Technology plays a mission critical role in modern learning institutions. Increasingly, there have become many more options for colleges and universities to choose from when designing and planning the learning ecosystem and infrastructure of an institution. Open source, hosting, support, customization, and system longevity are but a few of the key considerations leaders must consider and plan for.

 Objective: Explain the Learning Ecosystem and its role within the institution ◦ Engages all learners with elements of the ecosystem ◦ Supports anytime/anywhere learning ◦ Learner is primary focus (edutech, 2010) ◦ Includes the LMS, but also the tools and technologies in use by individual learners

 Objective: Define the key aspects of the Learning Management System and criteria for choosing and supporting them ◦ What features does your institution need? ◦ Can you host and support the LMS, or will you need to outsource those functions? ◦ How many programs and students will the LMS support? ◦ What other technology does it need to integrate with?

 Objective: Analyse and evaluate Proprietary Learning Systems [i.e., Blackboard] ◦ Features ◦ Hosting options and support ◦ Cost ◦ Pros and cons

 Objective: Analyse and evaluate Pure Open Source [i.e., Sakai, institutionally hosted & supported] ◦ Features ◦ Hosting options and support ◦ Infrastructure and staffing requirements ◦ Pros and cons

 Objective: Analyse and evaluate Hybrid Models [i.e.. Moodle hosted as a service, Remote Learner] ◦ Pros and cons ◦ Infrastructure and cost

Who will be involved in selecting a learning management system? What features are most important in your environment? What are the biggest challenges you face with implementing a system?

 A Comparison of Learning Management System Accessibility. (n.d.). Retrieved from  Dunn, J. (2012, October 27). The 20 best learning management systems [Blog post]. edudemic. Retrieved from learning-management-systems/ learning-management-systems/  EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative. (2012, May 2). 7 things you should know about navigating the new learning ecosystem. Retrieved from navigating-new-learning-ecosystem navigating-new-learning-ecosystem  edutech. (2010). Learning ecosystem in higher education. Retrieved from  Pappas, C. (2012a, July 29). The ultimate list of open source learning management systems [Blog post]. eLearning Industry. Retrieved from source-learning-management-systems source-learning-management-systems  Pappas, C. (2012b, October 26). List of learning management systems: Part 1 [Blog post]. eLearning Industry. Retrieved from management-systems-part-1 management-systems-part-1