LMS QA: The quality assurance processes we follow on our e-learning projects

Discover the quality assurance steps we take to ensure the highest standards of LMS QA.

We work hard to get everything right with the design and build of our learning platforms. But as the old saying goes, it’s better to be safe than sorry. That’s why we also build quality assurance processes into all of our learning management system projects.

Let’s explore quality assurance and our LMS QA processes in more detail.

What is quality assurance?

In learning technologies, quality assurance is the process of making sure that a finished product or service meets defined standards and customer expectations.

This entails implementing a framework that covers the consistency, reliability and quality management of the production processes and final product.

What is LMS QA?

LMS QA is the quality assurance process for learning management systems. We have a long-standing reputation for delivering Moodle and Totara learning platforms. At Synergy Learning we put in place processes that ensure any LMS we deliver meets our own exacting demands and those of our customers.

In common with other types of software QA, our quality assurance processes are mainly about making sure we haven’t overlooked any bugs or problems within a platform. This ensures the LMS is of the highest possible quality before we share it with you.

It’s about quite literally giving us assurance that an LMS is of the quality we expect before we send it out into the world. 

With that in mind, we have a dedicated QA team, which works exclusively on quality assurance of our projects. Quality assurance is much more than giving a finished product the once-over before completion. Our QA testers’ sole purpose is to plan, scrutinise and test on your behalf to ensure that an LMS achieves the highest standards.

Here’s how our LMS QA team sets about doing all of those things.

Our LMS QA processes

These are the steps our QA team follows to ensure that any LMS we create passes quality assurance.

✳️ QA estimation

Our QA team is involved in a project from the moment we have a specification for your LMS. They study the brief and build a quote for the quality assurance aspect of the project, ensuring that part of your budget is allocated to these crucial checks and making sure that everything is working as it should be.

✳️ LMS QA planning

Once our developers and UX team have completed their work on building and designing the new site, your project moves to our QA team, our LMS QA testers also start to think about what things they want to test on your learning platform. 

Taking your specification as their starting point, they will explore the typical user journeys that your learners and admins will be making around the LMS.

They will then prepare test cases. These will enable them to follow the same steps a user will take when navigating around your LMS. They will check for any bugs they encounter on the way.

✳️ LMS QA execution

Using the Xray test management for Jira, our QA team runs test cycles that enable them to follow typical user journeys around your LMS. 

The majority of our tests are run manually, with support from automation. This means our experienced LMS QA testers see exactly what your learners will see as they compare the design and functionality of what we’ve created with your specification. Quality assurance gives peace of mind — for our QA team and for you — that nothing has been overlooked. 

They examine the PHP and coding written by our developers, checking for any bugs and ensuring the functionality fulfils the technical element of your brief. They also explore the user experience, ensuring that the LMS achieves the look and feel of your design requirements.

Our QA testers joke that their role is to annoy developers by finding bugs in an LMS. If they are successful in this mission, they will raise tickets for any issues found during the test cycles. Since our developers and UX team also use Jira, there is full traceability across a central system for handling these tickets.

✳️ Repeat QA testing

Once our developers or designers have tackled any bugs found during the testing cycles, your LMS will come back to our QA team for retesting. This gives our QA testers the opportunity to make sure the issue they highlighted has been resolved correctly and that no new bugs have arisen in the process.

✳️ LMS sign-off

Once our QA team have tested the LMS thoroughly, undertaken their due diligence and are happy that they will be handing over a high quality LMS, we’re ready to sign-off your site for release.

Benefits of LMS QA

There are many advantages of following a custom-made quality assurance process for your new LMS. They include:

✅ Making a better first impression

First impressions can have a significant impact on long-term learner engagement. LMS QA helps to ensure your learners aren’t greeted by frustrating bugs and disrupted learning experiences when they visit your new LMS.

✅ Meaningful scrutiny of your LMS

Our LMS QA processes mean there are people dedicated solely to finding issues with your LMS while it’s being built. This isn’t a weary developer checking over their code; it’s fresh eyes with a focus on finding faults.

✅ Increased LMS security

Catching bugs early during QA processes helps to remove potential vulnerabilities and improve your LMS security.

✅ Reduced LMS costs

Dedicating some of your budget to quality assurance during the build process is far more cost-effective than mitigating and fixing bugs that are found after an LMS goes live. Comprehensive LMS QA processes save money in the long run.

Talk to us about LMS QA

If you’re planning a new or updated LMS and would like your site to go through the rigorous LMS QA checks outlined in this article, get in touch to discuss how we can ensure your learning platform is built to the highest standards. 

Just fill out the form and one of our learning technology experts will be in touch.

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