Inspiring Brighter Futures Foundation Digital Learning Platform

Overview

Inspiring Brighter Futures Foundation (IBFF) needed a Digital Learning Platform, also known as a Learning Management System (LMS), to aid students in achieving mental wellbeing through self-discovery, vision creation, and SMART goal setting. This online and interactive platform aligns with research highlighting the positive impact of good mental health on a student's engagement in learning, determination to achieve goals, and overall optimism.

In my Learning Management System web developer role for Invision Media and IBFF, I developed the full Digital Learning Platform with administration panel for easy data management, and seamless integration with a cloud-based Learning Record Store (LRS) for student course actions storage. As students progress through modules, their responses and advancements are securely stored in the cloud-based LRS, facilitating progress tracking via de-identified data. The project also includes an administration panel for comprehensive management of courses, groups, organisations, and users.

Challenges

1. Limited CMI5 xAPI Documentation: The adoption of CMI5 as a leading solution for developing lightweight Learning Management Systems (LMS) brought both opportunities and challenges. Despite the scarcity of documentation compared to SCORM and standard xAPI, which had more online resources, I chose CMI5 to create a modern application within a constrained budget. Learning as I progressed, I successfully delivered the entire project within the specified timeframe.

2. Absence of Initial Courses: The project commenced without courses being designed, necessitating a close collaboration with Invision to ensure seamless integration and quick delivery of the platform once courses were complete.

3. Tight Project Timeline: The tight three-month deadline demanded seamless collaboration on course design and LMS development to ensure project success by Term 1 of 2024.

Technical Implementation

1. Authentication: A user-friendly authentication system with features like login, logout, forgot password, and two-factor authentication was implemented.

2. Student Invitation Page: Schools can generate unique invitation links for students to sign up and access courses easily.

3. Course Page: The 'Onwards & Upwards' course developed in Articulate's Storyline 360 by Invision Media caters to 12-13-year-olds, guiding them through eight sessions focused on achieving mental wellbeing through values-based goal setting and vision creation.

4. CMI5 + LRS Integration: Seamless integration with a cloud-based LRS for storing all user actions within the application, allowing the LMS to track course initiation and completion.

5. De-identified Secure Data: Prioritising student information security, fully de-identified data was implemented in the LRS, considering the third-party software in use.

6. Artifacts Uploader: Students can upload various artifacts generated during courses, including Self Assessment Quiz, Vision Statement, SMART Goal, Graduation Certificate, and Achievement Standard.

7. Administration Panel:

   • Manage Schools: Ownership and management of courses and groups, ensuring restricted access based on school affiliation.
   • Manage & Import Courses: Creation and organisation of courses owned by schools, with students accessing courses based on their linked groups.
   • Manage Groups: Creation of student groups, determining visible courses for group members.
   • Manage Users: Management of all individuals with access to the system, categorised as students, teachers, or admins, linked to schools and groups.

Results

1. Enhanced Student Mental Wellbeing: The platform, offering specially-designed courses and an intuitive digital learning experience, successfully contributes to improving student mental wellbeing.

2. Scalable Platform: Geared towards assisting as many students as possible, the LMS platform is designed for scalability, accommodating numerous schools and courses as needed.

Services provided

Website URL

https://learn.inspiringbrighterfutures.com