of students who can help faculty members with very large Blackboard courses move content to Moodle.
Moodle in Use:
- Moodle usage this fall:
156 Active courses in Moodle (including those using Library eReserves)
36 Moodle courses with Library eReserves
750 Total fall courses created on Moodle
- About the system:
- Everyone’s Moodle account is the same as (and synchronized with) their email/Novell account/password.
- All courses in the fall Schedule of Classes are already created in Moodle. To make a course visible to your students, you need to change the course availability setting to ‘available.’
- During the drop/add period, student enrollments (including drops) were updated every 24 hours.
- The most common questions/problems that we’ve heard from people using Moodle so far:
- Faculty members sometimes forget to make their course ‘available’ to students after they set it up for their class
- Students don’t all realize that their Moodle username/password is the same as their email account
- The Moodle gradebook is different from the one in Blackboard, so several instructors have sought help from FITS about learning to use it.
Where to get help with using Moodle:
Moodle 101: http://moodle.depauw.edu/course/view.php?id=48 (Log in as a guest)
Contact moodle@depauw.edu or any FITS instructional technologist:
Michael Gough, michaelgough@depauw.edu
Roni Pejril, veronicapejril@depauw.edu
Dave Diedriech, ddiedriech@depauw.edu
FITS Moodle Events: Fall 2007 and Winter Term 2008
Moodle Users Group (MUG) Meetings | Oriented toward faculty members who are already using Moodle, bi-weekly meetings for everyone to share ideas, ask questions, and discuss ways that Moodle can be used in teaching and learning |
Moodle Showcases | Presentations by faculty members demonstrating how they are using Moodle in their classes to help others make the transition themselves |
FITS Fall Workshop | A half-day Saturday workshop focused on (1) Moodle – Hands-on workshop and (2) Tablet PC’s, DyKnow and other Pen-based activities in teaching and learning |
FITS Winter Term Workshop | A 3-week workshop focusing on individualized faculty projects involving technology and teaching – A good time to prepare Moodle courses for the Spring |
Outline of Fall 2007 and Winter Term 2008 Schedule
(Visit the FITS newsletter for times and locations)
| September 24 | MUG Meeting |
| October 3 | Moodle Showcase – Doing Blackboard-like activities in Moodle |
| October 8 | MUG Meeting |
| October 24 | Moodle Showcase – Doing “New” with Moodle |
| November 2 | MUG Meeting |
| November 7 | Moodle Showcase – What I’ve learned about Moodle |
| November 16 | MUG Meeting |
| November 17 (Saturday) | FITS Fall Workshop |
| November 30 | MUG Meeting |
| January 2008 | FITS Winter Term Workshop |
