![]() First, there are those hosted on a public site. There are two types of free platforms for online learning. ![]() Most are also inarguably more adaptable than commercially available platforms. In addition to being free, these platforms are also top quality, and one could argue that some of them are, in fact, better than Blackboard and WebCT. Fortunately, there are a number of free platforms available for online courses. However, they are far too pricey for small schools, companies, and individuals who wish to host online courses. These platforms are used by major colleges and universities, as well as community colleges around the country. The most commonly used online class platforms in the United States are Blackboard and WebCT. A platform for online courses may also be called an LMS (Learning Management System) or LCMS (Learning Content Management System). The classes taught on these platforms are accessible via the Internet, and are usually private, meaning that only individuals who are registered for the class can see the password-protected website. Thus, the "platform" is essentially a place that looks like a private website and is intended to work like an electronic classroom. Files such as word processing documents, sound files, pictures, and videos can be uploaded to the virtual classroom for viewing by students. Classes take place online through the use of software packages that have special classroom features such as discussion forums, calendars, "chat rooms" where participants can communicate in real time with each other, and quiz and polling capabilities. Online courses are moving into the mainstream and, as with all technology-driven teaching tools, the software commonly used to deliver online courses can be prohibitively expensive. These tools will allow instructional developers to create portable "content packages" that can be interchanged between courses, between ATutor systems, and between other IMS compliant e-learning systems.Įxpect the next major release in October 2003.A Review of Free Online Learning Management Systems (LMS) Introduction Visit the ATutor Web site for more information and an early demo.Ģ) Now that the IMS Content Packaging specifications (V1.1.3) have been finalized we are continuing with our development of the ATutor Content Packaging Tools. Features will include a shared documents library, a document drafting room, group role assignment and communication tools, and more. ġ) ACollab will be available as an "addon" for the next major ATutor release, designed to support group teaching and learning strategies. And, lots of other minor bug fixes and enhancements. AChat-PHP has replaced the third party chat application we were using, now making it possible for assistive technology users to participate in synchronous communication activities from within ATutor courses. A complete set of icons have been created to add visual representations for each of the ATutor tools. Other improvements include extended caching capabilities which make ATutor even faster than it was. Language Packs can be download from the atutor.ca Web site and installed on an ATutor system in minutes. The language itself has been removed from the files used in previous versions and moved into the MySQL database running behind ATutor. We've created a set of tools that allow users to translate the ATutor interface and manage languages from within ATutor. ![]() Multilingual support is the primary "new feature" in this release. It may be used, modified, and redistributed without charge under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL). It is an online course authoring tool and learning environment, compliant with W3C Web accessibility specifications (WCAG 1.0 P2+, XHTML). ![]() Visit our Web site for complete information, demos, and downloads, or read on for an overview of ATutor, and for a description of what's new in this release and what we're working on.ĪTutor: Learning Content Management SystemĪTutor is being developed at the Adaptive Technology Resource Centre (ATRC) at the University of Toronto. ATutor 1.2 (Learning Content Management System)ĪTutor 1.2 has been released, an Open Source Web-based Learning Content Management System (LCMS) designed to be accessible to assistive technology users, and adaptable to a diverse range of learning styles and skills.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |