Navigating Massive Open Online Courses

2014

This review of research explores characteristics associated with massive open online courses (MOOCs). Three key characteristics are revealed: varied definitions of openness, barriers to persistence, and a distinct structure that takes the form as one of two pedagogical approaches. The concept of openness shifts among different MOOCs, models, researchers, and facilitators. The high dropout rates show that the barriers to learning are a significant challenge. Research has focused on engagement, motivation, and presence to mitigate risks of learner isolation. The pedagogical structure of the connectivist MOOC model (cMOOC) incorporates a social, distributed, networked approach and significant learner autonomy that is geared towards adult lifelong learners interested in personal or professional development. This connectivist approach relates to situated and social learning theories such as social constructivism (Kop, 2011). By contrast, the design of the Stanford Artificial Intelligence...

Journal of Adult Education, 2013

AbstractThe challenges that massive open online courses (MOOCs) bring to the learning arena spur adult educators to improve delivery. A framework for a new type of MOOC is presented to address some of the challenges presented by earlier models. This new MOOC, called a mesoMOOC, can bridge several challenges that hinder current effective delivery of MOOCs and utilize proven strategies in online learning to better implement MOOCs. The framework for the mesoMOOC calls for MOOC designers to address the orientation process, embed a connectivist synchronous component to the classroom, provide online formative and summative assessment, and develop subsections within classes.IntroductionIn spite of the development of massive open online courses (MOOCs) as a form of adult learning, adult educators as a whole have not been at the forefront of ensuring that effective pedagogical and andragogical principles have been embedded in the process. Thus, not all forward movement has been characterized...

Yuksekogretim Dergisi, 2017

M M assive Open Online Courses (MOOC) are built on the impression that "information is everywhere" by extending access to education. A MOOC is a course, but it is open, distributed, participatory, and part of lifelong network learning. The underlying idea of a MOOC is accessibility, since anyone can participate by working collaboratively either to acquire new knowledge or to expand existing knowledge. This implies that MOOCs create a pathway for lifelong learning processes. MOOCs are online classes in which anyone can participate, regardless of location, in most cases for free. They are comprised of short video lectures, simulations, and online labs combined with computer-graded tests and online forums where participants can discuss the course content or get help (Hoy, 2014). Basically, MOOCs are a form of online learning that share some common features: open access using the Internet, free of charge, asynchronous, interactive user forums, and the opportunity to receive a certificate upon successful completion (EDUCAUSE, 2011). Student Üçüncü nesil uzaktan e¤itim kapsam›nda kitlesel aç›k eriflim çevrimiçi dersler (massive open online courses, MOOC'lar) sayesinde yüksek ö¤renimde herkes is-tedi¤i yerden ücretsiz e¤itim alabilmektedir. Son y›llarda, e¤itimde MO-OC'lar›n yeri üzerine birçok çal›flma yap›lm›flt›r, ancak ö¤rencilerin kazan›m-lar› üzerine olan çal›flmalar s›n›rl›d›r. Bu çal›flmada, aç›k eriflim çevrimiçi derslerin tasarlanmas›na yönelik birtak›m önerileri belirlemek amac›yla, ö¤rencilerin MOOC'lardaki kazan›mlar›na iliflkin literatürü gözden geçirildi. ‹nceleme, bilimsel literatür veritabanlar›n›n sistematik olarak araflt›r›lmas›n›n ard›ndan, 3P (presage [öngörü], process [süreç] ve product [ürün]) ö¤retim ve ö¤renim modelinin temel bileflenlerine yönelik elefltirel bir analizle gerçeklefltirildi (Biggs, 2003). 56 yay›n›n bulgular› sentezlenerek, ö¤rencilerin kat›l›m›n› ve akademik baflar›y› gelifltirmek ve terk etme oranlar›n› düflürmek amac›yla 13 ders tasar›-m› önerisi gelifltirildi. Gerek ileriki araflt›rmalarda incelenmek üzere gerek ise de MOOC'lar›n mevcut içeri¤ini gelifltirerek ve zenginlefltirerek ö¤renim ka-zan›mlar›n› en iyi hale getirmek için baz› uygulama önerileri sunuldu.

Open Praxis, 2021

The purpose of this research is to examine the research that has been done on MOOCs by applying data mining and analytic approaches and to depict the current state of MOOC research. The text mining revealed four broad themes: (I) MOOCs as a mainstreaming learning model in HE, (II) motivation and engagement issues in MOOCs, (III) assessment issues in MOOCs, and (IV) MOOCs for social learning. The social network analysis indicated that MOOCs are a significant aspect of online education and that learning analytics are considered a solution to current MOOC handicaps. Both pivotal contribution analysis and timeline analysis demonstrated that MOOC research has a heavy focus on motivation and engagement, high drop out and low retention rates, and instructional quality. Overall, the research concludes that the first wave of MOOC research largely concentrated on the qualitative characteristics of the phenomenon, while the second and third waves of MOOC research concentrated on the quantitative characteristics.

Educational Researcher, 2014

In massive open online courses (MOOCs), low barriers to registration attract large numbers of students with diverse interests and backgrounds, and student use of course content is asynchronous and unconstrained. The authors argue that MOOC data are not only plentiful and different in kind, but require reconceptualization-new educational variables or different interpretations of existing variables. The authors illustrate this by demonstrating the inadequacy or insufficiency of conventional interpretations of four variables for quantitative analysis and reporting: enrollment, participation, curriculum, and achievement. Drawing from 230 million clicks from 154,763 registrants for a prototypical MOOC offering in 2012, the authors present new approaches to describing and understanding user behavior in this emerging educational context. Increases in the amount and kind of educational data offer researchers new opportunities to observe, analyze, and ultimately improve the learning process. As educational contexts change, however, the quantitative variables that we use to describe them can take on inertia. The Changing "Course": Reconceptualizing Educational Variables for Massive Open Online Courses uncritical application of old variables to new contexts risks irrelevant or inaccurate interpretations. In this paper, we argue that massive open online courses (MOOCs) not only offer more and different data but also have different parameters as part of their character.

Computers & Education, 2018

This paper presents a narrative review of the literature related to the landscape of learning and teaching in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). Past reviews of the MOOC literature have primarily focused on identifying trends and categorising MOOC studies. Syntheses of recent empirical contributions on learning and teaching in MOOCs are scarce. This review evaluated academic studies published between 2014 and 2016 on the learning and teaching aspects of MOOCs. These studies were analysed using Biggs' 3P Model of Teaching and Learning as an organising framework. The analysis examines four key learning and teaching factors: learner factors, teaching context, learner engagement, and learning outcomes. Five important findings emerged from this analysis: (1) evidence-based research on non-mainstream consumers of MOOCs is scarce; (2) the role of learner factors is oversimplified in evidence-based MOOC research; (3) there is no attempt to reconcile different approaches to measuring learner engagement with MOOCs; (4) measures of learning outcomes lack sophistication and are often based on single variables; and (5) the relationships between many of the key learning and teaching factors have not been clarified. It is argued that continuing to study learning and teaching factors in isolation without considering how they interact with each other does not move the research field forward. Keywords Massive Open Online Courses; MOOCs; review; engagement; teaching and learning 3.3. Article search strategies The search strategies employed in this study are displayed in Figure 2. Keywords were identified through screening titles, abstracts, and keywords of MOOC literature. Keywords representing learner factors, teaching context, learner engagement, and learning outcomes were paired with 'Massive Open Online Course(s)', 'MOOC(s)' and names of leading MOOC platforms. Five electronic databases (ERIC, Google/Google Scholar, ProQuest, Scopus, and Web of Science) were searched using the keywords as a filter, and a preliminary list of publications was acquired. Both UK and US spellings of terms were used in the article search process.

Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 2014

This review of research explores characteristics associated with massive open online courses (MOOCs). Three key characteristics are revealed: varied definitions of openness, barriers to persistence, and a distinct structure that takes the form as one of two pedagogical approaches. The concept of openness shifts among different MOOCs, models, researchers, and facilitators. The high dropout rates show that the barriers to learning are a significant challenge. Research has focused on engagement, motivation, and presence to mitigate risks of learner isolation. The pedagogical structure of the connectivist MOOC model (cMOOC) incorporates a social, distributed, networked approach and significant learner autonomy that is geared towards adult lifelong learners interested in personal or professional development. This connectivist approach relates to situated and social learning theories such as social constructivism (Kop, 2011). By contrast, the design of the Stanford Artificial Intelligence (AI) model (xMOOC) uses conventional directed instruction in the context of formal postsecondary educational institutions. This traditional pedagogical approach is categorized as cognitive-behaviorist (Rodriguez, 2012). These two distinct MOOC models attract different audiences, use different learning approaches, and employ different teaching methods. The purpose of this review is to synthesize the research describing the phenomenon of MOOCs in informal and postsecondary online learning.

Contemporary Educational Technology, 2016

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) as a new approach to distance education, which originated from the open education resources (OER) movement, are becoming widespread throughout the world. Over time, early versions of cMOOCs have undergone changes in terms of use, name and structure. In their short life, MOOCs have been categorized into different taxonomies depending on, for example, their types, pedagogies, orientations, target participants, resources and content. This article proposes a new taxonomy to position MOOCs on two dimensions: massiveness and openness, which brings a fresh perspective for understanding varieties of MOOCs based on the two definitional elements. The dimensions of massiveness and openness are identified and discussed. Based on these, we conclude two dimensional matrix with four categories: (i) small scale and less open, (ii) small scale and more open, (iii) large scale and less open, (iv) large scale and more open. This classification provides a comprehensive description of different types of MOOCs which could be helpful to answer the necessities of MOOC providers, educators, students, and researchers.

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) have drastically changed the way we learn as well as how we teach. The main aim of MOOCs is to provide new opportunities to a massive number of learners to attend free online courses from anywhere all over the world. MOOCs have unique features that make it an effective technology-enhanced learning (TEL) model in higher education and beyond. The number of academic publications around MOOCs has grown rapidly in the last few years. The purpose of this paper is to compile and analyze the state-of-the-art in MOOC research that has been conducted in the past five years. A template analysis was used to map the conducted research on MOOCs into seven dimensions, namely concept, design, learning theories, case studies, business model, targets groups, and assessment. This classification schema aims at providing a comprehensive overview for readers who are interested in MOOCs to foster a common understanding of key concepts in this emerging field. The paper further suggests new challenges and opportunities for future work in the area of MOOCs that will support communication between researchers as they seek to address these challenges.