LearnDash BuddyPress Integration: A Double Bonanza

Online Learning Management Systems are a growing rage in the educational space. An increasing number of education providers are taking their classrooms online due to it’s innumerable advantages such as simplicity, cost-effectiveness, flexibility etc. So, with an increasing number of people shifting online it is important to incorporate varied features to your online LMS. Of Course, do not add features to the point of making the system complicated. That’s not the intention here. The main aim here is to provide the users with an enriched user experience while keeping the system simple. Two aspects that will back this aim are a gamified LMS and an interactive LMS

In recent times, LearnDash has emerged as an extremely valuable player in the LMS domain and has the gamification aspect covered with their integration of Badge OS with LearnDash.

Hence, in continuation, we will use LearnDash as our preferred choice of learning management system to introduce the second facet i.e. an interactive LMS. This facet can be covered with LearnDash BuddyPress Integration Solution

What to Expect from LearnDash BuddyPress Integration

Currently, LearnDash provides users with a feature to create groups and assign a leader to the group. This functionality allows group leaders to map the progress of members in the group. However, it does not allow communication between any two members of the group. To achieve this functionality,  Learndash will have to be integrated with BuddyPress. On integrating LearnDash with BuddyPress, each time a group is created in Learndash a carbon copy of the group will also be created for BuddyPress. And the creation of a group in BuddyPress would mean the opening up of some great features as below.

1. Student – Leader Groups

• While eLearning can provide a flexible learning module for students a hurdle that is often encountered by students is the high turn around time for any queries they might have.
• Thus including an option to create student – leader groups based on the course being provided would largely help solve this hurdle.
• Using such groups, students can post their queries on the group forum. These queries can be answered by other students and group leaders alike thereby reducing the turnaround time for queries.
• Additionally, the creation of student leader groups would encourage a cumulative learning process and can be used as a platform for bouncing off ideas related to the course. These groups thus prove useful not only great for those directly involved in the conversation but also for those who are merely spectators.

2. Groups for Group Leaders

• An option can be provided by the LearnDash BuddyPress Integration to create groups based on user levels. So, if group leaders want to create a specific group to discuss teaching methods, course content, student progress, experiences etc an ‘only leaders‘ group will provide a precise platform for such discussions.
• A leader only group will not only be beneficial in improving group leader experience but also improve the LMS as a whole in terms of course content and teaching methodology. Here too the concept of usefulness to all is applied since messages and discussions in a group are available to all.

3. Notifications for Group Users

• In the above two points, I spoke about how all members of a group benefit from discussions in a group. But to constantly keep a watch on various activities in a group is not only impossible but also illogical.
• That’s where LearnDash BuddyPress Integration comes in, as it allows users of a particular group to be notified on the occurrence of various activities in a group.
• So now, each time a user receives a message, or a user is mentioned in an update, or a member replies to an update or comment you’ve posted, or a user gets a friend request the user gets a notification of the same. Basically. the user will be notified following any activity in the group concerning the user.

4. Private Messaging Feature

• So, that was about groups that we discussed above. But, what if a student or group leader wants to have an individual discussion instead of a public one. For example, a student wants to discuss with a group leader his performance on a particular course. In that case, users should be provided with an option of an exclusive conversation.
• That’s where the private messaging feature comes in. Learndash BuddyPress Integration will allow users to converse privately with other members through messages. Sounds good, right?

Benefits of LearnDash BuddyPress Integration

Making LearnDash BuddyPress Integration a reality means incorporating a host of new features to the learning management system. Adding these features would give the end user with a completely new LMS and a completely new perspective towards online learning. The following would are some of the perceived benefits of the integration:

• Improved learning process.
• Cumulative learning.
• Platform for collaboration of ideas.
• Improved turnaround time for queries.

So, now get your own version of FaceBook for the eLearning domain by integrating LearnDash with BuddyPress and unleash a host of features for your LMS, making it powerful than ever before.

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• With tags: BuddyPress, learndash, LearnDash BuddyPress Integration, WordPress

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• Tahseen K

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