Learning Management Systems: The Future of Education

A Learning management system (LMS) is a term used loosely to refer to a variety of computer application programs designed for training or educational purposes. Education technology and e-learning are growing rapidly, and  learning management systems have become necessary for schools, corporations, and government entities to track and manage data related to coursework, training, certifications and professional development.

There are various types of LMS’s. Some are used for the express purpose of managing student or employee records. Others may house content tailor-made for e-learning students or online material for employee trainings. What once required an instructor and physical space, can now be accomplished remotely.

Even if the choice is made to continue learning in a traditional sense – a room of people and a trainer/presenter – an LMS can change  the way in which the material is presented using an LMS. Content can be highly interactive if the LMS has the ability to pair with live polling and audience response technology.

In today’s fast-paced world, people have no time to sit down together in one classroom and receive instruction. Hence, it is imperative that those seeking to train in a specific area use an easier way that will reach everyone without the need for face to face meetings. LMS is the answer to this type of dilemma. Some providers offer LMS platforms, which can guide on step by step design and building of courses. This system can be used to deliver audio, video or images for faster learning.

Let’s say you are offering a training course with different modules, you need to present the modules in stages, starting with the easiest and proceeding to the hardest. The LMS will help you do just that. You can set it up in such a way that the learner has to accomplish one level before proceeding to the next. Effectively, you will be able to manage what the learner can access.

LMS’s can also be used for interactive presentation content management. Suppose a corporation has 25 offices and will have various presenters at each of these locations during the year. Even though the presentation itself is not “e-learning”, it is still important that the content and related data that may come from interactive polling and quizzes is managed in one secure online environment. An LMS can ensure that slide presentations are consistent at each site and that resulting data is not lost in the shuffling back and forth of paper.

Many LMS’s can be used with assessment tools that can help you keep track of progress. This can be done using multiple choice questions at the end of your module, which can be clicked on by the learner and in some cases free-form response. As mentioned above, this method of assessment and data collection is an instant and paperless tool that is can easily assess thousands of trainees at a time.

An LMS makes it easier to assess students and employees more often with efficiency. Regular paper and pencil trainings and coursework simply cannot be administered often without disrupting the school or workday. This functionality is particularly important for regulatory bodies of professional organizations as they can use the system for continuous evaluation of their members.

Certain LMS systems have increased functionalities that encompass employee appraisals, analyzing worker competency and can also aid in planning and can aid management in discussing evaluations with employees using solid data rather than anecdotal commentary.

Most LMS platforms available come with a variety of reporting tools that relay information about a specific learner or a group as a whole. This makes the learning process individualized, which is great for both the trainer and the trainee.

The software can also be used to relay useful information about an organization to prospective employees or students. It can be used by educators to relay course content, timelines, and modes of assessment as well as factors that would result in failure. Corporations can push materials to employee devices using them as a second screen and unlike email, an LMS can then track the content and resulting data in one spot for all recipients.

When it becomes necessary for a company or institution to train a large number of employees, data can become cumbersome quickly and sometimes it’s difficult to see the forest among the trees. With an LMS, the system administrator can check and note which objectives have been effectively met by not only individuals, but the organization as a whole. The ability to see an overview of objectives met gives important insight into what areas an organization may need to focus on and can raise a red flag if the content itself needs improvement.

Some LMS’s can be used by learners or conference goers to self-register in the same online space that will serve as the meeting place for pushing content, polling, and assessment. In essence, it eliminates the need for several third party applications or software.

This system can be used to determine who deserves a certain reward. Some are set in a way that once a learner reaches a given score; the institution is alerted propelling one to be rewarded. Also, consumer organizations can use this system to reward loyal customers.

If you want to know how a product is performing, you can use an LMS to create a surveying tool. Participants can click on a given set of choices to give the most appropriate response. This can also be used to conduct research on a variety of issues.

Some LMS’s allows several authors to contribute to the development of a curriculum by submitting different parts online. These are then integrated by the system administrator to produce authoritative course content that is tailored to meet specific needs of learners.

This works particularly well for those who need to create training or certification in a certain field, but lack the appropriate resources needed to create a formal institution. LMS provides an easy solution in the form of e-learning. Organizations can create their own “mini universities” that can change with the needs of the company.

Many Learning Management Systems have course content and assessment tools that are available 24 hour a day, 7 days a week, from any part of the world as long as the user has access to the system. They also provide for comprehensive group discussions, detailed graphics, and imagery that facilitate easy understanding for all learners. This ensures that everyone gets the same content, presented in a similar way at all times. The centralization is also beneficial to course administrators as it makes delivery and assessment of students faster and easier.

Corporate institutions that are considering training employees on a particular issue usually involve a third-party. This can be a costly affair. These costs can be greatly reduced by creating an in-house training program using a LMS. Once the content has been developed, it can be used again and again.

Content creators employ simplified tactics that ensure that the course is easy to understand for virtually everyone. Hence, learners may find it simpler than face to face instruction conducted in seminars and classrooms.

The curriculum can be quickly reviewed and necessary changes made by administrators. These changes will immediately reflect to learners. Compared to one on one instruction, which involves informing individual learners of any changes made, upgrading content on a LMS is much simpler.

With an LMS, learning modules can be highly interactive either in whole group or individual settings. Course instructors and trainers can add stopping points for imagery, video, polling, quizzes, and other integrated digital tools. Many platforms also include interactive forums like group chats that allow for increased social interaction among learners.

LMS can shift the responsibility from the trainer to the trainee. With curriculum uploaded into the system, users have more options to when and how he or she learns. Hence, the learner becomes responsible for managing their own time and work.

Corporate institutions that are considering training employees on a particular issue usually involve a third-party. This can be a costly affair. These costs can be greatly reduced by creating an in-house training program using a LMS. Once the content has been developed, it can be used again and again.

Integrating a Learning Management System can streamline many different parts within an institution or corporation. It is not one tool, but a collection of different educational technology tools that allow for highly integrated yet individualized learning and distribution of information. Even better, a LMS opens up opportunity for institutions to begin initiatives they may not have thought of pre-LMS.

Another important point is the shifting attitudes and realities of the coming generations. Millennials and those that come after are more accustomed to working within a digital system, and it’s not a far leap to assume they will perform better working within a system that makes sense to them.

The days of boring and ineffective meetings, presentations, and trainings are not over as many organizations continue to use the same one-way, one-size-fits-all methods of old. A Learning Management System is the perfect way for an organization to start the process of moving into the modern world.