Session 22

e-Learning Panel on Open Source, Part 2

Presenters: Guy Dugas, Red River College and Mark Leggott……

Subsession (a) Title: Hot Moodle

Session Description:

Moodle is a sophisticated, free, Open Source course management system (CMS). A large and extremely active open source community continues to develop Moodle using sound pedagogical principles. Scalable from a single-teacher site to a 40,000-student University, Moodle helps educators create effective online learning communities, and boasts some 100,000 registered users, speaking 70 languages in 140 countries. This session will provide an introduction to the Moodle environment and some insights into why it has become so widely adopted in post-secondary education.

Guy Dugas is an educator, instructional designer, and cofounder of Digital Learning, Inc., a Winnipeg company whose focus is the creation, delivery, and support of pedagogically sound and high quality eLearning resources. With degrees in both Computer Science and Education, Guy combines a background in multimedia, IT, and education with a passion for teaching and learning. Sixteen years in IT, which included the management of a corporate training centre, were followed by twelve years’ formal teaching and course development experience in face-to-face, blended, and online environments, most recently at Red River College in Winnipeg. Current areas of particular interest include emerging learning technologies and the open source movement.

 

Subsession (b) Title: FLOSS Makes Sense

Session Description:

Academic Institutions are adopting FLOSS (Free/Libre and Open Source Software) at ever increasing rates because it makes good business sense. While many people often think first of the financial benefits
of FLOSS (i.e.. free software) there are many more important benefits. The number one benefit is the investment in local staff and the knowledgebase of institutions who understand the importance of
collaboration. Examples of applications include the Sakai and (OSP) Open Source Portfolio projects - both highly functional eLearning environments. This presentation will describe the benefits of adopting free software and give a demo of Sakai and OSP.


Mark Leggott is the University Librarian and Associate Dean of Education (Extended Learning) at the University of Winnipeg, as well as a Director of the University's Global College. Mark is an avid supporter of open source software, having created an open source project and participated in a number of others. He has been a developer and courseware designer, including the development of some innovative online courses, and has taught at a number of universities. Mark is also an avid blogger - http://blog.uwinnipeg.ca/loomware.