Moodle 4 Upgrade - Summer 2023

The FPU learning management system (LMS) Moodle upgrade implementation is well underway and will be getting a much-needed makeover this summer. The upgrade will bring a new look-and-feel and an enhanced teaching and learning experience to FPU’s learning platform.

When will the Moodle 4 upgrade take place?

The Moodle 4 upgrade is scheduled to begin with the summer session on Monday, May 15, 2023. Moodle will be inaccessible for part of the day while the upgrade is applied. This date was very carefully chosen to minimize disruption to courses, grading, and registration with respect to all academic populations and calendars.

How will the upgrade affect my courses?

All courses and content will appear on the new Moodle 4 site once the upgrade is completed. Faculty teaching a summer course should have any existing course content transferred prior to the Moodle 4 upgrade. After the upgrade, there may be some minor changes to styling of elements that may need to be addressed due to the new look of the site.

What changes can I look forward to in Moodle 4?

The following is a quick overview of the new features and tools that will become available following the upgrade:

  • New Look and Feel
    The landing page is redesigned with a simplified, intuitive workflow, a contemporary look and feel, and an enhanced mobile experience.
  • Updated Icons
    Moodle 4 comes with updated icons providing a consistent visual design.
  • Improved Responsiveness and Accessibility
    The upgraded Moodle site is designed to be fully responsive on mobile devices and to display consistently across devices. That means you can log into Moodle directly in the browser on your mobile device and have a better experience when accessing most system tools.
  • Dashboard
    The Dashboard page is customizable and sorts your courses into a timeline, so that you can focus on the courses that are currently active. You can search for courses by name or filter the view. You can also view activities and due dates on a calendar.
  • Enhanced System Performance with 2-Year Course List
    Beginning with the transition to Moodle 4, users will be able to view their courses for the past two years. Courses older than two years will be archived for an additional three (3) years on a separate site. Courses older than five (5) years will be permanently removed from the system. This process will optimize site performance and enhance the user experience. Current courses older than five (5) years will be ‘deep-archived’ until the end of academic year 2024, after which they will be permanently removed from archive.

Is the Moodle 4 upgrade necessary?

Yes! The upgrade is vital to maintaining a healthy and vibrant learning management system for teaching and learning at the university. Our current Moodle installation is out of date in 3 primary ways:

  • Security: The current version of Moodle we are using is no longer supported for security updates.
  • Theme: The new Moodle site theme provides enhanced accessibility features for neurodiverse learners
  • Site Performance: To enhance system performance, functionality, responsiveness and speed, courses older than two (2) years are migrated off of the Live Moodle site and archived on a separate site for an additional 3 years.