We Need to Take Our Own Advice

I received this question from an Instructor:

How many of us, percent & numbers, are actually using Moodle for class? Many of my students tell me that my classes are the only ones that use Moodle. If there are others, usually writing or math but not across the board. I have been told that some faculty are pulling out of Moodle because it is adding extra work just to do daily updates. (And it does.) What do you think about this?

Hi X:

The number of instructors using Moodle fluctuates from term to term, and it also depends on how you define the phrase "using Moodle." There are dozens of faculty using Moodle in a superficial way - links to files, manual grades, etc., similar to how instructor websites are typically used. There are others who invest the time and effort to learn the tool, and make it work for them, with worthwhile benefit for them and their students.

My observation is that the user who has missed the value of eLearning technology enough to let that technology do some of the work for them, and only uses the tool superficially, are the ones most often frustrated with it because it adds "extra work just to do daily updates."

An instructor who grabs ahold of even just a couple or three ways that Moodle can take a lot of the mundane, administrative work out of the equation soon realizes they suddenly have more student contact time.

Be the instructor who is willing to make the learning and effort investment up front, to reap the benefits later, in the form of a payoff with tangible benefits of lower effort and/or more effectiveness for years to follow. Don't be the person who lets themselves fall into the crisis-management rut, and not expand their knowledge and expertise to make the technology work for them and their students. Ok , now I'm sounding a little like my mom… sorry about that. ;-)

Speaking of learning the tool, and making it work for you, there are some seriously awesome upgrades along those lines in each new version of Moodle. Of course, as always, only the Instructors who take the time to look, and then realize the benefits of learning and using those tools, and then make the necessary investment of time and effort will benefit from them.

There's my 2¢ - probably a bit more than you bargained for?