Enrolled last week in Stephen Downes NRC01 Personal Learning MOOC and looking forward to the discussions! Already interesting thoughts on ple's and personalized learning as well as the role/place/value/need for an LMS ..... from my contribution to the LMS discussion " Prior to the "digital age", each of us has always "managed" our own learning, and I was (an still am) my LMS. I add subtract, connect, disconnect, accumulate, digest, etc information. I internally "evaluate" that information. When I was younger and "in school", the LMS was my teacher (or teachers). As I grew up my filters were my friends, teachers, parents, etc. The key aspect of myself being the LMS was that it was constantly being reconfigured. What we call an LMS today shares little of those characteristics, I've tried numerous LMS's and they all have inadequate aspects. The students I teach prefer to not use an LMS for those reasons. There is NO personal aspect to it, they have no control within it. Their learning is controlled by someone and something else.So, who is an LMS really for? I have seen faculty who use it to put their canned lectures in and I have seen faculty who have made it sit up and do things no one had envisioned.Without a doubt, it is designed for number crunchers, data miners, faculty, and administrators. Can it be a useful tool? Sure, in this "digital age" it can (and does) facilitate the learning process, especially among time and distance based learners. Is it the best option? I don't know. Such tools are constantly undergoing change and development. Just my thoughts and perceptions."