writtenby Mr. Girish Singhania, CEO of EduBridge

Introduction

Cheeky learners out there thought, learning online was a piece of cake! They could simply get away with a lot of stuff! Little did they know, that the very hard working SaaS (System as a Software) developers, would come up with an effective LMS (Learning Management system). Education and Technology enjoy a wonderful marriage. During the early years of the advent of EdTech, learners and trainers stumbled upon several attritions concerning progress traceability, and the course pedagogy. Questions were also raised on the uniformity of the deliverables imparted across borders. LMS emerged as the most fitting answer to all the underlying issues.

The Quintessential
The LMS is fast emerging as a quintessential tool for most e-learning platforms. This may sound like a punishment to learners, but LMS is efficaciously employed by institutions to track the progress of learners. This means by harnessing the portability of LMS, instructors can now upload (and create) the training material on cloud. Each module can be micro-managed by trainers. Trainers can also send out tests to their learners and manage their progress.

Where is LMS employed

LMS is not only employed by E-Learning platforms, but during the course of the pandemic, it emerged as a progressive alternative that was used by traditional educational institutes as well. The LMS is also deployed in the corporate space enabling periodic training modules for corporates on an array of subjects.

Types of LMS

There are various types of LMS available in the market.
1. The Installed LMS and the Web-Based LMS
As the category suggests, Installed LMS is available only at the devise at the premise. These are expesive as compared to the web-based LMS. The Web-Based LMS is available on cloud, and can be access from anywhere.

2. Open Source LMS and the customized LMS

The open source LMS is assuming popularity. It’s USP lies in the fact that there are no price-tags attached. However, one needs to pay a price for every additional feature, used by the user. The custom LMSare operated by propriety. They are uniquely customised to fit the requirement of the owner, and are made available privately, through cloud or SaaS.

3. Hosted LMS and Cloud LMS
Hosted LMS and Cloud LMS are commonly hosted on cloud. However, the difference is in the maintenance of it. For instance, if you’re hosting the LMS, you’re responsible for the functioning and maintenance of it. If operating on cloud, the LMS vendor manages the same as part of their offering.

The Advantages of LMS

1. LMS has exposed educational institutions to a varied group of target audiences, residing in various parts of the world.
2. It is a cost-effective, and time saving system of management that manages instructors and records learners progress.
3. It serves as a one-stop-shop whereby instructors can dump all the course material, and learners can find the same in one place.
4. An LMS is device friendly and can be accessed on any device from anywhere around the world.
5. Researchers are making advances at how the LMS will be employed beyond educational institutions. It will now be effectively incorporated in stores, and is also acquiring popularity in the corporate space as well.

While the LMS had surfaced well before the pre-pandemic era, it’s use-cases have only been explored further in recent times. It’s fast assuming popularity as an exemplary tool of management.