Let’s say we want to build ourselves a house. We need to first find ourselves a plot of land, build a solid foundation to place the house on, hire a competent architect, then build a solid foundation to build your house on before you can grab your tools and materials and get to work.

A learning management system is a (primarily) online service that acts as both a location for your students to find the educational curriculum you create, as well as a set of tools you as an educator can use to host and display your lessons in a structured way.

So, in the above scenario the modern learning management system within the realm of ubiquitous learning represents both the plot of land, as a fixed address on the internet, the foundation itself, as a platform to build your learning content upon, as well to a smaller degree will act as the architect to your lessons by being the gatekeeper of technical limitations when it comes to structure and what tools you can bring to the table. This is a primary reason why the selection of a learning management system as a precursor to building ubiquitous educational content carries equal importance to setting a solid foundation before building a house upon it.

The Learning Management System is a foundation to ubiquitous learning

Learning Management Systems exist in modern day much in the same conceptual place the PLATO systems existed at the beginning of early computing These are a new breed of technology groups that are not relying on only existing hand-me-down digital tools, but are focused on building new technologies that address the needs of ubiquitous learning directly. Platforms like Open edX, which encourages open source tools for learning to be developed directly from developers, and other more business focused platforms such as Skilljar, Docebo, and elearning authoring tools such as Adobe Captivate are at the forefront of building way to leverage things such as VR, AR, 360 degree video and interactive testing, and allow modern educators to offer learning outside of time, location, and expand the boundaries of what educators can offer without needing to be an expert in the technologies themselves.

With all of the above it’s still important to remember that a learning management system is still just the foundation. It offers the place and the tools, but it’s up to the builder to build a house where people will want to live, just as it's up to an educator to build a learning environment people will want to learn from.