Personalized e-learning in Moodle: the Moodle_LS System

Learning Management Systems are among the most popular e-learning tools. Over the last few years, however, scientific research has made considerable progress in developing valuable resources currently unavailable in most Learning Management Systems, including solutions aimed at providing students with personalized support throughout the learning process, which is an essential requirement in continuing education. Observing and modelling the learner, and adapting their learning experience accordingly means opening up new technological and, above all, methodological perspectives in e-learning. The work described in this paper is part of the Open Learning project, in which business-based and university researchers aim to combine the most frequently used e-learning technologies, Learning Management Systems, with the benefits of customized systems so as to develop an innovative learning content delivery system based on the personalization of the learning experience. The proposed system integrates moodle with an engine, LS-Plan, which provides automated sequencing of the learning material based on the learner’s knowledge and learning styles. This paper describes the new system and presents the results of tests conducted in the domain of Italian Neorealist Cinema.