To Moodle or not to Moodle: Can It Be an Ideal e-Learning Environment?

Moodle is popular all over the world as a course or content management system (CMS)1. It’s a free, open source software package designed using sound pedagogical principles, to help both educators and researchers create effective online learning communities. It is quite useful and convenient to set up with some basic databases on a server and it’s possible to teach any class or provide interactive Web pages using it on any Web server platform that supports PHP. Without any special web editing skills, teachers can present online materials to be a coherent whole and simplify the way students access it by the Moodle interface. The author has been teaching a variety of courses including several semester-long undergraduate and graduate classes since 2005 while coordinating CALL (computer assisted language learning) programs. He has found it essential in a blended learning situation or a distance-learning environment to promote active learning by students. The author will make a practical report on one of them at a Japanese university while effectively using Moodle. The key information of the online courses such as objectives, syllabi, assignments, forum discussions, quizzes, course evaluations, etc. is investigated. This is followed by the author discussing the pros and cons of demonstrating the basic functions of Moodle