CourseStorm

CourseStorm is a learning management system being used in Maine for enrichment focused learning.  It is designed to help learning providers and learners coordinate registration for classes, as well as support identifying new learning opportunities.  One feature that stands out to me is that as a learner, when I register for a course, there is a social feature that allows a link to be sent to my circle of friends and they can tag onto my registration.   For a family, this would be great because a parent could register multiple children for the same course at the same time.   

Features allow the learning provider to directly email announcements or notifications to all registered for the course.  As far as I can tell, this is not a two-way communication tool, so once a learner inputs information at first, any other communication with the provider would need to happen using a different tool. 

Evaluation of Communication Tool: ___CourseStorm_______________

Criterion	Score (1-4)	Notes
Engagement	1	Easy to enter beginning data, but unsure future communication.
Relevance	2	Has merit to align, but not sure how students would use.
Developmentally Appropriate	2	Limited communication with student users – hard to measure.
Safeguards/Monitoring	4	Multiple security features.
Ability for User Feedback	1	One way communication.
Cost/Accessibility	4	It is accessible on multiple platforms and designed for mobile use.   $2 fee/student if registering for a course with a fee.

I am interested in following the progression of CourseStorm, as it is a current partner with MSOL, and will be a host for issuing digital badges.  As a learning provider, I will have control for the definitions what criteria earns a digital badge, and the design for the badge itself.  The part I’m not sure about… how does CourseStorm lend itself to measuring and communicating with students applying to earn a badge?