This workshop was held as part of the HEA Enhancement Event 'Technology enhanced learning: What can we learn from MOOCs?'. The presentation forms part of a blog post about this workshop which can be accessed via: http://bit.ly/1Ch97fA
For further details of the enhancement event, please see: https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/events-conferences/event10203
Hybridoma Technology ( Production , Purification , and Application )
Do learners really learn when they’re one of thousands? Alison Le Cornu and Julie Wintrup
1.
Do learners really learn when they’re one
of thousands?
22 January 2015
Dr Alison Le Cornu, SFHEA, FSEDA
Dr Julie Wintrup, FHEA
Julie and Alison will present the main findings from the two HEA reports on MOOCs that
are being launched at this Enhancement Event. Those with an interest in MOOCs
either considering developing one at their institution, or wanting to have the opportunity
to engage with research in order to enhance existing or forthcoming MOOCs are
invited to participate with a view to exploring the research findings in relation to their
practice. Are MOOCs significant different from other online modules? Does the
disciplinary context make a difference? Come and find out!
UKPSF references: A1, A2, A4, A5, K2, K3, K4, K5, V2, V3
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2.
Schedule
Time Activity
11.45 -
12.00
Welcome
Using Google Docs
12.00 -
12.15
HEA work with MOOCs
12.15 -
12.30
Engaged learning in MOOCs: a study using the UK
Engagement Survey
12.30 -
12.50
Liberating learning: experiences of MOOCs: Julie and
Alison discuss, followed by questions and answers
12.50 -
13.05
Group work: Online courses: A comparison of free vs fee
13.05 -
13.15
Plenary: Big questions
Wifi access:
Wi-Fi code: RIBAVenue
Password: venues66
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9.
Engaged learning in MOOCs: a study using the UK Engagement
Survey
This morning’s keynote speech from Hugh Davis highlighted the key messages from the first
of those two reports.
Group work
On your tables, have a quick discussion about Hugh’s talk. Do you have any questions or
comments to make? Write them in the space below. We will have a short plenary in 5
minutes’ time.
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Group 4
Group 5
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11.
Liberating learning: experiences of MOOCs
Julie Wintrup and Alison Le Cornu discuss the second of Southampton’s MOOC reports.
Research
The study reported here sought in-depth accounts of learning on a MOOC from ten
people who completed one of the University of Southampton’s first two such
courses during 2014. Its goal is to better understand their motivations for studying
in this way and the learning opportunities and problems they encountered.
Methods
Individual in-depth interviews were conducted with ten people who completed
one of Southampton’s MOOCs during 2014. Of 229 who volunteered for interviews,
purposive sampling led to the recruitment of ten people currently resident in the
UK, from different occupational backgrounds, aged from under 25 years to over 66
years (age-related questions were in bands). In terms of their educational
backgrounds, interviewees spanned all levels from secondary school qualifications
to doctoral and professional academic awards. All had volunteered during week
six of their particular MOOC, and several had completed other MOOCs across the
same time period. They can be seen as unusual in this regard, given that the
majority of people who begin MOOCs do not complete them.
Findings
The four themes constructed from learner interviews are:
1. Flexible, fascinating and free
2. Feeling part of something
3. Ways of learning
4. A bit of proof?
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Four quadrants approach to guiding and supporting forms of
engaged learning
(Wintrup et al., 2015)
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14.
Space for questions and comments while Julie and Alison are discussing the
report
Group work
Click on the link to Oxford University’s Continuing Education webpage and read the brief
declaration: ‘Online courses: A comparison of free vs fee’.
What do you think? In your groups, make comments in the space below.
There will be a brief plenary following this activity and then we will discuss some of the Big
Questions listed on the next page. If you have any Big Questions to add, please do so.
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
14.
17.
Big questions
1. What does student engagement look like in (FutureLearn) MOOCs?
a. Does it differ from other MOOC platforms?
2. Can we say with certainty what the difference large numbers make to student
engagement and student learning make, in comparison to cohorts of (say) a maximum
of 200?
a. Is the difference a beneficial one? To whom?
3. How do MOOC pedagogies and more common, smaller VLEbased pedagogies
compare?
4. Participants reported academic credit being unimportant to them is this something you
would have anticipated or is there a place for credit bearing MOOCs? What are the
issues for offering credit?
5. Are the presentations and discussions you have participated in today likely to impact
your own practice?
a. What?
b. How?
17.