Learning Management systems have changed throughout the years, adapting to the rapid pace of evolving technology. This article is meant to cover the highlights of that progress and underline how the landscape has been impacted.
Of course, that progress is tracked in parallel with the advancement of information technology. The Internet has been fully integrated into every aspect of society overall. It started as a government side-project and has bloomed into a paradigm-shifting factor we have yet to fully harness.
What is LMS
A Learning Management System, or LMS for short, is an online platform that enhances learning materials’ documentation, automation, tracking, and administration. Even before we had LMS with AI integration, the landscape featured paid online learning hubs, where courses were readily available.
This software can allow the democratization of information. It used to be the case that such training was only obtainable via enrolling in prestigious universities. Nowadays, someone working a full-time job can get certified in various technologies without having to sacrifice and suspend their earning potential.
The Early days of LMS
Back in the early 90s, LMS with AI integration was still a faraway dream. Platforms offered a more static form of content. Creators were usually teachers or working professionals who uploaded self-made courses and written documents from certain sites.
The progress of students was tracked with very simple metrics, and most of the interactions occurred via forums and Q&As.
It should be underlined that there was nothing wrong with this type of methodology. The results spoke for themselves, as many active professionals got their start thanks to this information.
However, the comparatively low-tech environment did come with some drawbacks.
The experience was similar to purchasing a book. All of the content was there but little else. It wasn’t a complete learning experience, as the interactivity was slow. Users would pose questions and wait for answers, which could take days to manifest.
Also, the courses themselves were not personalized. Everything was one-size-fits-all, and individual proclivities and needs could not be catered towards. This could prove problematic for people who are more auditory and visual learners. That is easily solved nowadays via online lectures and chat rooms, but the technology wasn’t available back in the 90s. And even if it was, home internet speeds were severely lacking.
In terms of homework and assignments, it was possible even back then to purchase research papers from some of the top-rated essay writing websites.
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The Mid-2000s
At the start of the new millennium, the technological landscape has continued to evolve past its previous limitations. We started to see more interactivity as Web 2.0 took shape and was widely adopted. Features such as responsive live chats, gamification, peer reviews, and interactive boards were introduced.
Learners could suddenly interact quickly with each other and their teachers.
We suddenly started to hear of the concept called “blended learning”, which posed a hybrid model of traditional and virtual courses. Lectures and video guides were suddenly supported, and the faster broadband speeds would allow for smooth streaming.
Performance started to be tracked more rigorously as teachers suddenly had access to individual data. Moreover, by compiling and distilling each user’s information, a clear metadata trend could be identified.
This metadata analysis leads to even better courses, as it is the best feedback mechanism that one could hope for.
As previously mentioned, each student can have a specific learning style that makes them mal-adapted for just assimilating info from an MS Word document or PDF. For the first time in history, internet speeds could support streaming video lectures in comparatively low-resolution formats.
The 2010s
Everyone has the impression that the first AI came on the market along with ChatGPT and Open AI. However, companies and governments have been using rudimentary forms of machine learning for the better part of a decade.
AI in personalized learning has been around for a while, albeit not to the same degree as it is in 2024.
But why is AI integration so important for LMS? Well, everything can be summed up in one word: adaptive learning.
Adaptive learning uses artificial intelligence to track the user’s individual needs and responses. “Did you spend 60% more time on a particular part of the course?” then, we need to stress that aspect more.
The software can be used to track everything, including cursor movements and keystrokes, and deduce the strain and engagement that the particular information is creating.
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As mentioned, platforms have been tracking metadata even since the early 2000s. But the resolution of that info was quite low. And the conclusions had to be drawn by a person, adapting the course to those particular conclusions.
Nowadays, Machine Learning in LMS can deliver metadata but also draw conclusions for that info. For example, if an AI bot feels that the user needs to work more on a particular aspect or is lacking elementary notions, it can recommend supplementary material.
Botting
Another important improvement in AI-enhanced educational technology is in the chatting function. Course creators no longer need to fund and maintain forums and regularly chase issues and provide answers.
eCommerce websites have been experimenting with automated chatbots for decades, but those bots were severely limited.
You needed to pre-program the bots with pre-programmed questions. This was ok for more issues. But what if users had a question that they could not foresee and pre-answer?
Thankfully, modern bots are smart and interactive, capable of carrying entire conversations on their own due to machine learning.
Content creation
No matter how much you automated things in the past, you still needed a subject matter expert to make courses. Everything else was just a time-saving mechanism. It showed a revolution, not an evolution.
Grading papers and results were similar, as someone had to physically grade results if the test did not involve multiple-choice questions.
Meanwhile, AI is capable of making tests, grading papers, and live-responding to requirements. The power is so great that it scans the web and can give any answer related to every subject.
We are slowly approaching the point when we can have virtual tutors capable of performing nearly the same as a real person. Currently, AI is playing second fiddle to real teachers, but that fact may change in the near future.
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Conclusion
LMS has evolved much over the years as technology adapts and molds itself to the needs of our society. Many countries have massive issues educating their young professionals, as the analog process is very expensive and demanding.
There is also the issue of higher education, where not everyone can afford to be supported by their parents for 4-8 years while they get their degrees and graduate.
We are slowly reaching the point when anyone with a smartphone can get a cheap, college-level education. The situation promises to raise millions out of poverty and break the barriers between social classes.
