Advantages and Disadvantages of Moodle Instruction

Advantages and Disadvantages of Moodle Instruction

     When it comes to using the Moodle program, I can see many advantages and many disadvantages to it.  This semester, I am doing many things for the first time in the Moodle program and I'm enjoying what the Moodle can provide for teachers and students.
     First, let me explain the many advantages of the Moodle program.  The first advantage that I see, is that the Moodle program will connect teachers and students to many different forms of technology.  What I mean by that is simple, the Moodle program will allow you to place just about any piece technology in your unit (word documents, blogs, forums, animation, links, online quizzes, etc). The more technology you put in your Moodle the better the Moodle becomes for teachers to teach the material and for students to learn the material.  Another advantage to the Moodle program is that you can access it anywhere in the world.  A student doesn't have to perform the tradition up out of their house and going to an actual school building.  A student can simply get up, go to their computer at home, and log into the Moodle site.  Its very convenient!
    Now for the disadvantages for the Moodle program.  The first disadvantage that I will talk about is how at times technology doesn't always work correctly.  For example, if the power goes out as it did in the last snow storm, then a student can't log into the Moodle or even turn the computer on.  So, sometimes technology can be a pain in the butt!  Another disadvantage is that the teacher is not in front of you to help you or answer your questions.  If my fourth graders need help in a lesson or have questions that they want to ask, then they simply put their hand up and I will call on them.  With the Moodle that's not that simple.  Questions have to be posted to the Moodle for your teacher to read and then respond back to you.  Simply put, with the Moodle there is no face-to-face interaction between the student and teacher.
     So there you have it, the positives and negatives of the Moodle program.  I guess the only way a person can make their mind about how they feel about the Moodle program is to enroll themselves in it, so get to class!!!!