The Moodle Users Association is the voice for users of the world’s open source learning platform

June 24, 2020 By Moodle

Contributed by — Dr. Laurie Korte, MUA Committee Member

The Moodle Users Association (MUA) has fostered and funded two very significantly requested features for Moodle 3.9. 

The Moodle Users Association is an official non-profit organization dedicated to contributing towards the core development of the Moodle LMS. It provides a way for all users to become directly involved in creating Moodle. MUA members can submit proposals that are discussed, detailed, designed, and then voted on by all. The most voted submissions are incorporated into the next release of the Moodle LMS, their development being funded by the MUA.

“Funding important improvements to Moodle through membership of the MUA gives teachers, trainers and administrators ways to help support Moodle even if they cannot contribute code. “ – Member of the MUA Board

 

MUA and Moodle 3.9: improving the user experience

In the recent Moodle 3.9 release, two fantastic MUA projects have been incorporated into the core of the Moodle LMS. Both projects improve existing functionalities in Moodle 3.9 to enhance the user experience for educators and Moodle administrators. 

How has the MUA helped improve Moodle 3.9?

Streamlining the Course Copy functionality

The first project designed and funded by the MUA really simplifies the process of duplicating courses on Moodle. On one hand, by creating a new, dedicated user interface to copy courses, the MUA has managed to reduce the number of steps required to copy a course. On the other hand, the ability to duplicate courses directly, without the backup/restore wizard, produces less data clutter and reduces the risk of including or omitting data.

“The course copy functionality is a perfect example of how you as an MUA member can make sure the Moodle software works for you. In this case, by suggesting a new functionality built on existing options, that helps other teachers and course creators in making a true copy of their course in a few simple clicks.” — Gemma Lesterhuis, MUA Committee Member

You can see more details of the new Course copy function in the Moodle Tracker.

Filtering participants with more precision

The second MUA project for Moodle 3.9 is an improvement in the existing Participants page filter to include more advanced search queries and combine them with logical operators (‘and’, ‘or’, ‘not’). This enables users to do more targeted filtering and see exactly the participants they want to see. 

You can see more technical details in the Moodle Tracker.

 

Join the MUA and have a say in the future of Moodle

The MUA supports the growth of Moodle by providing a strong and united voice to all users and proposing improvements for the Moodle LMS. The Association offers a way for every user and organization to have a real say in deciding on Moodle features to get implemented next.

“Universities who get organisational membership have a greater influence on the roadmap – helping ensure that key features their sector needs get included as part of core Moodle product” – Gavin Henrick, MUA Treasurer

You can register to become an MUA member at any time. Join the association to share and vote your ideas towards the continued growth and success of Moodle for all. Learn more on the MUA’s website.