In the corporate sector there has long been a requirement for time or phased release of content, providing a set learning path based on resources, quizzes and completion of tasks especially with a view to self-certification. Many were left with no choice but to adopt SCORM and build everything into it, all the content and exam, and use Moodle as just a player with a gradebook. That changes now.
Access to activities can now be restricted based on certain criteria. There are three main ways of controlling this access:
- dates
- a grade obtained in another activity
- the completion of another activity as defined within that activity
Using these options, content can be linked together to provide a structured release of the remainder of the course content and activities. This type of approach that often required in the regulatory training areas is currently catered for by SCORM, however these features may change that into the future.
This type of approach can also allow for a more focused targetting of content, providing extra resources to those who are below a certain standard in results but yet allowing others skip the extra information if they have already completed a high enough marking in the quiz or activity.
It may indeed make course creation more complex in that it needs more thought and planning, but the number of options it offers to the teacher, lecturer and corporate training alike means it will be much used feature than many will seek to master.
For more information on this feature check out Moodle docs:
http://docs.moodle.org/en/Conditional_activities and http://docs.moodle.org/en/Activity_completion
