Campus Technology's free webinar series (upcoming schedule online) runs during the front half of December with topics on Wellesley's content management system (Dec 3), cloud computing (Dec 9), and moodlerooms as LMP or learning management platform (Dec 10). The webcasts have a commercial flavor, to be sure, but they also communicate a lot of knowledge about new software and services (and, yes, sometimes Software-as-a-Service, or SaaS). Reservations are taken but if you miss out on a seat, you can return to the schedule page and access a past webcast "on demand." This is the method I use about half the time.
Newest abbreviation on the block: LMP for learning management platform. Distance learning (DL) in higher ed has moved through CMS (course management system but now used almost exclusively for content management system) to LMS (learning management system). LMP has some nice connotations, among them the concept of one platform among many to be employed in DL. That's opposed to a "system" which implies a complete environment, even though systems can be open. There's one more connotation from a personal perspective: I've been studying pause tables, the platforms that dogs employ on an agility course. I like that analogy best of all for DL: a platform for use, probably on a temporary basis, and existing in between other events.
© 2009 Mary Bold, PhD, CFLE. Email contact: bold[AT]marybold.com. The content of this blog or related web sites created by Mary Bold (www.marybold.com, www.boldproductions.com, College Intern Blog) is not under any circumstances to be regarded as legal or professional advice. Bold is the co-author of Reflections: Preparing for your Practicum or Internship, geared to college interns in the child, education, and family fields. She is a consultant and speaker on assessment, distance learning, and technology.
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