Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


Open Source Conference To Draw Moodle Users to U Minnesota

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 05/28/15

The Twin Cities campus of the University of Minnesota will be hosting a Moodle conference sponsored by the main organization behind the Moodle project. "MoodleMoot US" will run Aug. 4-6 in Minneapolis and feature Moodle founder Martin Dougiamas as well as speakers from higher ed and K-12 sharing how they use open source tools, including the Moodle open source course management system, in education.

Dougiamas wrote his Ph.D. thesis on the use of open source software to support teaching and learning and eventually developed a free content management system that evolved into Moodle. He was instrumental in persuading the U.S. Patent Office to revoke a patent it had issued to Blackboard, which had claimed it had created the first Internet-based education support system. Dougiamas currently serves as the lead developer of Moodle, through an organization based in Western Australia.

"A MoodleMoot is where the community comes together to share and grow technical and design skills, network with friends, exchange best practices and drive the Moodle project forward" said Dougiamas in a prepared statement. The August gathering is the first "official" Moodle event in the United States, he noted.

After the conference ends, organizers will be running a one-day "hackfest," where developer participants will work together on future Moodle improvements using specifications from Moodle working groups and other sources.

Besides Dougiamas, other notable speakers will include David Ernst, CIO for U Minnesota's College of Education and Human Development and director for the Open Textbook Network; and Charlie Reisinger, IT director at Penn Manor School District, which, in 2013, launched the state's largest high school 1-to-1 program using Linux and open source software.

Early-bird registration for the event ends June 30.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Digital cyberspace with particles and Digital data

    Report: AI Is Moving Faster than Data Trust

    AI agents are already in use or pilot at most organizations, but data visibility, governance and precision recovery capabilities have not kept pace, according to Veeam's new Data & AI Trust Gap report.

  • Glowing route lines merging into single gold pathway

    Microsoft Merges Copilot Apps Into a Single User Experience

    Microsoft recently announced it is consolidating its consumer Copilot app and Microsoft 365 Copilot app into a single destination, addressing a fragmented product strategy that has required users to navigate separate applications for AI chat and productivity tools.

  • CIS Sandbox Tutor Eli Blouin at Bentley University imagines a future technology learning partner that supports curiosity, critical thinking, feedback, and personalized learning.

    Student Voices: Technology as a Future Learning Partner

    A data analytics and marketing major at Bentley University and a distinguished lecturer at the university explore the future of "technology learning partners" — technologies that participate in the learning process by asking questions and giving feedback, not just information search results.

  • Silhouettes of business professionals stand against a blurred futuristic city skyline at night, with a glowing digital network data connection

    It's Time for Higher Ed to Get Serious About AI Strategy

    Without a coordinated strategy that involves multiple academic and administrative units across the entire campus, colleges risk wasting resources, duplicating efforts, and ultimately failing to deliver on the promise of deploying technology to improve learning and operations.