Office of the Provost
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Academic Policies

Learning Management System Policy

POLICY NUMBER: PO-53
EFFECTIVE DATE: September 1, 2020
REVISION DATE: November 20, 2023
SUPERSEDES: N/A
RESPONSIBLE EXECUTIVE: Provost

I. Purpose and Application

The Learning Management System (LMS) policy has two purposes.  First, it designates Drexel Learn as the official LMS of Drexel University.  Second, it mandates that faculty must use Drexel Learn in most courses. 

II. Scope

This policy applies to all students, faculty, and professional staff.

III. Implementation

Implementation of this policy is the responsibility of the Office of the Provost. For inquiries regarding this policy, please contact the Office of the Provost at provost@drexel.edu.

IV. Statement of Policy and Procedure

A. Designation of Drexel Learn as the official Learning Management System (LMS)

Drexel Learn is the official Learning Management System (LMS) of Drexel University. It is centrally supported and administered by Drexel University's Information Technology Group (ITG).

This LMS is intended to be compliant with:

  • Federal regulations on student monitoring for testing and evaluation
  • Federal regulations regarding verification of student identity
  • Federal regulations and copyright laws whereby copyrighted materials are made available for restricted access in conjunction with the Acceptable Use Policy
  • Federal regulations on the availability of assistive technology
  • Drexel’s Intellectual Property policy, including considerations of faculty intellectual property for educational materials

B. Designation of required use of the LMS for instruction

1.  Required usage. All university courses shall use a Drexel Learn course shell.

  • Modality. The required use of the shell includes all teaching modalities (e.g., face-to-face, hybrid, online)
  • Exceptions. Exceptions to this policy include: i) independent study courses, ii) research and thesis courses.
  • Courses with multiple sections. For courses consisting of multiple sections (e.g., a course consisting of both a lecture and lab section), at least one section of the course must use the Drexel Learn shell.  It is at the discretion of the instructor if/whether to use the Drexel Learn shells for multiple sections in such a course.

2.   Required nature of usage. Faculty must use the course shell for:

  • Content distribution. Disseminate digital / electronic course content (including the course syllabus);
  • Notifications. Send notifications and group messages to the students in the course;
  • Grades. Store and share student course grades.

3.   Additional technologies. Additional technologies can be utilized to augment the feature set of the LMS.

  • Compliance. These technologies need to conform to the same guidelines as the official LMS with regard to federal regulations, security protocols, etc. as outlined by Procurement Services.
  • Integration. These technologies should integrate with the LMS wherever possible to ensure compliance with necessary guidelines. If utilizing non-integrated technologies in the classroom, the course shell in the LMS should be used as a dashboard and portal providing links to the technology along with details regarding the privacy policy and technical support information for students.

4.   Grandfathered LMS approvals. This policy does not apply to previously approved LMS deployments supported by individual schools and colleges, or to emerging LMS services under development or in use for a specialized purpose.

5.   Course archival and removal. Courses will be archived and removed from the LMS two years after the end date of the course’s assigned term following the DU IT Course Removal and Archive Procedure.

V. Keywords and Definitions

N/A

VI. Related Policies, Forms and Resources

A. Related Policies

  1. Acceptable Use Policy (IT-1)
  2. DU IT Course Removal and Archive Procedure
  3. Intellectual Property
  4. Suspension of Normal University Operations

B. Forms and Resources

  1. Appendix A: Support for Drexel Learn, including technical issues, resources, workshops and training.

VII. Policy History

Policy Effective: September 1, 2020
Policy Revision: November 20, 2023 (Expedited)