The impact of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) in HE

BCS Hampshire Branch, BCS e-Learning SG and Southampton Solent University, 26 June 2013

Timos Almpanis Associate Professor

Learning TechnologiesSouthampton Solent Universitytimos.almpanis@solent.ac.uk

Outline

MOOC history/ definition / context

Types of MOOCs – xMOOCs and cMOOCs

A MOOC example - MOOC Learning Design

MOOC Assessment Tasks

MOOC Future Sustainability

Questions raised by MOOCs for the future of HE

From Open Educational Resources (OERs) to Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)

(Image source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Figure_1_MOOCs_and_Open_Education_Timeline_p6.jpg )

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)

M: massive (?) recruitment rates O: open (?) freely availableO: onlineC: courses (?) not just a repository of resources

Infographic: Rise of the MOOC: http://gettingsmart.com/2013/06/infographic-rise-of-the-moocs/

‘MOOC, every letter is negotiable’ poster: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:MOOC_poster_mathplourde.jpg

Although early MOOCs ran in 2008, they came to prominence in 2012 with the launch of Coursera https://www.coursera.org/ (for profit)EdX https://www.edx.org/ and (non profit)Udacity https://www.udacity.com/ (for profit)

Futurelearn is the UK's response to the USA MOOC platforms named above and their first MOOC is going to be delivered at some point in 2013. www.futurelearn.com

OpenUpEd – PanEuropean MOOC initiative http://www.openuped.eu/

Open2Study – Australian MOOC Platform https://www.open2study.com/

Dr Precarious Discusses MOOCs

MOOC Types - a simplistic categorisation: xMOOCs and cMOOCs

Collection of Resources (xMOOC)or Connectivist Pedagogy (cMOOC)?

xMOOCs: resource based, videoed lectures, tasks

cMOOCs: based on connectivism (Siemens and Downes), according to which:

‘Connectivism is the integration of principles explored by chaos, network, and complexity and self organization theories. Learning is a process that occurs within nebulous environments of shifting core elements – not entirely under the control of the individual. Learning (defined as actionable knowledge) can reside outside ourselves (within an organization or a database), is focused on connecting specialized information sets, and the connections that enable us to learn more are more important than our current state of knowing’ (Siemens 2004).

MOOC Grid 12 dimensionsConole’s evaluation grid

http://e4innovation.com/?p=727&utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer&utm_content=bufferdb90c

MOOCs @ Edinburgh on Coursera platform

A MOOC example – #edcmooc

E-Learning and Digital Cultures MOOC by Edinburgh University on Coursera platform

A MOOC example – #edcmooc 2(Source:Jeremy Knox webinar)

A Mooc Example (EDCMOOC)- Learning Design

E-Learning and Digital Cultures – #EDCMOOC example (On Coursera, delivered by Edinburgh University)

Learning resources in various formats (text, images, video)Weekly formative activities such as discussion forumsMultiple platforms utilised – FB groups, Twitter chats, Google+

Moderators’ Role

Initiate the discussions but then have limited, selective involvement due to time limitations and moderate the forums only occasionally.

Five people were moderating, spending one day per week each / 25 academic days spent for delivery + 30 academic days in advance for designTotal 55 academic days (for a 5 week long, level 4 MOOC)

Assessment Tasks and Peer Assessment

Due to the vast numbers of participants, assessments in MOOCs are opting for one of the following two practices:

a) automated assessments via quizzes or

b) peer assessment of coursework, which may be a short written article or other type of coursework, such as a digital artefact.

Both practices’ biggest advantage is that they are time effective from the tutors point of view as they require no tutor intervention.

Some of the limitations of such methods include fitness for purpose, inability to detect academic misconduct including false identity, plagiarism and collusion, as well as inconsistent marking.

Example Coursework for the E-Learning & Digital Cultures MOOC:#edcmooc digital artefacts http://padlet.com/wall/edcmooc_artefact

MOOCs @ Edinburgh 2013 – Report #1

Objectives

- Outreach to new audiences

- Experimentation with online delivery methods at large scale

- Learn lessons that might be applied elsewhere in their portfolio

- Reinforce their position as a leader in the use of educational technology

‘The University of Edinburgh did not enter the Coursera platform with monetisation as an aim, but we were open to possiblities in this area, unclear as these were in the early stages’.

The MOOC Quality Projecthttp://mooc.efquel.org/week-3-forget-the-learners-how-do-i-measure-a-mooc-quality-experience-for-me

Major MOOC stakeholders as seen by Dave Cormier (learners aside)

Researcher/Activist/Community Organizer

Higher Education Institutions

Governments

Venture Capitalists

Stand-alone MOOCs

OLDSMOOC http://www.olds.ac.uk/ Appr. 1000 participants were registered according to McAndrew

ocTEL http://octel.alt.ac.uk/tag/octel/Appr. 800 participants according to Hawksey

MOOC Future Sustainability

MOOCs are a kind of soft marketing for Universities involved

Private and Public funding: start-up companies working with top Universities to deliver MOOCs

MOOCs are offered currently for free, but this is not a sustainable solution, since there are many costs involved (platform, course design and delivery costs)

Some MOOCs have started charging for the final certificate

There is speculation that some MOOCs may provide academic credit in the future

Universities UK MOOC report Areas for consideration

Questions raised by MOOCs

How can learning in MOOCs be measured/quality assured?

Can we trust the future of HE to venture capitalists?

Are the employers globally going to become interested in MOOCs statements of completion?

If recorded video lectures are as effective as face-to-face lectures, how is that going to affect learning on campus? Will MOOCs enforce traditional Universities to focus more on seminars, small group and individual tutoring, coaching and high quality feedback on fit-

for-purpose assessments?

Are MOOCs going to create a 'global localisation' where participants study a series of global MOOCs, then come to a nearby campus to 'top up' their learning, get assessed

and certified?

Will MOOCs have an impact on the paid for, generic, online distance learning courses?

What do Dr Precarious and Dr Gregarious have to say about all this?

Dr Precarious Vs Dr Precarious MOOC Debate

ReferencesAlmpanis, T (in press) MOOCs: A first-hand experience on EDC MOOC and a speculation of their future impact in Higher Education, in Dialogue 4 http://ssudl.solent.ac.uk/2588/

Guzdial, M (2013) MOOCs are a fundamental misperception of how teaching workshttp://computinged.wordpress.com/2013/01/04/moocs-are-a-fundamental-misperception-of-how-learning-works

Hawksey, M (2013) #ocTEL: Outline of an Open Coursehttp://mashe.hawksey.info/2013/04/outline-of-an-open-course-maximising-email-push-with-mailpress/

Korn, M (2013) Big Mooc Coursera Moves Closer to Academic Acceptancehttp://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324906004578288341039095024.html

Lederman, D (2013) Inside Higher Ed: Expanding Pathways to MOOC Credithttp://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/02/07/ace-deems-5-massive-open-courses-worthy-credit#ixzz2KCuQ7KKB

MacAndrew: learning from Open Design: running a Learning Design MOOC, e-learning papers, 33 http://elearningeuropa.info/en/article/Learning-from-Open-Design%3A-Running-a-Learning-Design-MOOC

References

Morrison, D (2013) A Tale of Two MOOCs: Divided by Pedagogyhttp://onlinelearninginsights.wordpress.com/2013/03/04/a-tale-of-two-moocs-coursera-divided-by-pedagogy/ Mazoue, J (2013) The MOOC Model: Challenging Traditional Educationhttp://www.educause.edu/ero/article/mooc-model-challenging-traditional-education

MOOCs @ Edinburgh 2013 – Report #1 http://www.era.lib.ed.ac.uk/bitstream/1842/6683/1/Edinburgh%20MOOCs%20Report%202013%20%231.pdf

Siemens, G (2005) Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Agehttp://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm

Universities UK MOOC Report – MOOCs: higher education’s digital moment? http://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/highereducation/Pages/MOOCsHigherEducationDigitalMoment.aspx