In a previous post we gave a description of the pros and cons of Moodle. In this post we will examine another learning management system — eFront. The basic edition of eFront is also free, open source (comparison of editions). But, in contrast to Moodle, the development system is engaged in a United team focused on one company.
Pros
- The use of Ajax makes working with the system comfortable and quick (transitions between pages is minimized)
- A clear layout of the web pages, the stable operation of software (the system is developed professionally)
- Detailed reports on user activity with flexible filtering (the number of available reports depends on the version)
- A system of identifying “gaps” in competencies and automatic selection of training material for Troubleshooting (Enterprise Edition)
Cons
- A relatively small number of tools for creating teaching materials
- Relatively few additional modules
- A small community of users
- Description and history
It seems to us that in comparison with Moodle, eFront system is more suitable for businesses or small training centers than educational institutions. This thesis is confirmed by the list of organizations that have chosen eFront as a learning management system, presented on the official website of the project and the fact that to find online more than one living example of good sites on this platform proved to be too hard. However, this does slightly detract from the advantages of this system. Moreover, the experience of the Higher school of Economics suggests that the system has been given insufficient attention from educational organizations. However, it seems to us that the eFront system is more focused on pure remote, rather than mixed training (unlike Moodle). In favor of the businesses also said the presence in the functionality of the Enterprise edition capabilities to give users post and distribute by Department, and also to search of staff competency (selection of “suitable” for a particular purpose).
The system development was started in 2001 and is actively maintained to this day by a group of specialists from Greece. In 2005, the released version 2.5. The last few years, work continues on version 3.6.
In the system of well-defined modules, navigation for which there are icons on the main page, and then tabbed and standard element of the breadcrumbs. The material is presented in lessons that can be combined into courses, and those, in turn, can become part of the curriculum.
The lesson consists of modules that can be enabled or disabled. Layout (arrangement of blocks) of the lesson is easily customized. Educational material in the Lesson can be presented in a structured web pages, files, tests, projects (jobs), surveys, SCORM, forums. After you install proper add-ons you can integrate with web conferencing Bigbluebutton.
Logic is the study of the material in the lesson can be determined using a rule set, and training a student can start and continue just pressing the Play button.
The user in the system has its own home page (Dashboard) with the lesson plan. User roles have different sets of privileges, so the system administrator cannot simultaneously perform the functions of the educational or student (unlike Moodle). However, it is possible to attach multiple profiles to a single login.
The system has the Russification of most of the elements. The whole system eFront LMS is a very powerful and ready to compete with Moodle and similar learning management systems.