I recently got asked to talk about the best Moodle books available out there, and why I recommend them. Since I started talking about literature occasionally in my writing, this has been a common occurrence, to be asked for more, and usually, I am delighted, given my public show of moroseness over spending so little time focusing on it prior to.
Unfortunately, in the case of Moodle, while it’s a widely popular and powerful online course and test creation system … there really isn’t a lot of literature on the topic out there, and I’m sorry to say I can only recommend two books, the only two I can seem to find anywhere.
Having scoured Amazon and countless brick and mortar and online book venues, there seems to be very little on the topic. This may be because it’s pretty darn easy to use. Thankfully, Moodle is well-documented on their own site, but some people may find that kind of documentation less helpful than intended.
So, sadly, there are only two best Moodle books on this list, because they seem to be the only two that currently exist. Please, someone correct me if they find other specimens I can take a look at.
#1 – Moodle E-Learning Course Development (William Rice)
This is the one I wasn’t surprised to see, because even with software being insanely easy to use, there needs to be at least one or two entry level books or an insightful “getting the most” book at least. Rice’s book is the latter, taking you from an entry level Moodle user to working this like a pro, designing the most sophisticated, even scholastic-standard courses and tests possible with minimal effort.
Rice’s writing is clear, brief where necessary and verbose where need be as well. He will bring you new ideas not just for how to use the various tricks Moodle can do, but also some tried and true approaches to the basic science of course and test design as well.
This is for the somewhat experienced Moodle user who wants to explore its greater flexibility more professionally, and it serves this purpose well.
#2 – Moodle for Dummies (Radana Dvorak)
Ok, this one surprised me, but when I saw what it showed, I instantly realized why it’s here, and why it’s actually a useful book. The for dummies series has gotten its fair share of cheers and jeers by professionals, but in truth, the unique, kind of informal and very evenly-graded instruction in most of them is very ideal, where a service’s proprietary documentation may not speak the same “language” as an actual user would expect.
Having seen Moodle’s actual documentation on their site, I can see people being very divided on whether it’s amazing documentation, or too clinical. For those who feel it’s the latter, this book is just the thing to get you started.
The best Moodle books, and the only Moodle books, at least they’re competently written and useful. The writing of them is good for the purposes they serve, and they will either educate you in Moodle from the beginning, or elevate your skills past beginner, depending. If this information’s not enough, well, there is the alternative of instructional blogs and Moodle’s own documentation if nothing else.