This document defines MOOCs, outlines their history, and describes the aims of a sample MOOC course on football. It begins by explaining that a MOOC is a massive, open, online course covering a single topic. It then summarizes the early development of MOOCs from 2004-2012, when platforms like Coursera launched and increased MOOC popularity. The document also distinguishes between cMOOCs and xMOOCs, and gives an example football MOOC aimed at exploring the game's role in society through examining history, rivalries, champions, and influence on connecting countries.

1. Defining what is a mooc
and choosing a course
and showing its aims.
Wandile Mthethwa, Student
03 August 2015
University of Johannesburg

2. What is a MOOC?
 MASSIVE
 Uses the Internet to connect with others on a global scale
 OPEN
– No charge for students
 ONLINE
 Learning together in digital modes
 COURSE
– A MOOC Covers a single topic

3. The brief history of MOOCs
 2004: George Siemens & Stephen Downes develop theory of
Connectivism, “the thesis that knowledge is distributed across a
network of connections, and therefore that learning consists of the
ability to construct and traverse those networks (Downes, 2012, p.9).
 2008: First MOOC presented at University of Manitoba with ~ 2200
learners
 2010: Dave Cormier videos about MOOCs added to YouTube (Cormier,
2010)
 2011: MOOC for college prep skills helps freshmen prepare for college
requirements (Cormier, 2011)
 2012:
 Harvard’s first MOOC has 370,000 registered students (Pappano,
2012)
 2012: Coursera launches from Stanford; offers first xMOOCs (Chen,
2012)
 New York Times calls 2012 “The Year of the MOOC” Pappano, 2012)
 2013: cMOOCs and xMOOCs too numerous to count accurately

4. MOOC Types
C X
Academics, Non profits,
Individuals
Major Universities
Constructivist, Connectivist
approach
Behaviourist, Cognitvist approach
Many-to-many (Dialogue,
Peer2Peer interactions)
One-to-many (Student/Content,
Teacher/Student interactions)
Informal learning More formal learning
Collaborative, peer assessment Coordinated assessments and quizzes
(often automated)
Rich social media Social media used
Drive towards openness Open to join, but not all content
Network building, collaboration Organised group work
Ad hoc learner space Fixed Platform
De Waard, I (2013)

5. Football: More than a Game
The aim of this course is to explore
Football role in the society today.
 Why football history is important?
 Where are the great clubs and rivalries?
 Who are the Chyamions in the world?

6.  Can football act as a language that helps
countries talk to each other ?
 Where are the richest clubs and leagues?

7. References
Chen, C. (2012, April 18). Coursera launches humanities courses. The Stanford Daily.
Retrieved from http://www.stanforddaily.com/2012/04/18/coursera-launches-humanities-
courses/
Cormier, D. (Director). (2010). What is a MOOC? [Video] [Motion Picture]. Retrieved from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eW3gMGqcZQc
Cormier, D. (2011, November). Rhizomatic learning - Why we teach? Retrieved from Dave's
educational blog: http://davecormier.com/edblog/2011/11/05/rhizomatic-learning-why-learn/
Downes, S. (2012). Connectivism and connective knowledge: Essays on meaning and
learning networks. Moncton, NB: National Research Council Canada.
Downes, S. (2013, March 18). Evaluating a MOOC. Retrieved from Half an Hour:
http://halfanhour.blogspot.com/2013/03/evaluating-mooc.html
Downes, S. (n.d.). The MOOC Guide . Retrieved from The MOOC Guide [Wiki]:
https://sites.google.com/site/themoocguide/
Educause. (2011, November). 7 Things you should know about MOOCs. Retrieved from
Educause: http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7078.pdf