Learning Management Systems (LMS) is a widespread information system used in many Higher Education Institutes (HEI) in order to facilitate educational efforts. The system can be used for support in campus courses; courses conducted on the Internet and of course a mixture of these usages. This study attempts to understand the process of the implementing an LMS at a specific HEI. The HEI has made several implementations over the last 6 years, but decided to implement a new LMS during 2018. The focus of the study is the perceived effects on teachers in the implementation and the role a group of so-called Ambassadors played in the implementation. The study applied a social constructivist approach, mixing interviews, observation and survey as methods for data collection from teachers and implementation project management at the HEI. The study applied thematic analysis in order to analyse the collected data. The analysis built on five themes, Ambassadors, Implementation, Major concerns, Pedagogy, and System Literacy. Findings suggest that time management issues created the major effect on the daily work of teachers and that the group of Ambassadors in their role acted as a form of change agents, thus influencing the implementation project positively. Findings also suggested that only a few teachers took the opportunity to apply new pedagogical features to their teaching, in connection with the implementation. Finally, findings suggested that, in line with previous research, that the LMS is not used fully, as some teachers tends to use only minor functionalities in the LMS.

Submitted by Filipe dos Santos (fsantos@pucsp.br) on 2016-08-03T17:31:53Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Maria Cristina Marcelino Bento.pdf: 4724253 bytes, checksum: ffd05de4cac6fb2f3875d88d9a145f5e (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-03T17:31:53Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Maria Cristina Marcelino Bento.pdf: 4724253 bytes, checksum: ffd05de4cac6fb2f3875d88d9a145f5e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-03-13 / This doctoral thesis explores the use of Virtual Learning Environments (VLE) in education. It is a case study in a Salesian institution of higher education located in the state of São Paulo (Brazil). The case study outlines in qualitative research (BOGDAN; BIKLEN, 1994; YIN, 2015) comprising three stages: exploration, data collection and analysis. Its objectives are to describe and analyze how a group of teachers of this institution uses institutional and non-institutional virtual environments, identify and justify the use of non-institutional virtual environments and observe the differences in the use of institutional and non-institutional environments. Moodle and Facebook are the virtual environments used by teachers in the institution. The study noted that the use of weighted form occurs in both environments, as the process of understanding and\or learning environment of each tool, the adequacy to the profile of the students, or the need to understand their own role in cyberspace. The analysis concludes that there is need for change of the pedagogical practice for teachers using AVA as an extension of the classroom, which affects the teaching profile / Esta tese de doutorado explora o uso de Ambientes Virtuais de Aprendizagem (AVA) na educação. É um estudo de caso realizado em uma instituição de ensino superior salesiana localizada no interior do Estado de São Paulo. O estudo de caso delineiase em investigação qualitativa (BOGDAN; BIKLEN, 1994; YIN, 2015) compreendendo três etapas: exploratória, coleta e análise de dados. Seus objetivos são: descrever e analisar como um grupo de professores dessa instituição utiliza ambientes virtuais institucionais e não institucionais; identificar e justificar o uso de ambientes virtuais não institucionais; e verificar se há diferença no uso de ambientes institucionais e não institucionais. Moodle e Facebook são os ambientes virtuais utilizados pelos professores na instituição. O estudo observou que o uso de forma ponderada se dá em ambos os ambientes, seja pelo processo de compreensão e\ou aprendizagem das ferramentas de cada ambiente, pela adequação ao perfil dos alunos ou pela necessidade de compreender a própria atuação no ciberespaço. A análise conclui que há necessidade da mudança da prática pedagógica para o docente que utiliza AVA como extensão da sala de aula, o que afeta o perfil docente

O crescente uso das tecnologias digitais no dia-a-dia das pessoas gerou diversas mudanças de comportamento; tendências colaborativas de troca e compartilhamento de informações, ideias, conhecimentos e bens materiais passam a integrar não apenas a vida social dos usuários da internet, mas também surgem no ambiente escolar e de trabalho, mediadas por diferentes interfaces e dispositivos digitais. Nesse contexto, esta pesquisa pretende compreender como as ferramentas que surgiram a partir do uso das novas tecnologias de informação e comunicação (TICs) impulsionaram ou facilitaram a colaboração entre usuários na internet, abordando os principais aspectos e necessidades da colaboração em ambientes virtuais e relacionando-os com conhecimentos da área do design de interfaces O principal objetivo do estudo é propor elementos de interface que, integrados aos ambientes virtuais de aprendizagem (AVAs), favoreçam a realização de atividades colaborativas. Para tanto, após revisão bibliográfica e análise de similares, foi realizada uma análise das ferramentas colaborativas na interface do AVA Moodle, sob o aspecto dos mecanismos de conversação, coordenação e percepção de Preece, Rogers e Sharp (2005). Em seguida, foi aplicado um questionário com professores da área de design a respeito do uso do Moodle e/ou de demais tecnologias digitais em atividades colaborativas com os alunos. Os resultados dessa etapa foram discutidos em uma oficina com especialistas do campo de design a fim de avaliar as possibilidades de implementação de elementos gráficos e ferramentas computacionais na interface do Moodle que pudessem facilitar a colaboração entre seus usuários. Esses procedimentos elucidaram um conjunto de necessidades, requisitos, elementos e funcionalidades de interface com vistas a apoiar a colaboração em AVAs e/ou outras plataformas digitais. / The increasing use of digital technologies in people's daily lives has generated a number of behavioral changes; collaborative tendencies of exchange and sharing of information, ideas, knowledge and material goods integrate not only the social life of internet users, but also arise in the school and work environment, mediated by different interfaces and digital devices. In this sense, this research aims to understand how the tools that have emerged from the use of the new information and communication technologies (ICTs) have driven or facilitated Internet user’s collaboration, addressing the main aspects and needs of collaboration in virtual environments, relating them to interface design topics. The main objective of the study is to propose interface elements that, integrated to the interface of learning management systems (LMS), promote the accomplishment of collaborative activities To do so, after a literature review and the analysis of interfaces with collaborative functions, an analysis of Moodle's collaborative tools was carried out considering the mechanisms of conversation, coordination and awareness (PREECE; ROGERS; SHARP, 2005). Then, a questionnaire was applied with professors from the design area regarding the use of Moodle and/or other digital technologies in collaborative activities with their students. The results of this stage were discussed in a workshop with design experts, in order to evaluate the possibilities of implementing graphic elements and computational tools in Moodle's interface that could facilitate user's collaboration. These procedures have generated a set of needs, requirements, interface elements and functionalities to facilitate collaboration processes in learning management systems and/or other digital platforms.

This thesis has conducted interpretive qualitative research to investigate the impacts and limitations of LMS Moodle in distance students’ learning process from distance students’ perspectives. The qualitative data was collected from mediated semi-structured interviews with distance students participating in a Master program at Linnaeus University. Through empirical findings and analysis, the positive experiences and limitations of using Moodle in facilitating distance learning process have been revealed from distance students’ perspectives. The positive experiences include that LMS Moodle was used by distance students for interacting with other students, teachers and accessing study contents during their distance learning process. Moodle was used to know new classmates, teachers and the new learning system, recruit group members for the collaborative works, communicate with teachers and other classmates, and obtain significant information about courses. Especially, accessing study contents in Moodle easily was critical for distance students' learning. However, there were still some limitations. Distance students preferred Facebook to Moodle for student-student interaction during the process of collaborative works. The interaction with teachers was not adequate and timely for distance students. The limitations also include unsatisfactory Moodle interface design and poor usability of Moodle.   Some suggestions about improving LMS Moodle in different ways had also been acquired from the research. The suggestions from distance students mainly focus on integrating Moodle with other web conferencing platforms for improving the quality of student-student, student-teacher interaction in Moodle, ameliorating the interface design of Moodle, and adding Moodle tutorials. The result will help the development of LMS based on distance students' needs and finally benefit distance students' learning process.

O rápido desenvolvimento das Tecnologias da Informação e da Comunicação está transformando relações e comportamentos, propiciando interações entre ambientes digitais e humanos, e mesmo entre humanos por meio dos ambientes digitais, impossíveis anteriormente. Esta complexidade adentra o ambiente escolar, tornando-o um ecossistema digital de aprendizagem. Por outro lado, considerando ambientes convencionais sem o apoio de ferramentas digitais, uma das tarefas mais árduas de um professor em sala de aula é acompanhar, identificar e intervir em dificuldades individuais de cada aluno. Neste sentido, este trabalho propõe o SeeAll, um sistema interativo de gestão, para apoiar o planejamento, o ensino e o acompanhamento da aprendizagem, voltado à avaliação por competências. Foi concebido de forma a ser um complemento ao ecossistema digital de aprendizagem escola e, que de maneira simples e fácil possa atingir às expectativas dos educadores. O protótipo parcial SeeAll foi desenvolvido por meio da modelagem orientada a objetos e implementado pelo método de Programação Extrema, a fim de possibilitar prototipação rápida e facilidade de modificações ao longo dos testes junto ao público alvo. De acordo com os testes preliminares realizados com professores e gestores, foi considerado uma ferramenta facilitadora ao acompanhamento individual da aprendizagem dos alunos e ao planejamento dos professores. / The rapid development of Communication and Information Technologies transformed behaviors and relationships, supporting humandigital environments interactions, and previously impossible digital environment supported human interactions. This complexity entered schools environments, transforming them into digital learning ecosystems. Nevertheless, considering conventional classrooms without digital tools, one of teachers hardest tasks is to follow, identify and intervene in each students individual difficulties. This work presents SeeAll, an interactive management system, developed to support planning, teaching and learning focused on competencies assessment. The system was designed to serve as a complement of the schools digital learning ecosystem and to be so simple and easy to reach educators expectations. The SeeAll partial prototype was developed using object oriented modeling and implemented according to the Extreme Programming method. This allowed creating rapid prototypes, which could be easily modified during tests with users. According to preliminary tests conducted with teachers and administrators, SeeAll was considered a facilitating tool for monitoring individual student learning and teacher planning.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T14:22:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Antonio Marcos Ficiano.pdf: 5036119 bytes, checksum: cb709e617e65237763b790ae354cf962 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-10-25 / The research work - which is characterized by the intervention - aims to understand and analyze the overall process of building an interface to the Moodle Learning Management System, assuming the combination of three elements: navigability, usability and architecture information seeking to encourage learning, which demonstrates the process of building the interface to highlight the importance of multidisciplinary work. The project addresses the Distance Education and the concept, characteristics and possibilities of interactivity of AVAs, with a brief mention of multimedia, the Internet and its history. Speaks of computer languages, programming techniques, classification of languages, types of software, models of virtual environments and web-based methodologies to software development, based on the approach to systems design. This is the Moodle platform, with its technological potential, examining the process of customizing the platform with an corporate course, in which greater navigability and usability have been taken as the base. And finish the job search when he observes the product built under the light of the concepts and theories studied, and how to apply these principles could be confirmed in promoting effective learning. Research has shown that both teachers and students are benefited by participating in classes to distance learning in virtual environments, while it is well structured, in that they enable the development of critical thinking, practical reasoning, ease of interaction, collaboration and socializing / O trabalho de pesquisa realizado - que tem por característica a intervenção -, tem como objetivo geral conhecer e analisar o processo de construção de uma interface para o Ambiente Virtual de Aprendizagem Moodle, partindo do pressuposto da articulação de três elementos: navegabilidade, usabilidade e arquitetura da informação em busca de favorecer a aprendizagem, que demonstra o processo de construção da interface com o destaque da importância do trabalho multidisciplinar. O projeto aborda a Educação a Distância e o conceito, características e possibilidades de interatividade dos AVAs, com uma breve referência da multimídia, da Internet e sua história. Fala das linguagens de computação, técnicas de programação, classificações das linguagens, tipos de softwares, modelos de ambientes virtuais baseados na web e metodologias utilizadas para o desenvolvimento de softwares, com base na abordagem de concepção de sistemas. Trata da plataforma Moodle, com suas potencialidades tecnológicas, com a análise do processo de customização da plataforma com um curso corporativo, em que uma maior navegabilidade e usabilidade foram tidas como base. E termina o trabalho de pesquisa quando observa o produto construído sob a luz dos conceitos e teorias estudados, e de que maneira a aplicação desses princípios puderam ser confirmados na promoção efetiva da aprendizagem. A pesquisa mostrou que tanto os professores como os alunos são beneficiados ao participarem de aulas a distância em ambientes virtuais de aprendizagem, quando este se encontra bem estruturado, na medida em que estes possibilitam o desenvolvimento de espírito crítico, a prática de raciocínio, facilidade de interação, colaboração e socialização

Learning management systems (LMSs) are the technical foundation for online learning programs that offer benefits to learners in a variety of settings. As with many enterprise software systems, LMSs are expensive and carry considerable risk. Exploring critical success factors (CSFs) and using them as a foundation for decisions concerning complex software implementations helps increase the likelihood of success. This study addresses the gap in knowledge concerning CSFs for LMS implementations. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to discover CSFs by exploring the lived experiences of 8 association executives who identified themselves through email communications as having managed a successful LMS implementation. Organizations providing online continuing education programs were identified using a publicly available list, and program managers were identified from the organization's website. Interviews using semi-structured questions yielded a set of tightly correlated CSFs from 6 of the 8 participants. General systems theory and sociotechnical systems theory underpinned the study. Moustakas' data analysis methods were used to code the interviews and develop themes, which resulted in a set of actionable CSFs. Stakeholder support, a well-planned implementation, an experienced vendor, and software that provides a predictable user interface were among emergent CSFs for LMS implementations. This research may have a positive social impact because reducing the risk of LMS implementations will enable organizational leaders to extend learning opportunities to more individuals. Those opportunities, in turn, will lead to prosperity for membership associations and the industries they serve.

Enrollment in full-time, virtual, K-12 schools is increasing while mathematics performance in these institutions is lacking compared to national averages. Scholarly literature lacks research studies using learning analytics to better predict student outcomes via student learning management system (LMS) interactions, specifically in the low performing area of middle school mathematics. The theoretical framework for this study was a combination of Hrastinski's theory of online learning as online participation and Moore's 3 types of interactions model of online student behavior. The purpose of this study was to address the current research gap in the full-time, K-12 eLearning field and determine whether 2 types of student LMS interactions could predict mathematics course performance. The research questions were developed to determine whether student clicks navigating course content page(s) or the number of times a student accessed resources predicted student performance in a full-time, virtual, mathematics course after student demographic variables were controlled for. This quantitative study used archived data from 238 seventh grade Math 7B students enrolled from January 8th-10th to May 22nd-25th in two Midwestern, virtual, K-12 schools. Hierarchical regressions were used to test the 2 research questions. Student clicks navigating the course content pages were found to predict student performance after the effects of student demographic covariates were controlled for. Similarly, the number of times a student accessed resources also predicted student performance. The findings from this study can be used to advise actionable changes in student support, build informative student activity dashboards, and predict student outcomes for a more insightful, data-driven, learning experience in the future.

Lärplattformar blir ett allt vanligare inslag i den svenska gymnasieskolan. Dessa beskrivs ofta okritiskt som fan­tas­t­iska hjälpmedel både för lärares arbete och för elevers lärande. Syftet med detta examensarbete är att utreda hur lär­plattformar kan fungera som ett stöd i lärares arbete, vilka hinder som kan finnas för detta och vad dessa hinder kan bero på. För att besvara dessa frågor har vi genomfört semistrukturerade intervjuer med tolv yrkesverksamma gymnasielärare. Resultatet visar att de flesta av informanterna ser att lärplattformar har en funktion att fylla. Framför allt ser de tillgänglighet som en stor för­del. Flera av lärarna känner sig som digitala immigranter och ser eleverna som digitala infödingar. Dock är de senare inte så kunniga inom digital teknik som viss forskning vill låta påskina. Vi har funnit att lärplattformar kan fungera som ett stöd i lärares arbete, bl.a. genom ökat elevansvar, obundenhet i tid och rum, underlättad kommunikation och möjlighet till överblick. Orsaker till att lärplatt­formar inte alltid fungerar som ett stöd i arbetet kan vara att skolledningen infört lärplattformen utan någon större re­flektion, att lärplattformar inte är pedagogiska verktyg eller anpassade efter skolans behov, samt att lärarna har fått för dålig ut­bildning för att kunna hantera lärplattformen. En slutsats vi har dragit är att lärplattformar mycket väl kan fungera som stöd i lärares arbete men att det i dag sker genom att de underlättar det administrativa arbetet. Däremot är inte lärplattformar pedagogiska verktyg men de kan bidra till att det pedagogiska kan fokuseras genom att tid och energi frigörs, så att läraren kan fokusera på kärnverksamheten – det pedagogiska.

Social networking sites are among the most popular daily activities of students these days. Students are mostly using social networking sites for communication and sharing of their experiences. Facebook is an example of a social networking site, which supports additional features such as creating a profile page, creating group pages and supports possibility of implementing different integrated application with Facebook. These features improve the Facebook experience, allowing users to form groups, where they can introduce ideas and concepts, which can be shared and discussed in a structured style. For this thesis we have created a new learning management system by implementing an online educational platform within a Facebook context. This work introduces a new, complementary style of education, where students can improve their knowledge and sociality outside the university in an innovative way. The platform takes advantage of gamification, which introduces game-like elements to concepts such as education and learning management systems, to make them more fun and rewarding. The goal of this thesis is to extend the educational border to an interesting online environment where students can learn, communicate, and examine their knowledge globally in different courses within our application platform in Facebook.