Every Moodle platform faces the same core challenges: maintaining performance under pressure, keeping systems secure, designing clear and accessible courses, supporting meaningful assessment, managing integrations, and navigating emerging topics such as AI.
To help Moodle administrators, educators, and digital learning teams tackle these challenges, our global team of Moodle experts created the 12 Expert Tips series. Each short tip focuses on a practical improvement you can apply immediately, whether you manage a large institutional platform or support course teams day to day.
While the tips were originally shared as part of a festive video series, the guidance itself is designed to be useful all year round.
Jump to a Tip
- Diagnosing Performance Issues
- Improving Moodle Performance
- Always Check Student View
- Start Troubleshooting With Permissions
- Improve Quiz Defaults for Better Feedback
- Strengthening Moodle Security
- Organising Test Users
- Unlocking the Power of Profile Fields
- Using Dataflows for Moodle Integrations
- Begin AI Work with Governance
- How to Use the Moodle Tracker
- Why Community Matters
1. Diagnosing Moodle Performance Issues
Mark Johnson – Senior Software Developer, Catalyst IT Europe
Mark recommends setting up diagnostic tools such as XHProf and Catalyst’s Excimer profiler before something goes wrong, giving you fast insight into bottlenecks when issues appear.
Why it matters
Prepared diagnostics significantly reduce downtime and troubleshooting pressure. Without them, teams often rely on guesswork, which delays resolutions. With profiling tools in place, administrators can spot slow queries, heavy plugins or misconfigured themes in minutes rather than hours.
Watch the video here
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2. Improving Moodle Performance in 4.5
Brendan Heywood – Staff Engineer, Catalyst IT Australia
Catalyst has been working extensively on performance improvements within Moodle. These enhancements have now been backported into Moodle 4.5, delivering measurable gains. Brendan explains why upgrading to the latest Moodle 4.5 patch release is one of the fastest ways to improve speed, stability, and scalability.
Why it matters
Performance affects everything: load times, assessment peaks, and user satisfaction. Institutions running older versions often experience slow page rendering or bottlenecks when large cohorts log in at once. Upgrading ensures your platform benefits from the latest optimisations, giving learners a smoother experience throughout the year.
Watch the video here
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3. Always Check Student View
Sam Taylor – Digital Learning Team Lead, Catalyst IT Europe
Sam explains why reviewing your course in student view is the fastest way to spot gaps, unclear instructions, or navigation issues before learners encounter them.
Why it matters
Seeing the course as a learner reduces confusion, supports accessibility, and strengthens course quality. Even small refinements, such as clarifying labels or adjusting indentation, can significantly improve navigation. Student view helps educators anticipate misunderstandings and create more confident learners.
Watch the video here
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4. Start Troubleshooting With Permissions
Peter Burnett – Software Developer, Catalyst IT Australia
Peter points out that many confusing Moodle issues originate from permissions. A quick check can save hours of unnecessary debugging.
Why it matters
Permissions underpin almost every user interaction, so small changes can have large effects. An incorrectly assigned role or capability can instantly disrupt course access, grading workflows or activity visibility. Starting with permissions saves time and ensures issues are resolved at the root.
Watch the video here
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5. Improve Quiz Defaults for Better Feedback
Marcus Green – Senior eLearning Technical Consultant, Catalyst IT Europe
Marcus recommends adjusting default quiz behaviour so learners receive immediate, meaningful feedback, improving understanding without increasing teacher workload.
Why it matters
Feedback timing is one of the strongest drivers of assessment effectiveness. Setting helpful defaults reduces the administrative load on teaching staff while ensuring learners receive clarity at the moment they need it. Strong defaults also support consistency across large teams.
Watch the video here
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6. Strengthening Moodle Security
Dale Davies – Software Developer Team Lead, Catalyst IT Europe
Dale highlights three quick steps to strengthen your platform:
• enable Multi-Factor Authentication
• turn on reCAPTCHA (including for password resets)
• Review your password policy
Why it matters
Security lapses often come from overlooked configuration details that can be fixed in minutes. These settings dramatically reduce automated attacks and protect user accounts during peak login periods. Strong defaults reduce the support burden on administrators and strengthen trust across your institution.
Watch the video here
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7. Organising Test Users
Tish Kirkland – eLearning Consultant, Catalyst IT New Zealand
Tish’s simple naming method (“0001 Test User”, “0002 Test User”… ) keeps test accounts organised and easy to manage.
Why it matters
Clean admin organisation saves significant time over the academic year. When test accounts are consistent and easy to identify, teams can run simulations, check permissions and troubleshoot confidently. It also helps new staff quickly understand testing conventions.
Watch the video here
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8. Unlocking the Power of Profile Fields
Mark Glynn – Head of Business Development, Catalyst IT Europe
Profile fields can personalise learning journeys, streamline reporting, and automate processes. Mark shares how to design them effectively.
Why it matters
Good profile structures enhance data accuracy and platform intelligence. Custom fields can help segment learners, automate enrolments or tailor communication. When used well, they reduce manual work and make Moodle feel more personalised for both staff and students.
Watch the video here
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9. Using Dataflows for Moodle Integrations
Dan Marsden – Catalyst IT New Zealand
Dan introduces Dataflows and recommends using the Catalyst-developed Dataflows plugin to automate data exchange between Moodle and external systems.
Why it matters
Dataflows empowers teams to build and maintain connections that previously required developer expertise, making your platform more adaptable and reducing manual processes across the organisation. Dataflows simplifies integrations, reduces manual effort, and keeps data consistent across systems, helping teams work more efficiently and with greater confidence.
Watch the video here
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10. Begin AI Work With Governance
Ruby Grewal – COO, Catalyst IT Canada
Ruby encourages institutions to start their AI journey with clear governance: who can access AI tools, how they’re used, and what safeguards apply.
Why it matters
Strong governance ensures safe, confident adoption of AI across teaching, assessment and administration. Without clear policies, institutions risk inconsistency, compliance issues or unintended misuse. Governance-first planning gives teams clarity and a stable foundation for future experimentation.
Watch the video here
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11. How to Use the Moodle Tracker
Cameron Ball – Senior Software Architect, Catalyst IT Australia
Cameron explains how to follow issues, raise ideas, and contribute to conversations in the Moodle Tracker, helping shape future releases.
Why it matters
Moodle grows stronger when institutions share insights and collaborate. Engaging with the Tracker gives teams visibility into future features, allows them to shape priorities and helps the community benefit from shared problem-solving. It’s also a great way to stay aligned with Moodle HQ’s roadmap.
Watch the video here
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12. Why Community Matters
Ghada El-Zoghbi – COO, Catalyst IT Australia
Ghada closes the series by celebrating the strength of the Moodle community, where shared challenges become shared solutions.
Why it matters
Open source thrives when knowledge is shared freely and transparently. Participating in the Moodle community gives institutions early insight into emerging trends, connects them with global peers and helps shape tools that benefit everyone.
Watch the video here
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Applying these tips in practice
Small improvements, applied consistently, can make a meaningful difference to the performance, security, and usability of your Moodle platform.
Whether you are planning an upgrade, reviewing assessment workflows, strengthening security controls, or exploring smarter ways to use data, these tips are designed to help you take practical next steps with confidence.
If you would like support applying any of these ideas, our global team works alongside institutions to help them optimise Moodle that align with your goals and long-term strategy.
With Catalyst, you have the Freedom to Innovate.
