Forum Discussion

AnthonyRich-427's avatar
AnthonyRich-427
Community Member
4 years ago

Online Learning Platforms vs Learning Management Sytems

Hi,

Could someone please explain what the are the main differences between an Online Learning Platform and a Learning Management System?

Thanks

Ant

  • Hi Anthony,

    As far as I know that's two names for the same thing :) Is someone telling you they're different?

  • DavidGoodman's avatar
    DavidGoodman
    Community Member

    A different point of view for you Ant. When people (especially tech sales) talk about learning platforms they really are talking about different tech than the normal LMS. The average LMS is very SCORM centric with people courses, scores etc and that about covers their offering. The 'platform' advocates are really talking about learning services that go beyond the 'course and person' dialogue. The platform may cover the ability to push 'courses', pdfs, videos, external but related research or performance topics that are also associated with the primary learning topic. The platform does not see training as solely a course it moves move that  into the 'learning' aspects of content, curation, mini-content nuggets, strong use of xAPI, performance metrics, data visualization, anytime learning, competency crosswalks with learning content, etc. The platform is the bigger universe and view of learning as needed, when needed by a person or for the entire company. If I misread or misinterpreted your question, just blame my tired mind! Regards.

    • AllisonLaMotte's avatar
      AllisonLaMotte
      Staff

      I see what you mean David! That being said, I feel like a lot of people use these terms interchangeably. I wouldn't put a lot of stock into which term is used, I would instead focus on the features that are offered.