Overview

Background

This project will deliver the annual upgrade of Moodle,  which will move the University from version 3.6 to the latest version (3.8).

Moodle is the University's centrally supported virtual learning environment for online distance learning programmes.  It brings together tools for presenting course content and facilitating communication between staff and students. This includes integrations with other centrally provided services, such as Turnitin and Collaborate, as well third-party plugins to extend the functionality of Moodle itself.  Staff running a distance learning programme can choose to use Moodle to deliver their content.

Delivering this project will ensure the University's instance of the software is updated in line with community supported software releases.  It will also deliver the new functionality available in the latest version of Moodle, which aims to enhance user experience for learners and teachers alike.  An updated course design theme will also be delivered for the new version.

Support and Releases

• Bug fixes for general core bugs in Moodle 3.4.x ended on 12 November 2018 (12 months).  Bug fixes for security issues in 3.4.x will end on 13 May 2019 (18 months).
• Moodle release dates are published at https://docs.moodle.org/dev/Releases#General_release_calendar
• Bug fixes for general core bugs in 3.6.x will end 11 November 2019 (12 months). Bug fixes for security issues in 3.6.x will end 11 May 2020 (18 months).
• Release notes are published at https://docs.moodle.org/dev/Releases

Scope

In Scope

• Upgrading Moodle from v3.6 to v3.8 (DEV, TEST and LIVE environments)
• Updated theme
• Checking compatibility of existing UoE infrastructure/hosting environment
• Checking compatibility of non-standard modules (plugins) and extensions
• Updating PHP (web development language) to v7 minimum (and incorporating PHP extension 'intl') in line with Moodle v3.4 server requirements
• Testing of user acceptance of the core features and plug-ins (e.g. Turnitin, Collaborate, and possibly Office 365), covering existing and new functionality
• Testing of performance, including performance and capacity tests
• Communicating with the Moodle User Community
• Planning for any impact to Moodle support teams
• Reviewing arrangements Disaster Recovery Plan
• Testing integration of Course Enrolments Feed
• Enabling Moodle Mobile, if feasible under project budget
• Enabling Moodle Analytics, if feasible under project budget
• Test of Disaster Recovery Plan

Objectives and Deliverables

Benefits

• Excellence in Teaching and Learning: this upgrade will enable Moodle users to benefit from enhancements in version 3.8.  It will include enhancements to Moodle that have been required for teaching. This will lead to a quality service for the students using it.
• Quality services/infrastructure: by delivering a central upgrade service we will be able to reduce costs and improve reliability.
• Enhancing our student experience: this project aims to deliver innovative use of technology in pursuit of quality teaching and learning. Being able to present this via a single VLE where the student can navigate around and digest what could be a disparate set of tools is critical to making this feel like a quality and coherent experience.
• Advancing Internationalisation: online distance based courses are largely targeting students overseas, for whom physical attendance at the University is difficult. Supporting innovative use of technology will enhance the attraction of our programmes to overseas students, enriching our offerings.

Success Criteria

• Current functionality (including plugins) work
• Themes and templates are fully compatible with the new functionality
• New enhancements resulting from the new version are made available to users
• There are no issues with maintaining current data quality
• There are no negative changes to the current data quality
• User help and guidance documents are updated

Project Milestones