Learning management is the act of designing a learning strategy that helps students achieve learning outcomes. This task falls primarily on the shoulders of teachers with input and assistance from administrators. This is a process that today involves a type of software called the learning management system (LMS). This facilitates the creation, distribution, and management of learning programs. In between, it also involves collaboration between teachers and students, engagement of students with other learners, and student assessments. 

A Very Brief History of LMS

Learning management systems first emerged in the late 1990s after computer-mediated learning made its appearance. At first, its purpose was to track how many messages were sent between the system and the user. 

With more advanced technologies, LMS has become sophisticated as well. It is now going beyond typical metrics such as the number of courses taken and hours spent on those courses, tests passed, and certificates gained. 

It is now integrating tools for social learning and enhanced experiences brought by third-party applications. 

Why is it important to have a learning management system?

Even a small business LMS software can assist an educational organization in creating, delivering, tracking, and optimizing online learning initiatives. Without it, it would still be possible for individuals to learn on the web though administrators and teachers would have few tools to assess the progress and learning of the students. Students themselves would have difficulty finding resources as well since one of the primary purposes of an LMS is to organize learning content. 

There is more to an LMS than just reading and consuming content on the platform, however. It is even being used in some cases to reduce or abstract hidden legacy equipment costs. Beyond that, there are many ways that you can benefit from a learning management system. 

1. Enhanced collaboration between teachers and students

Did you know that social networks boost productivity? In a Queens University of Charlotte infographic, we see that 40% of boomers, 46% of Gen X, and 50% millennials say that social tools help them do more work. However, 1 in 3 companies does not value social tools so much. 

A survey shows that millennials value social tools for collaboration.

Your organization can be an innovative one by utilizing social platforms to enable teachers and their students to connect with each other online through LMS software. This way, you can create rules to facilitate the discussions and to ensure that conversations revolve around educational and related topics.

A learning management system also brings classes outside of the classroom. With this, students are not limited to asking questions and talking about what they learned in class with their teachers in school. This can also prompt them to ask questions. Thus, they can be motivated to acquire additional information by themselves. 

2. Cooperative learning

Cooperative learning is an educational practice that allows students with different ability levels to learn together and from each other. The National Education Association (NEA) mentions this in an article, where they also say that teachers should make cooperation dominant while making sure to use other learning structures.

NEA shares some of the benefits of cooperative learning, as shown in scientific studies:

• Sense of achievement
• Empathic relationships
• Enhanced psychological health

In an online setting, this can be difficult to achieve since students are dispersed and may have differing computer habits. This can be addressed with the help of an LMS. One of the functions of a learning management system is to connect students with their fellow learners.

An LMS can have discussion boards or forums with different categories. Within, each student can learn a specific part of a topic and impart it to their group mates. Since they are all working together, they can make sure that everyone understands everything before moving forward. 

3. Comprehensive teaching and learning content

To make classes enriching, some teachers go out of their way to find interesting content online. This, however, takes up time that they could use in interacting with their students. As a remedy, they can look toward a learning management platform offering specially curated content. 

Teachers only have to provide information about the topics that interest them or their areas of expertise. The people behind the LMS can find the best content not just from anywhere on the internet but from top scholars. If you are worried about incurring additional costs, do not fret. The best learning management system example offers this service for free so that you can focus your efforts on enhancing the learning of your students. 

4. Student assessments

In classrooms, teachers use quizzes to gauge whether students have learned or understood anything from previous class discussions regarding a topic. They can also do the same on an LMS. They can either use pre-loaded quizzes or create their own. Teachers have the option to give assignments over the LMS and have students submit their outputs on the same channel as well. By doing so, teachers can identify gaps and resolve them for a holistic understanding of the subject. 

Another benefit teachers can gain from doing quizzes and assignments online is time. Since lower level-thinking learning is done by students at their own time, teachers can make the most out of classroom time by focusing on higher level-thinking exercises. 

Meanwhile, students can appreciate the online quizzes because they can know immediately whether they answered correctly. This allows themselves to see where they are lacking in terms of understanding the topic. 

In the case of online assignments, teachers can give feedback that can help them improve.

5. Regular performance gauges

How well is your LMS working? Since it all depends on the usage of teachers and students, you can generate reports that show how often they are utilizing the platform. This lets you determine whether they are adopting the solution and employing it to meet organizational goals. 

Furthermore, the reporting module of an LMS can offer insights into the activities and performance of users. These can help you ascertain whether your strategies are effective. And if the results fall below your expectations, you can take the necessary steps for improvement. 

6. Connected learning apps

A learning management system is standalone software but it is not an isolated application. If you make a learning management system comparison, you can find that exceptional ones offer the ability to integrate with third-party solutions. They can enrich the learning experience of students and also uplift the teaching strategies of educators.

For example, if there is a dictionary app available, it can integrate its functions and allow users to check the definitions of words without opening the app itself. On top of it all, it can improve business success, as it provides learners with more opportunities for knowledge discovery. 

7. Mobile learner community

More and more students are turning towards online learning. This can be seen in their willingness to adopt technologies that facilitate learning over the cloud. There is also a steady increase in the number of students who take a course online. 

To keep up with this trend, educational organizations can employ a learning management solution. It breaks barriers in learning and enables students to learn in a different way. Apart from that, it lets students learn on mobile. 

Most LMS solutions are designed to be accessible in the cloud and with adaptability in mind. Both result in greater ease of access to the system and its contents. This is important as in a Statista survey, 20% of respondents said that they used either a smartphone or tablet to complete courses. 

Mobile-adaptability is important for teachers as well since this allows them flexibility in discussing with their students. 

Starting out with LMS

What is the best learning management system? Such a question can elicit a flood of responses, particularly from vendors eager to get you on board. But before you subscribe to a platform, it is important to evaluate your learning management needs. Only then can you say for certain that a particular LMS is the best fit for your organization. 

Once you have signed up with a provider, you can upload learning materials to the platform. You can even request assistance from the LMS support team to curate interesting content to enhance the discussions of topics. There are also quizzes pre-loaded to the system to help you assess students’ grasp of a topic. 

Beyond those things, you can utilize LMS to establish connections with students, develop their cooperative skills, and enable them to learn more outside of the classroom setting.