LAMS News

LAMS Press Releases

Innovative e-learning system to be launched as open source software this week
11 April 2005

Following successful trials at Macquarie University and over 40 schools and 35 universities/colleges in UK and Australia during 2004, the revolutionary new e-learning system known as LAMS – the Learning Activity Management System – will be officially launched as freely available open source software on Wednesday 13 April.

LAMS is an innovative software program that allows teachers to design, manage and deliver online collaborative learning activities while giving students an interactive environment in which to do their work. It is effective in various modes of delivery (face to face, distance), and while it has obvious applications within the school and university sectors, it can be equally well applied to other educational settings, such as corporate and vocational training.

Teachers use LAMS to design a sequence of learning activities for students that includes content and collaborative tasks. It then runs the sequence of tasks for students, allowing teachers to monitor and track student progress.

It has impressed many senior educators who have followed its progress in a series of trials around the world prior to its official launch, with the software already being used at two of the world’s top universities, Oxford and Cambridge, as well as several Australian universities. LAMS is also being trialled in more than 40 schools and 15 polytechnics in Britain, the US and a number of schools in Australia, including Tara Anglican School for Girls, Normanhurst Boys High School and Glenorie Public School.

LAMS has the potential to dramatically increase student engagement and learning: in one K-12 school pilot evaluation, only 16 per cent of students were willing to discuss ideas in front of their peers in the classroom, but over 83 per cent of the same students were willing to discuss their ideas via ‘chat’ and other collaborative facilities within LAMS.

“The decision to make LAMS freely available as open source software will be of significant benefit to education worldwide, in keeping with the founding spirit of the World Wide Web,” says Professor of Learning Technology at Macquarie University and inventor of LAMS, James Dalziel.

“We know from many trials that LAMS has a profound impact on both teachers and students and could transform not just e-learning, but education itself,” Dalziel adds.

The open source launch of the software under the General Public Licence (GPL) means that users will be able to look at, use and modify it freely. Linux and Apache are some of the best-known examples of open source software. Open source GPL software is also characterised by the fact that any user who modifies it and then redistributes it, must make the modified version also ‘open source’ (GPL).

LAMS is managed by the not-for-profit LAMS Foundation, with implementation services provided by LAMS International Pty Ltd. Both organisations are supported by Macquarie University.

For more information visit www.lamsinternational.com and www.lamsfoundation.org

LAMS will be launched as open source software by Macquarie University Vice-Chancellor Professor Di Yerbury at 6pm on Wednesday 13 April 2005 in the Yerbury Room, Level 3, SAM Building, Macquarie University. Prior the launch a three-hour pre-launch workshop will be held to demonstrate how the concepts of learning design and its implementation in the LAMS software can transform education and training.

Media contact: Professor James Dalziel, LAMS, tel 0412 512218 or Kathy Vozella, Media Manager, tel (02) 98507456 or 0408 168918

Trans-Tasman e-learning first: New Zealand hosts global LAMS launch

10 December 2004

The New Zealand Ministry of Education (MoE) Te Tahuhu o te Matauranga today hosted the official global launch of Version 1.0 of the Learning Activity Management System (LAMS), a revolutionary new e-learning system developed at the Macquarie University E-Learning Centre of Excellence (MELCOE) in Sydney, Australia.

LAMS is an innovative software program that allows teachers to design, manage and deliver online collaborative learning activities. They can sequence individual tasks, small group work and whole class activities, and can quickly and easily change the sequence by using a ‘drop and drag’ feature, or adapt their lesson plan for other topics.

LAMS can dramatically increase student engagement: in one K-12 school pilot evaluation, only 16% of students were comfortable discussing ideas in front of their peers in the classroom, but 83% of the same students were comfortable discussing their ideas via ‘chat’ and other collaborative facilities within LAMS.

LAMS is effective in various modes of delivery (face to face, distance), and while it has obvious applications within the K-12 school and university sectors, it can be equally well applied to corporate and vocational training.

“The great advantage of LAMS is that it recognises that collaboration is essential to the learning process – you can’t just give students access to content and expect them to learn,” says Professor James Dalziel, inventor of LAMS.

LAMS has been through a period of extensive beta testing and trials for over a year, culminating in today’s release of the full Version 1.0 system. “We’ve known from many trials that LAMS has a profound impact on both teachers and students, and could transform not just e-learning, but education itself,” says Professor Dalziel.

A highlight of today’s launch is a major cross-sectoral LAMS initiative in New Zealand starting in early 2005, including 30+ schools, and input from polytechnics, universities and the National Library of New Zealand Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa. The MoE, in collaboration with the National Library, will become the world’s first LAMS partners to conduct a co-ordinated investigation of the implications of such tools when deployed across these sectors. The outcomes of this investigation will be used to provide guidance to schools and tertiary institutions with future e-learning developments.

“We are delighted to host the global launch of LAMS,” says Elizabeth Eppel, Deputy Secretary, MoE. “We recognise the great potential of LAMS to improve student learning outcomes and make the life of teachers easier when they use educational technology. We look forward to working with LAMS and associated developments across education in New Zealand. It links in well with a range of other initiatives such as the E-learning Collaborative Development Fund and the Learning Federation Digital Developments.”

National Librarian and Chief Executive of the National Library Penny Carnaby is delighted with this initiative. “It takes the digital library to another level by making it an integral part of the LAMS experience, providing an opportunity for New Zealanders to connect with their digital heritage collections in an activity-based e-learning environment. This is a significant step in this country’s journey towards information democracy,” she said.

Apart from the Ministry of Education, new LAMS Beta Partners announced today include: Nanyang Technological University (Singapore), University of Sussex (UK), University of Huddersfield (UK), and the Tasmanian Department of Education (Australia) who are also conducting school trials in early 2005. They join existing Beta Partners from Australia and the UK, including prestigious universities Oxford, Cambridge and ANU, and government backed trials in the UK involving up to 100 schools, 20 universities and 20 further (vocational) education colleges.

As announced at a UK Department for Education and Skills hosted function in July 2004, the code behind the LAMS software will become ‘open source’ in February 2005, allowing users to freely view, use and modify it. The software is owned by the not-for-profit LAMS Foundation, with implementation services provided by LAMS International Pty Ltd. Both are supported by Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. See www.lamsinternational.com for details.

For further information please contact Jonathan Clare (LAMS International) on +61 411 729 194 (jclare@lamsinternational.com) or Professor James Dalziel (james@melcoe.mq.edu.au)

LAMS announces Beta Partner Program and Trials at Altilab

20 August 2004

LAMS International Pty Ltd today announced the LAMS Beta Partner Program at the "Altilab" Advanced Learning Technology Interoperability conference in San Francisco, USA. This is the first public invitation to educational organisations to trial the revolutionary Learning Activity Management System (LAMS).

Organisations who have joined the Beta Partner Program include Oxford University, Cambridge University, the National Library of New Zealand, the Australian National University, and Christchurch City Council Libraries.

LAMS is an innovative software program that allows teachers to design, manage and deliver online collaborative learning activities. They can sequence individual tasks, small group work and whole class activities, and incorporate 'Learning Objects' into sequences where appropriate. Teachers can quickly and easily change sequences by using a 'drop and drag' feature, and can easily adapt their lesson plans for different topics, and share these with other teachers. LAMS illustrates lesson planning for the digital age.

"We are pleased to publicly announce the LAMS Beta Partner Program at Altilab," said Professor James Dalziel, inventor of LAMS. "This is the first open invitation to all interested educational organisations that wish to trial LAMS and contribute towards its ongoing development. We are excited to finally offer this opportunity to the many organisations that have been so keen to be a part of the LAMS journey," he said.

Today's announcement follows on from the announcement of the LAMS roadmap last week at a function hosted by the UK Department for Education and Skills in London, UK. The highlight of the roadmap is that LAMS will be made freely available as open source software in February 2005. The roadmap includes release of an import/export feature for the IMS Learning Design Level A specification by July 2005.

In addition to announcing the LAMS Beta Partner Program, LAMS International also announced the start of two major LAMS trials in the UK. The first is a trial involving up to 100 schools through the Specialist Schools Trust. The second is a trial and evaluation sponsored by the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) for 40 practitioners across higher education, further education and adult and community learning.

The LAMS software is owned by the not-for-profit LAMS Foundation, with implementation services, including trials and the Beta Partner Program, provided by LAMS International Pty Ltd. Both organisations are supported by Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia.

For further information please contact Professor James Dalziel on +61 4 1251 2218 or james@melcoe.mq.edu.au

Related links:

LAMS Beta Partner Program

UK Department for Education and Skills hosts launch of LAMS roadmap

14 August 2004

The UK Department for Education and Skills (DfES) is today hosting the announcement of the future roadmap for the revolutionary e-learning software called the Learning Activity Management System (LAMS).

The inventor of LAMS, Professor James Dalziel from Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia, is making the announcement on behalf of the not-for-profit LAMS Foundation.

Teachers can quickly and easily change sequences by using a 'drop and drag' feature, and can easily adapt their lesson plans for different topics, and share these with other teachers.

LAMS illustrates lesson planning for the digital age.

LAMS is successful in not just schools and universities, but also in corporate and vocational training.

Open source software

The highlight of the announcement today is that LAMS will be released as 'open source software', meaning that the software code will be made freely available for use and development.

The roadmap includes an invitation to partners to begin trials of LAMS immediately, the release of the full Version 1 product in November 2004, and release of the GPL open source code in February 2005 coinciding with the Version 1.1 release. An import/export feature for the IMS LD Level A standard is planned for July 2005.

Potential for innovation

"This is wonderful news," says Professor Diana Laurillard, Director of the E-learning Strategy Unit at the DfES. "LAMS has the potential to transform teachers' and lecturers' capabilities to innovate in teaching and learning — I can imagine a future where every school in the UK may one day use LAMS."

"By making this tool freely available, Macquarie University and the LAMS Foundation are making a significant contribution to education on a global scale."

Collaboration

"The announcement of this roadmap is a fundamental moment in the development of LAMS — it sets the future path for this revolutionary software," says Professor James Dalziel. "Given this announcement, we look forward to collaborating with government and charitable organisations in the UK and internationally on further development and implementation of LAMS to the public benefit of education."

LAMS is managed by the not-for-profit LAMS Foundation, with implementation services provided by LAMS International Pty Ltd. Both organisations are supported by Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. LAMS has already received interest from around the world, with government education departments in Australia, New Zealand and the UK backing the software.