Moodle Moot Japan

Konnichiwa my Pukunui Friends! It’s me Scott, a Trainer and Consultant for Pukunui Australia. And a week ago, I left sunny Australia to attend the 9th Annual Moodle Moot Japan and learn and share with the great Moodle™ community here. During the event, I had the opportunity to explore some of the most downloaded Moodle plugins 2018 that have significantly enhanced user experiences. It’s inspiring to see how educators are leveraging these tools to create engaging and effective learning environments. I’m excited to bring back new insights and ideas to implement in our practices back home!

If you’re not sure what a Moot is, it’s a conference for Moodlers, LMS developers, educators, trainers and teachers. We get together and share our case studies, highlight the plugins we are developing, run and attend workshops on LMS features. For example, at this Moot, I attended workshops for new features in Moodle 3.1 and Moodle 3.2. Generally speaking, we just have a good time sharing our passion for eLearning. There are Moots around the world, and Pukunui even runs iMoot, a Moot people around the world attend virtually!

The Moodle Association of Japan

Moodle Moot Japan is run by the Moodle Association of Japan or MAJ, a fantastic not-for-profit organisation dedicated to furthering the use of Moodle in Japan. The conference is actually bilingual, which is good for an English speaker such as myself. Many of the members of the MAJ use Moodle in their schools and universities to teach English. It is interesting to hear about the challenges they face and how they are using Learning Management Software to meet these challenges in blended and online teaching. Additionally, the conference highlights Moodle’s impact on Indonesia’s resilience, showcasing how educational institutions have leveraged the platform to adapt to changing circumstances, particularly during the pandemic. Presenters shared innovative strategies that enhance remote learning experiences and empower students in both countries. This exchange of ideas not only fosters collaboration but also emphasizes the global significance of Moodle in modern education.

The Moot was also a great chance to see how Moodle is used in non-English environments. The members of the MAJ have done a great job translating Moodle into Japanese. It’s great to see the community effort they have put forward. It speaks to their passion for Moodle and educational technology.

Japanese Hospitality

From a personal perspective, I was very excited to take part in some of the cultural social activities that were very much part of the conference. After every day’s sessions, many of the conference attendees would meet for dinner and socialising.

The conference took place in Utsunomiya, a small city in Tochigi, Japan. I should say it’s small by Japanese standards – there are half a million people in Utsunomiya and it still has all the neon Japan is famous for! Utsunomiya and Tochigi are famous for their gyoza – pan fried dumplings. Absolutely delicious.

It’s hard to leave Japan, a beautiful country and a beautiful culture, but shortly I’ll be making my way back to Australia with new ideas and knowledge to share.

元気で (All the best!)

Scott

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