The Whole Kit and Caboodle
on Moodle
“A comparison of terms and functionality to Blackboard”
=
Moodle
Jonathon Sweetin
(NCCCS System Office)
Purpose
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This presentation will also compare
Blackboard 7.3x terms and functionality to
Moodle 1.9x.
It is not a how-to-guide for using Moodle or
Blackboard but intended to aid in the
transition of Blackboard users to Moodle .
Disclaimer: I do not claim to be a Moodle
expert but I do have experience administrating
and teaching in both CMSs.
The Audience
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The audience for this presentation are current
Blackboard users who are experimenting with
Moodle.
Agenda
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Background Information
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Similarities and/or Differences
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What is Moodle?
About Moodle
Moodle Architecture & Open Source
Moodle Support & Feedback
Layout
Course Administration
Student Management
Content Management
Conclusion
What is Moodle?
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Modular
Object
Oriented
Dynamic
Learning
Environment
Anyone who uses Moodle is a
Moodler
About Moodle
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Is an active and evolving work in progress
Started in the ‘90s, first released in 2002
Moodle.org user community
Moodle.com company website
Moodle Stats as of March, 2011:
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Registered sites: 50,453
Countries: 211
Courses: 4,342,410
Users: 40,988,674
Teachers: 1,137,941
Martin Dougiamas
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Background in Information Technology
Began developing Moodle while working as a
System Administrator for Web CT
Web CT and Blackboard frustrated him “There
had to be a better way”
Went on to complete a Masters and PhD in
education. Moodle was his thesis project.
“It is crucial to me that this software be easy to
use - in fact it should be as intuitive as
possible. “ Martin Dougiamas
Moodle Architecture
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Designed to support a social constructionist
framework of education
Learning is more effective when constructing
something for others to experience based on
what they already know
Students learn from each other and the teacher
Moodle is not constrained by what will sell
well, so the code that is developed is often at the
cutting edge of educational thinking
Open Source
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Moodle is provided freely as Open Source
software
Users are guaranteed the right to copy,
modify and redistribute the software
The software itself is free, but Moodle makes
money from it in other ways
Moodle is supported and updated by the
company
More importantly though, it’s also supported
by a huge online community of enthusiasts –
Moodle.org
Moodle.org
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Currently over 1,049,637 registered users(Mar 11)
Averages over 500 new users each day
All of these people have a vested interest in
finding and fixing errors and making
improvements to Moodle.
Student Feedback
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Student feedback has been mostly very
positive
Students just “get it”
Faculty Feedback
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Overall very positive
Once they get started they love it
Course conversion is not easy
Moodle is a mind-set shift; some handle it
better than others
Instructors that tend to use discussion boards,
chats and group projects seem to be the most
enthusiastic
Moodle / Bb Functionality Comparison
The following slides will illustrate some of
the major Similarities and/or Differences
in Blackboard 7.3LS and Moodle 1.9
•Layout
•Course
Administration
•Student Management
•Content Management
Blackboard: Layout
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The Bb layout is based off the navigation bar on the left.
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Within each content area, folders and subfolders can be
used to further organize content.
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Instructors like this method because it’s all very neat and
organized.
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Students must “jump around” in the course to find things
and sometimes complain that it’s a bit confusing.
Moodle: Layout
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The layout of Moodle can be as far away from
Blackboard as you can get, everything’s just out there.
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In Moodle, you do not have different content areas and
folders…at least not in the same sense that you do in
Bb.
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Moodle is very “shallow” and this can be a huge hurdle
for instructors accustomed to Bb.
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Instructor’s resist not having their folders, but students
actually seem less confused.
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The use of Blocks allows the instructor to customize
the tools and resources that students see.
Moodle: Layout
List of Blocks 
Blackboard: Control Panel
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In Bb, you can edit every part of the course
from the Control Panel.
Blackboard’s Control Panel
Moodle: Administration Block
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No control panel in
Moodle.
Instructor-only options are
in the Administration block.
No content editing is done
from this block.
Moodle Administration Block
Blackboard: Edit View
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Blackboard’s Edit View feature allows you to edit
content right from the content page.
Content Page Before
Clicking Edit View
Content Page After
Clicking Edit View
Moodle: Turn Editing On
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In Moodle, you use the “Turn Editing On” button
to “turn on” the content editing tools.
Course Page
Before Clicking
Turn Editing On
button
Course Page
After Clicking
Turn Editing On
button
Blackboard: Course Options
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Most changes to the course structure and
settings are made from the Course Options
area of the Control Panel.
Course Options area of the Control Panel
Moodle: Settings
Edit Course Settings Screen
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Edit Course Settings is located in the
Administration block
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Most course structure and settings are
controlled on this screen including:
– Names
– Summary
– Course Format
– Availability
– Start Date
– Enrollment Status
Blackboard: Enroll Users
Enroll User Screen in BB
Moodle: Assign Roles
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Very different terminology from Bb
Located under Administration Block.
Enroll & Un-enroll is done on the same screen.
**Unlike Blackboard, in Moodle when you unenroll a student their records ARE NOT LOST!**
Assign Roles Screen
Blackboard: List/Modify Users
List/Modify Users screen in BB
Moodle: Participants
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Users are called Participants in Moodle.
Accessed under the People Block.
Can filter by time since last activity.
Can sort by all column headings.
Displays pictures, if added to profile.
Gives quick access to student’s profile, blogs and
messages.
Participants Screen
Blackboard: Announcements
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By default are not emailed.
Appear on the first page students see.
Announcements Screen in BB
Moodle: News Forum
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The News discussion forum is used to keep
students up to date in the course.
It is in every course and all participants are
subscribed by default.
News forums are RSS enabled.
Found in the 0 section
of the course.
News Forum Screen
Blackboard: Content Items
Available Content Items in BB
Moodle: Content Items
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In Moodle, things are broken down into more specific
categories than in Blackboard.
Moodle gives you two types of items to add.
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Resources are things for students to read or look at.
Activities are things for students to do.
Moodle Resources
Moodle Activities 
Blackboard: Item Availability
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Must modify each item to change availability.
Can be controlled by date/time.
Adaptive Release gives advanced options for
automatically setting availability when certain
conditions are met.
Options when modifying a folder in Blackboard
Moodle: Hide/Show Item
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A whole section or an individual item of content can be
shown or hidden.
Simply click the eye – no need to edit each item.
No date/time or adaptive release on resources but
date/time is available for activities and quizzes.
(Available in Moodle 2.0)
Main course page, in Edit mode
Blackboard: Assignments
There are two common ways to post assignments
in Blackboard.
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The “old way” with instructions typed into a Bb
item; submitted via drop box or email.
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Items or columns were manually added to grade
book to hold these grades.
Submitted files had to be viewed elsewhere.
The “new way” using the Assignment content
type.
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Links directly to the grade book.
Submitted files are viewed from within the
gradebook.
Moodle: Assignments
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Assignments in Moodle similar to the new Assignment content
type in Bb.
Tied directly into the Grade book & Calendar.
View work, leave comments & grade all on the same screen.
Most Used Assignment Types:
– Advanced Uploading of Files allows multiple files to be
submitted, also lets you send a file back to the student.
– Online Text allows submission of text only without a saved
file.
– Offline Activity is anything you want to enter a grade for,
that they don’t submit through assignments.
Types of assignments available
in the “Add an Activity” box
Blackboard: Attach File
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In Bb, files are attached to content items.
Content Area of the Add Item Screen
Moodle: Files
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A folder structure can be created to organize and store all
course files.
Can be used to help you stay organized.
Handles compressed zip files for easy upload.
Can give students access to specific files or entire folders.
Files screen in a Moodle course
Link files or folders into
the course content by
Adding A Resource
Blackboard: Gradebook
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Sometimes can be very slow to load.
Headings fall off screen – can be confusing.
Can display/edit for single user.
Each individual grade is a link.
Moodle: Gradebook (1.9)
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There are several view options that allow
customization.
Grouped by category – can be collapsed or
expanded for easy viewing.
Rows and columns can be highlighted for easy
viewing.
Has option to override any grade from the
gradebook while maintaining the original grade.
Unlike Bb, grading is always done per
assignment – never per user and
Also lets you drop the X number of lowest
grades in a category.
Moodle: Gradebook (1.9)
Gradebook Initial view
Gradebook with editing turned on
Blackboard: Grading
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Can be very time consuming, especially if you
need to grade submitted files.
Multiple OK’s, Submits and page reloads per
grade
Moodle: Grading
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One screen lists each student, their submitted
work and date submitted.
Quick grade option lets you record a grade
and leave comments for each student without
having to submit each one individually
Quick Grade option – choose grade from drop down & leave brief comments
Moodle: Grading
Grading an Advanced File Upload Assignment. Everything is on one screen. A
single click takes you to the next student. It’s a small window so each student
loads quickly.
Blackboard: Course Statistics
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Can be Slow.
Minimal information.
Few sorting or grouping options.
Logs for individual dates are hard to read.
Bb statistics for the
month of August
Moodle: Reports
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Can see details about every click
made.
Can sort, filter and view in greater
detail.
Can view user specific activity
reports.
Moodle Reports screen
Blackboard: Email
BB Send Email Option Screen
Moodle: Messages
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Moodle Messages is a blend of
instant messaging and email.
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You can message students in bulk
from the Participants screen.
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A Message History log is saved of
all messages you send through
Moodle.
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Messages can be automatically sent
to students whenever you post
grades.
Incoming message
Blackboard: Calendar
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Cumbersome & time consuming to use.
Not very prominent in the course.
Moodle: Calendar
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Displayed prominently on the Moodle home page and
each course page.
All dates are auto-linked directly into the calendar.
Mouse over highlighted date for more info.
Events can be set at the school, class, group &
participant level.
Each user has a single calendar that displays
information from all classes.
Blackboard: Glossary
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Simply a list of terms
Not interactive within the course
Moodle: Glossary
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Students can post
gradable terms and
definitions.
If a term in the glossary
appears within the
course, it is auto linked
back to its definition.
You can turn this feature
on and off.
Hyperlink to a glossary term
Conclusion
Contact Info:
 Jonathon Sweetin:
sweetinj@nccommunitycolleges.edu
Phone: 252-737-2766