Navigate 3.1.3 Tools within the LMS Quest

LMS provides online instructors, students and other stakeholders with many mode of communication, modes of delivering instruction, tools to evaluate student work and track progress, developing courses, etc. I believe all of the features in an LMS are useful. Some of the tools are may be more useful than the others. But overall, the most relevant features of a LMS software are;

·         Email/Noification system/discussion/Calendar tools: These three features of an LMS are very effective and helpful mode of communication between teachers, students, parents, and other stakeholders. Yes they are asynchronous communication tools, but they are the best features of the LMS for communication.

When it comes to the mode of communication, the least important feature of LMS I noticed is the Instant Messaging (IM) tool. I have never seen or experienced people using any IM for educational purposes in classroom or online setting.

The Blogs feature is also one of the least used feature of LMS application.

• Dropbox/quiz/test/gradebook. These important assessment features of an LMS application. The dropbox folder is very important feature of LMS because it allows students to turn their work in online by uploading their files to designated folders. The Droobox has good features that instructors can grade them and can provide feedback from inside the dropbox. Some LMS softwares are equipped with turnitin.com feature to check originality of student work.

      The self-assessment/surveys are the least used feature of LMS in the assessment category.

  

• Content.  In the LMS software application, you can upload your contents and organize them by chapters, modules, and topics. You can upload many types of files such as text files, images, multimedia, etc. It is very important feature of an LMS software application.