Motivated by the increased demand from our university staff and students for more efficient and intuitive search capabilities within our rapidly increasing e-learning platform, we have taken an innovative approach to enhance Moodle’s search functionality. Inspired by Google’s search mechanism and the power of Apache’s Lucene search engine, this project provides users with a fast and accurate search experience while exploring Moodle.
The first key aspect is the instant search, giving users real-time results as they type their query. This feature leverages the speed and efficiency of Lucene’s search engine combined with AJAX technology to provide instant feedback and suggestions, giving users the possibility to refine their search queries on the fly. The system not only predicts user intent but also ranks the search results based on relevance, effectively saving valuable time and significantly improving the overall user experience.
The second feature involves an “in-depth/advanced” search including phonetic analysis. In recognition of the increasing importance of language diversity and potential variations in spellings, the system is fitted with phonetic analysis techniques to enhance the search accuracy. By considering the phonetic similarities between words, the search engine can retrieve relevant results even when the query is misspelled. The functionality vastly improves users’ ability to access the desired resources regardless of their spelling proficiency or regional linguistic differences, thereby promoting inclusivity and improving the accessibility of educational materials.
This project sights to combine the power of Lucene’s search engine with the already built-in functionalities of Moodle’s framework to create a seamless and efficient search experience.
By implementing instant search and phonetic analysis, users have faster access to relevant educational resources, which leads to more productivity and engagement. Additionally, this project provides a solid foundation for further exploration and customization, allowing developers to extend the search capabilities based on other institutional requirements.