What is Moodle?

Moodle means Modular Object-Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment. It is an Open Source e-learning software platform used by millions of people and organisations worldwide to deliver a variety of different content to end users.

It was originally developed for educational purposes, and as such contains many educational terms and references. The system can, however, be used in a variety of different contexts in addition to the educational spectrum, and in these cases, educational terms e.g. 'Courses', 'Students' etc. should not be taken literally. Rather, these terms should be thought of metaphorically for whatever you are using Moodle for. For example, if you are using Moodle as a project management tool, then the word 'Courses' within the system can be thought of as 'Projects'.

The official Moodle logo
Figure 1 - The official Moodle logo

AdastraWales has adapted the Moodle framework so that it becomes specifically suitable for the Peer Education sector to use as an internal resource and communication space and also as a project management and content management tool.

The following functionality is central to Moodle:

  • Content management - there is an effective logical structure in place within Moodle in order to organise content (or resources), which are kept in Courses within Moodle. Courses are then logically structured within Categories.
  • Communication - internal private messaging between users, Chat and Forum participation are the primary means of communication within Moodle at its most basic level. AdastraWales has extended this functionality to include web meeting via DImdim, which is an increasingly popular tool for conducting webcam driven web meetings.

Due to its modular design, the functionality of Moodle can be extended. There are numerous modules and plugins that have been developed and are readily available that can be instantly integrated (or 'plugged in') to Moodle. It has also been developed in over 75 different languages, so it can be a multilingual application. Also, due to the fact that Moodle is Open Source software, new modules and functionality can be written by developers who have knowledge and experience of PHP, which is the programming language that drives Moodle.

The following table describes the most popular account types that are most widely used within Moodle:

Administrator
Administrators usually have full access to every feature of the system. They can do everything with regard to setting up categories, courses and can upload content into any course. They also have access to the reporting features within Moodle and have control over the user management functionality of the system.
Course creator
A typical Course creator role involves setting up Courses for Teachers to manage.
Teacher
A Teacher can manage any course that has been set up. This means they can upload material into any course.
Student
Students generally view materials that have been set up within a course.
Guest
Guests can enter and view only courses that have been set up to allow guest access. This is suitable for public access area.
Table 1 - Moodle roles