14 Tips to help you set up a Learning Management System (LMS) in South Africa

In South Africa a Learning Management System (LMS) is “a software application for the administration, documentation, tracking, reporting, automation and delivery of educational courses, training programs or learning and development programs.  The Learning Management System concept emerged directly from e-learning.”

Here are our top 14 tips to help you set up a Learning Management System (LMS) in South Africa

 

Tip 1:  The LMS System Needs to Cater to South African Legislation

In South Africa, the LMS System should cater to South African legislation in the following manner:

  • Skills Development Legislation and the SETA environment (e.g. the Skills Development Act 97 of 1998
  • The Employment Equity Act
  • The Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Act 53 of 2003 (BBBEE Act)

Tip 2:  The LMS System needs to integrate with the SETA Work Skills Plan (WSP) and Annual Training Plan

  • Generate Work Skills Plan (WSP) and Annual Training Plan
  • Reports to the relevant SETAs

 

Tip 3: The Learner Management System (LMS) needs to be developed in the context of BBBEE

The Learner Management System (LMS) captures the following  for each  Learner and this information has an impact on the BBEEE Act.

  • Title
  • First name(s), Surname
  • Persal Number
  • Date of Appointment
  • Race
  • ID Number
  • Contact Details (address, email and phone numbers)
  • Gender
  • Salary level
  • Rank, Job title
  • Province, Organisation, Branch, Directorate
  • Disability or Special needs
  • Educational Background
  • Manager’s Details

 

Tip 4:  South Africa – Assessment and Moderation Administration

The SETAs and other accredited bodies in South Africa have various requirements for the creation of Portfolio of Evidence: The system must:

  • Be able to capture Portfolios of Evidence received and link them to the allocated assessor
  • Have the capability to update assessed learners
  • Generate the assessment report
  • automatically upload assessment progress and outcome for courses attended online
  • Have the ability to flag outstanding assessments not captured on time and produce exception reports
  • Be able to select assessed learners for a defined percentage for moderation
  • Schedule moderation after assessment and link to moderators
  • Have ability to flag outstanding moderation not captured on time and produce exception reports
  • send an email to notify the assessors of the outcome of moderation
  • Be able to produce a moderation report
  • Administer learner assessment appeals and have the capacity to issue certificates and statement of results (where applicable).
  • Assessment/Question Types
    • Assessing learning is a crucial part of the learning and training process. Different types of questions will be accommodated, for example:
    • Formative Assessments e.g. Quizzes which include:
    • Choice questions
    • Scaled questions
    • Open-ended questions
    • Summative Assessments e.g. Written Assignments/ Portfolios of Evidence

The system should have the capability of allowing uploading of different types/formats of documents e.g. pdf, docx, xlsx, ppt.

 

Tip 5:  Ensure the system has good Reporting and Monitoring Systems / Data Analysis Systems

The following highlights the functionality/modules of the desired solution for a learner and Learning Reporting is required in terms of:

  • Data Input and Import: up-to-date and accurate learner profile, inter-operable to the HR system, and Services SETA system, existing authoring tool and other relevant systems so that any changes to employees’ information are automatically updated
  • Learner profiles
  • Tracking and Reporting
  • The system must be able to generate
    • Data Analytics: learner trends, patterns and completion rate, and visualisation of data
    • Enrolment and Course Completion report
    • Individual learner transcripts
    • Compliance and non-compliance report for mandatory/compulsory training
    • The system must be able to track post-training activity e.g. Coaching and Mentoring (administration of the workplace post-training activity logbook)

Tip 6:  Efficient Enrolment of Students – Capabilities Tracking and Monitoring of:

  • Admission to a learning programme
  • Enable the capturing of learner application for admission/enrolment to a
  • learning programme
  • Be able to link to the payment system of the Department
  • Send a notification for learners to complete and submit pre-training forms
  • Send a notification to managers for approval of learners
  • Register/re-register/de-register learners (and intergrate with SETA Systems)
  • Be able to detect enrolment withdrawals;
  • be able to detect enrolment duplications i.e. if the learner previously enrolled for the same course
  • Scheduling of trainers and assigning of training rooms; and
  • Generating an automatic application/enrolment outcome

 

Tip 7:  The system must allow for the Creation of High Quality Training Courses

  • Uploading of Training Courses
    • The system must allow administrators to upload courses in the following categories:
      • Internal (In-house course)
      • External (Outsourced)
  • Course Creation (Creating Courses/e-Learning Delivery modes)
    • The e-Learning course should have some, if not all of the following multimedia modalities.
  • Combination of text, pictures, video and sound:
    • Text Advantages are relatively permanent and ability to process it at the reader’s preferred rate
    • Still Pictorial Images: Relatively permanent like text, attract attention and combine well with text
    • Motion Images: Such as video and animation, attract attention and improve attitudes and motivation
    • Aural Information: Such as voice, music and sound effects attract attention well, even when the user is not looking at the screen
    • Combine well with pictorial and motion images
  • Coaching and Cuing: Coaching is used in many forms of multimedia, it appears when the learner either asks for help or the program detects events signifying the learner is having difficulty
  • Collaboration and team learning: provide platforms where learners work together like chat forums, blogs, community of practice etc.
  • Self-Tests: A self-test allows learners to assess whether they are making progress
  • The system should allow for gamification
    • Games have a number of advantages for learning environments. Primarily they can effectively motivate learners and contribute to knowledge and skills
    • Logic games
    • Puzzles
    • Word Games etc.

 

Tip 8:  Quality Management System in line with various Regulatory Requirements

The following functionalities must be available:

  • Capturing and analysis of course evaluation forms
  • Document sharing, tracking and approval such as:
  • Policies
  • Training materials
  • Documents amendments and alterations
  • Training Reports
  • Evaluation (Reaction, Learning, Behaviour and Results)
  • Training Records Administration. Ensure that the Learner Management System has the capability to allow capturing of:
    • Attendance records
    • Assessment Submission
    • Learner Achievements; and
    • Notifications:
      • The system must be capable of generating the following notifications:
      • Mandatory training not attended
      • Reminder to learners scheduled for a class
      • To trainers; learners, supervisors and administrators when a learner does not show up for a class
      • Admission and training schedule to learners, supervisors, as well as trainers assigned to the programme
      • To assessors and moderators, for outstanding work
      • To learners for re-assessment; and
      • For the assessment outcome

 

Tip 9:  The System needs to meet various Financial  Reporting requirements

The system must be able to:

  • Allow for payment of courses
  • Generate expenditure report; and
  • Produce the overall training budget

 

Tip 10: The System must allow for User Access: Learning Management System Functionality

The following highlights the basic functionality of the desired e-Learning system:

  • User profiles and rights -The following profiles must be created:
    • E-Learning course creators: To design and develop e-courses
    • Editing Trainers: Can do anything within a course, including changing the activities but limited to changing the design and layout of the e-course
    • Non-editing Trainers: Can teach in courses and assess learners, but may not make changes to the course
    • Learners: Participate on the activities on the e-course
    • Training coordinator: Enrol learners to a course and provide learner support
    • Programme Manager: schedule courses and assign trainers to courses
    • Training Manager: monitor overall progress of learning activities
    • Security:
      • Internal users may be authenticated against Active Directory
      • External users may be registered as LMS defined users and authenticated against platforms such as LinkedIn, Google, Yahoo, etc.

 

Tip 11:  Allow for virtual training rooms:

  • Live video streaming of training sessions from Head Office (GP) to other hubs (provinces and missions abroad)
  • Schedule a session and send a notification to the participants
  • Streaming must be compatible on both personal computers and smart phones
  • Generate attendance registers for streaming sessions
  • Virtual Breakaway room
  • Questions and Answers capability
  • Recording of training sessions
  • Document sharing.

Over and above the virtual classroom software, there may be a requirement for rooms setup with all required equipment (interactive white boards, audio and video) to enable training delivery for a combination of both physical and virtual classrooms,

 

Tip 12: Consider Connectivity

The LMS system needs to take into account that a number of people do not have access to the Internet in South Africa. Therefore:

  • The system must have an offline mode, to download the e-course, work on the course and upload when back online
  • Mobile device compatibility (e.g. tablet, smartphones)
  • Consider Technical System specifications

 

Tip 13: Consider whether you wish to have the system hosted at your premises or via a web application

  • Hosting: How will the solution be hosted
  • Will it be on premise within two data centres
  • How will it allow for service continuity
  • On what Operating system will be housed
  • What is the platform’s operating systems eg Windows Server 2012, § SUSE Linux,  Windows 10, Debian Linux, Ubuntu Linux or  SUSE Linux
  • What Database application will sbe used: SQL Server; or MySQL; or SQLite; or Redis
  • What Middleware will be used:
    • Rabbit MQ
    • Apache MQ
    • IBM MQ
    • Zero MQ
  • Web Browser
    • Internet Explorer
    • Microsoft EDGE
    • Firefox
    • Google Chrome
    • Safari
    • Mobile OS platform
    • IOS
    • Android

 

Tip 14: Consider whether your provider is South African and is Level 1 BBBEE

Please Contact Us Now - We Will Respond in 15 Minutes


    Accredited Courses

    Additional Courses

    Leadership & Management Courses

    Software & IT Courses

    Top Rated