E-Learning in Mexico
International Collaboration Between Educators
Primary Participants
• Sofia Cota – UniSonCoordinator for the B.A. in ELT
• Rebeca Gutiérrez – UniSonFull-time instructor
• María Antonia Morúa - UniSon Full-time instructor, Academic Counselor at the Self-Access Center (SAC)
• Steve Sorden - NAUITS E-Learning & Training ManagerC&I Doctoral Student
Introducing...... Moodle! Moodle is an alternative to proprietary commercial online learning solutions, and is distributed free under open source licensing. An organization has complete access to the source code and can make changes if needed. Moodle’s modular design makes it easy to create new courses, adding content that will engage learners.
Moodle’s intuitive interface makes it easy for instructors to create courses. Students require only basic browser skills to begin learning.
modular object-oriented dynamic learning environment
Moodle Features
Course Management Features - ModulesAssignmentUsed to assign online or offline tasks; learners can submit tasks in any file format (e.g. MS Office, PDF, image, a/v etc.).
Chat Allows real-time synchronous communication by learners.
Choice Instructors create a question and a numberof choices for learners; results are postedfor learners to view. Use this module todo quick surveys on subject matter.
Dialogue
Property screens guide instructor through setup when creating a new Assignment
Assignment activity can require the learner to upload a completed project.
Allows for one-to-one asynchronous message exchange between instructor and learner, or learner to learner.
Moodle Features
Course Management Features - ModulesForumsThreaded discussion boards for asynchronous group exchange on shared subject matter. Participation in forums can be an integral part of the learning experience, helping students define and evolve their understanding of subject matter.
Students can Rate a forum post, based on Scales set up by the course creator
Moodle Features
QuizCreate all the familiar forms of assessment including true-false, multiple choice, short answer, matching question, random questions, numerical questions, embedded answer questions with descriptive text and graphics.
Course Management Features - Modules
Instructors have granular control in defining course assessments, and can import quiz questions from popular formats like Blackboard, IMS QTI and WebCT. Moodle also supports embedding audio into a quiz.
Moodle Features
Learner Management Features – AdminThe Administration control panel puts all important learner management functions a single click away. Teachers and Students can be manually enrolled or removed from a course. Configuration of course Backup and Restore is achieved on a single screen.
Restoring an existing course or Uploading a file archive from storage is accomplished with a single mouse click. Moodle makes it easy to re-use and share courses with other teachers. Backup can include or exclude student files and course data.
Moodle Features
Learner Management Features - LogsMonitor when and what course resources the learner has accessed. Moodle's Logs provide detailed learner activity.
Logs pin-point where a student is within coursework. Easily locate specific course, student, date and module activity access.
Moodle Features
Learner Management Features - FilesCentrally locate all course resources within the Files area of Moodle so they are available when creating new activities.
Files storage area resembles your computer, making it easy to add, move, zip and delete resources.
Moodle Features
Over 1150 organizations in 81 countries had registered Moodle sites by April 2004 (http://moodle.org/sites). This number is growing by about 10% each month as educators and trainers learn the value of implementing open source Moodle.
Moodle is an ideal online learning solution for:
"My first live class just ended and it was a tremendous success, both in the behavior of the program and the quality and longevity of my participants. Moodle has been terrific to work with. Somehow it doesn't seem to be as tedious to work with as other courseware programs such as Blackboard and WebCT."
- Paula Edmiston, Trainer
K-12 Schools
Colleges
Universities
Governmental Agencies
Businesses
Trade Associations
Hospitals
Libraries
Employment Agencies
Who is Using Moodle?
Using Moodle at the University of Sonora
Conception
• Idea developed through a friendship withan UniSon professor.
• Excuse to travel
• Doctoral internship
Getting Started
Visited Hermosillo once in early May of 2005 to present the project to faculty and administration.
Summer Workshop
Faculty came together for a one-week workshop in June where we learned about Moodle and online learning environments.
Ongoing Contact & Support
• Yahoo Messenger
• Skype
• GoToMeeting
• Moodle Communication Features
During the past year,
we’ve only met in person three times.
Current Setup
• Hosted by NAU
• Unix, Apache, MySQL, PHP
(Runs equally well on Linux and Windows)
We’re using Moodle 1.4
Latest version is Moodle 1.5.3
S. Arizona - N. Sonora Map
University of Sonora
at
Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico
http://www.uson.mx
General Information
• University of Sonora is a public institution serving a population of 16 000 students
• One of the goals of the new administration: the use of technology for academic and teaching purposes– Design of a platform: Portal de Enlace Académico (in
progress)– Several departments use Moodle for academic
support
• No. of computers: 2816 (1497 Ss / 1319 Teachers)
Department of Foreign Languages
Offers four different programs:• General English courses• Other Language courses (Italian, French,
German, Japanese, etc.)• Self-Access Center*
– Objective: to promote independent learning and virtual learning - 40 computers
• BA in English Language Teaching*– Objective: to prepare professionals in English
language teaching
B.A. in ELT
Students:• Intermediate to advanced level of English• The majority of Moodle users have computers• Part time and full time• Age ranges 18-40 years old• Receive computer training (2nd semester)• Take two specific courses on technology for
teaching purposes• Specialization in Technology for
learning/teaching purposes
B.A. in ELT
Teachers:
• Mainly adopt a student-centered approach
• Content area instructors
• Some use computers for academic support: Online courses, Power Point, Moodle, Yahoo
Academic/Administrative Strategies
• Project presented to the Head of Department• Mandatory course for teachers• Computers and technical support• Teams structured for academic work• Coordinator asked teachers to experiment with
Moodle• Moodle introduced to 1st and 3rd semester
students
Impact of the Project
• Future design of distance courses
• Promotion of online courses
• Budget for a new server & equipment
• Hiring teachers from different countries to teach courses
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths
The use of Moodle promoted:
• Students’ (80%) confidence about the use of computers for online learning activities
• Access to different sources of information
• A practical way of turning in assignments
Strengths (cont.)
• Accessibility at anytime, anywhere• Independent learning• Online learning• Awareness to the use of technology in a learning
environment• Motivation to work outside the classroom
Weaknesses
• To a certain extent, lack of experience in using Moodle for teachers and students.
• Teacher time management– Not enough time to prepare Moodle activities – Not enough time for grading assignments
(large classes)– Not enough time for giving feedback
(large classes)
Weaknesses (cont.)
• Technical problems affecting completion of tasks
• Students’ access to Internet outside school
• Students’ frequency of use of the online courses
• Equipment characteristics affecting connectivity
Recommendations
• Making the connectivity more efficient
• Making activities more entertaining
• Raising awareness about the advantages of online learning within our community
How we are using Moodle…
http://www2.nau.edu/~uson-p
How the Students Liked Moodle
• We were hoping for a favorable student response towards Moodle and online learning in end-of-semester surveys.
• The students’ responses greatly exceeded our expectations!
The Future?
• Upgrade Moodle to latest version
• Move physical location of server to Hermosillo
• Improved system for adding and managing students
• Continue to add new courses
E-Learning in Mexico
International Collaboration Between Educators
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