INTRODUCTION TO GECO (GERMAN COURSEWARE ONLINE), A FREE OPEN SOURCE COURSE MANAGEMENT ENVIRONMENT

GECO, a language course management page developed by instructors at Acadia University is a web-based software application that enables instructors to create their own courses online and integrate, display and edit a wide range of digitized materials (any that can be incorporated into an HTML/JAVA environment and accessed by web links).
While originally designed as a foreign language instruction tool for German, GECO lends itself to the teaching/ learning needs of any subject matter, in the Humanities, Natural Sciences, or any other discipline requiring a clear arrangement and integration of digitized materials.
The program includes individual log-in, student registration by class, or multiple sections. The online learning environment offers students a comprehensive combination of material review functions for each contact hour, resource links to grammar explanations, dictionaries and audio/video material. The core of this application is an extensive self-correcting exercise and evaluation component with varied test formats (gap fill, drag and drop, multiple choice, listening and reading comprehension) and a elaborate score-reporting function (to MS-Excel spreadsheets) for exercises created with the authoring program HotPotatoes. In addition a built-in adaptive learning component for HotPotatoes exercises responds to the student’s individual needs in the their learning progression.
This presentation will offer a step by step demonstration of the main functions of the course page (students page and teacher page) and its underlying pedagogical goals.