VLE or Social Software - is it either/or or both/and

Thanks to Duncan for being the first to leave a comment following the event on Monday. It is nice to hear from you, and thanks for the praise.

You can read Duncan's comment. He says "simply using the VLE as a repository is a useful starting point for some people, but it doesn't build a community in the way that blogs do. I sometimes think of Moodle as a half-way house - it can be used for content, but its ethos and focus is on a constructivist approach to learning."

I must say I agree with you on VLEs. I'm in the 'better to have something than nothing at all' model of thinking, so using a VLE as a repository is fine by me - this would be the second point on Norah's continuum. However I would see greater value in using it for learning rather than as a broadcast media, so would encourage people to go further in challenging a content model.

I also agree about the flexibility of Moodle, but in most HEIs the VLE is a big cost item so staff are often requested to use the approved one. Thus blogs and wikis, as well as having inherent strengths themselves, provide a way of adapting to restrictions without waiting for the internal debate on VLEs to catch up with the learning and teaching practice.

Of course others may disagree, that's what comments are for :-) So why not provide your view.