An Educational Leader’s View of Learning Management Systems

Abstract

The Learning Management System (LMS) is a technology success story. While many educational technology applications over the years have failed to take hold, the LMS has reached an extraordinary level of adoption at higher education institutions. In 2002, the Campus Computing Project estimated that three-quarters of all colleges and universities in the USA had adopted an LMS, with approximately 20% of all courses being delivered via the LMS (The 2002 campus computing report, Encino, CA, 2002). By 2014, the EDUCAUSE Center for Analysis and Research (ECAR) reported that—according to its survey of more than 92,000 higher education faculty and students and nearly 800 institutions—99% of colleges and universities had an LMS in place and that the systems were being used by 85% of faculty and 83% of students (The current ecosystem of learning management systems in higher education: Student, faculty, and IT perspectives, Louisville, CO, 2014).

Although it is critical for those who teach fully or partially online courses to become competent in the use of their institution’s LMS, it is also critical that those called upon to lead e-learning to have a basic knowledge of these systems and the issues surrounding them. This chapter is designed to introduce leaders to relevant LMS information and issues.