Which LMS is Better For You- Moodle or Blackboard?

Rucha Gotarkar

Much has been debated and discussed about the various open source LMSs we have in the eLearning Industry today.

Which one’s faster, which one’s got the best features, which LMS has more compatibility and integrations with plugins….it’s really tough to decide which one will best fit your needs.

We realised, the learning management system that finally makes the cut depends entirely on what your institute requires at the moment.

So we figured, why not segregate these requirements based on the role you will be assuming in the learning chain- Admin, Teacher or Student.

To begin with, we will compare Moodle with Blackboard- two management systems which are currently at the top of their game. These comparisons are based on various parameters that different user roles will be looking for in a LMS.

For the Administrator

• Moodle is Open Source but it’s setup takes a lot of time whereas Blackboard is a paid system but it’s easier to use
• Moodle has full-fledged integration with Google applications but Blackboard lacks on this front
• Moodle does not have an in-built eCommerce module, it requires extensions like Edwiser Bridge for selling courses whereas Blackboard has an in-house eCommerce integration.
• Moodle is known for its modular framework which allows any number of users, depending on the chosen hosting. However, Blackboard has a limited number of users which becomes a setback for larger institutes.

Score: Moodle-2/ Blackboard-2

For the Teacher

• Moodle lets you author courses yourself using certain tools but Blackboard has to outsource this part of course creation.
• Moodle does not allow teachers to set goals for their students whereas Blackboard has that functionality.
• On Moodle, teachers can track student performances wherein Blackboard does not allow teachers to track how well their students are doing in the courses.
• Moodle lacks the option of Blended Learning whereas Blackboard lets you blend online and offline training seamlessly.

Score: Moodle-2/ Blackboard-2

For the Student

• Moodle is known to have an old-school interface, but it is usually overseen because of the huge number of themes available for Moodle, for eg. RemUI. Blackboard loses a point here because its UI boasts of fancy features but User Experience does not live up to expectations.
• Moodle as well as Blackboard gives you the feature of sharing and uploading Interactive Courses on the system.
• Moodle has a well designed architecture, so its faster as compared to Blackboard, where students have faced problems while loading pages.
• Moodle does not allow you as a student to work offline but Blackboard lets you complete your courses and activities offline.

Score: Moodle-3/ Blackboard-1

Total score: Moodle-7/ Blackboard-5

Summing Up

We can see, Moodle and Blackboard both have different useful features but Moodle wins hands down when it comes to user experience. Features, extensions and plugins can be easily bought or downloaded, but user experience is something that you just can not compromise with.

Moodle promotes student-centred learning which is fast becoming popular owing to its user-centric approach. To experience how RemUI v3.3.3 has materialised this tectonic change, head over to the free demo and see for yourself!

If you have any questions for us, email us at [email protected] OR mention @EdwiserLMS in your Tweet with the query. We promise to respond within the next working day.