Learning management systems (LMS) are the new technology of the day—the new classroom if you will. There are several things to consider when settling on an LMS. Of these, there is one vital thing that many people overlook. You should focus on visual elements when selecting an LMS.

1. Why Shouldn’t the LMS Be Cluttered?

There are several reasons that the Learning Management System should not be cluttered. The first is that it affects learning. It steals the children’s attention away from what’s important and decreasing their ability to focus. 

Next, an abundance of clutter gives children sensory overload. Too much is too much. Think about how quickly you want to close out a website that has things everywhere—a website that you can’t figure out how to navigate because it’s so busy or cluttered. Now imagine how a cluttered LMS is for a student.

Clutter also affects behavior. This sensory overload causes ADHD-type behavior. When a child had ADHD or ADD, they are known to have more episodes in the presence of clutter.

Lastly, clutter can give you anxiety. A student already has the possibility of enough anxiety when it comes to school. They don’t need the addition of clutter.

• Why Should the LMS Be Colorful?

Next, the visual elements of a learning management system should include color. Why? There are several reasons, the foremost being that color increases classroom engagement. It affects children’s behavior, mood, and performance.

For instance, red affects attention. Blue creates comfort. Yellow creates happy feelings, among other things. Pink brings calmness, and orange boosts energy.

You must be careful, however, to be strategic with your colors. Be sparing with your bold, strong, and bright colors. Use them with a neutral background. Using too many of these colors will draw the eye in too many directions, having the same effect as too much clutter.

• Why Should the LMS Be Interactive?

Students learn more quickly and are better behaved when they can interact with the lessons. This is understood through the Classroom Management Theories.

In other words, there should be gamification. And I’m not merely talking about gamifying the learning and offering badges and scoreboards for work completed. I’m also talking about integrating games into learning. This may include using word puzzles to teach spelling words or “pop the balloon” type games to teach letters. 

The learning should be personalized to them. Each child learns at a different rate. They also learn through different means. Personalization also means that each student is encouraged and spurred on individually.

Lastly, performance tracking must be adequate. Without something to measure themselves against, students cannot know if they are doing well or not and where they need to do better. 

• Why Must the LMS Be Easily Navigable?

Lastly, the students and parents must find it easy to navigate the learning management system. Firstly, an LMS that is difficult to navigate will turn off potential clients. 

Secondly, it will frustrate those that you already have. When a student cannot find what they are looking for, making their day longer and their anxiety to heighten, they will find it more challenging to focus on the lesson once they do find it and will not be able to retain as much of the information as they could have. 

Lastly, parents who are frustrated with the LMS may not spend as much time with their children in their schooling. When children have parental involvement in their education, they are more successful academically and better behaved.

Conclusion

Focusing on these visual elements is vital to the success of your LMS. More importantly, it is crucial to the success of your students!