National Technology Day 2023: How learning management systems are transforming schools

By Harsh Kundra

Technology is revolutionising the school education landscape in India.  It is transforming the way schools manage educational outcomes; the way educators teach; the way students learn in classrooms; and the way parents engage with their children’s education. 

In recent years, School Educational Technology — or ‘School Edtech’ — has taken teaching and learning in India’s schools to new and unprecedented levels.  Technology has helped transform traditional teaching-learning in schools, moving students away from rote learning; enabling real-time participation by students in classrooms; personalising learning paths and outcomes; and helping parents remain informed and engaged in their wards’ progress.  

One of the latest innovations in the School EdTech space is the Learning Management System (LMS). A Learning Management System is a software application for the administration,  documentation, tracking, reporting and delivery of educational programs.  It is used by schools and other educational institutions to deliver and manage educational content, and assess student progress. The system supports both face-to-face learning and virtual classes.  Overall, it is a system that assists everyone involved in the teaching process.

In recent years, the use of LMS has become increasingly popular among schools.  Here are a few ways in which an LMS can help improve school management:

1. Centralized Management: An LMS provides a centralized platform for managing all aspects of the educational process, including course content, student records and assessments. This makes it easy for teachers and administrators to access and update information centrally, which helps save time and improve operational efficiency.
2. Improved Communication: An LMS allows for easy communication between teachers, students and parents. Teachers can post announcements, send messages and share resources with students and parents. This helps keep everyone informed and engaged in the educational process.
3. Enhanced Collaboration: An LMS provides tools for collaboration, such as forums and group work, which can help students learn from each other and improve their conceptual understanding of subjects.
4. Increased Accessibility: An LMS allows students to access educational content and resources from anywhere, at any time, which in turn ensures continued learning at home.
5. Automated Assessment: An LMS allows teachers to create and administer assessments online, which can be automatically graded and recorded. This saves time and allows teachers to focus on providing feedback and support to students.

Learning Management Systems thus integrate a wide range of tasks that enable teachers to teach better.  Schools can manage student enrolments; monitor learning progress; generate reports; distribute study material and other resources; and offer personalised feedback to students and parents, among others.  All of these tasks are carried out online and with a degree of authenticity, security and privacy.  LMS supports traditional face-to-face learning, hybrid learning as also distance learning. 

Today, LMS has progressed to leveraging analytics for a better understanding and knowledge of student performance and the entire learning experience. It has become a must-have tool for schools to manage and deliver educational content, resources and assessments.

Here are some of the latest trends in School Learning Management Systems in India:

Integration of advanced technology: With the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) technologies, LMS is increasingly offering more personalized learning experiences for students by analysing data and predicting performance using Analytics, while adapting content and assignments.  Well-designed Learning Management Systems can boost the benefits of multimodal education in schools, in alignment to National Education Policy.  

Focus on gamification: By incorporating gamification elements such as points, badges and leaderboards, LMS allows students to interact with digital content in a more immersive and interactive way.

Personalised learning: By analysing student performance data, LMS can create tailor-made learning plans that adapt to student learning pace and progress, ensuring that students receive the right level of support.

LMS can help schools enhance learning excellence in the following ways:

Central repository for educational materials: One of the benefits of a school LMS platform is that all instructional materials are available in one location, resulting in a more effective functioning of a school.

Multimodal content: Teachers can use a well-designed LMS platform to access a wide range of audio-visual content in the classroom. This alone has the potential to radically change the way courses are taught.

Better collaboration between teachers and students: LMS ensures continuity of communication between teachers, students and parents.

Time saving: Teachers can automatically grade students’ assignments, which makes their work much easier and also saves time. 

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With technology continually evolving and reshaping the education sector, schools are increasingly relying on Learning Management Systems to manage everyday functions and build student confidence.  LMS integration is helping schools become more learner-centric, effective and efficient.

The author is the chief technology officer, LEAD. Views expressed are personal.

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