MOOCs - exploiting networks for the education of the masses or just a trend?

1. exploiting networks for the education of the masses
or just a trend?
MOOCs
Vanessa Camilleri, Leonard Busuttil, Matthew Montebello

2. Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/will-lion/3601144842/
CPD Session - Faculty of Education, May 2014 2

3. • Different factors impinging on the state of
Higher Education
• Rise in a “Global Faculty and student mobility
• “The Invisible College”
• The changing student
Changing Trends in Higher
Education
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4. Shifting Cultures
Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/will-lion/3601146386/in/photostream
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5. • Shift towards the online world; online & blended
programs – more access
• Student needs create a more learner-centric
program – more collaboration
• Crowd sourcing or crowd learning? – more
sharing
• Gamification or game-based? – more play
New Models in Teaching and
Learning
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6. Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24752578@N02/5589897831/
How we learn today, is not how we will learn tomorrow.

7. Digital (R)evolution in HE
MOOCs are the third digital revolution
1. E-Learning hype around new millenium 
Changed learning environments
2. OER peak from 2007
 Giving away knowledge for free
3. MOOC peak from 2010
 Access to education for free
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8. What is a ‘MOOC’?
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9. CPD Session - Faculty of Education, May 2014
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10. Sebastian Thrun, Peter Norvig
Source: http://www.ted.com/talks/peter_norvig_the_100_000_student_classroom.html
…the 160,000 classroom
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11. Sebastian Thrun: In 50 years there will be only 10
institutions in the world delivering higher
education and Udacity has a shot at being one
of them (quoted in 2012 online report:
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/03/
ff_aiclass/all/)
Media hype
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12. MOOCs didn’t just appear
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13. 13
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14. CPD Session - Faculty of Education, May 2014
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15. April 2012
http://edutechnica.com/moocmap
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16. October 2012
http://edutechnica.com/moocmap
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17. April 2013
http://edutechnica.com/moocmap
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18. October 2013
http://edutechnica.com/moocmap
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19. Completion Rates
http://www.katyjordan.com/MOOCproject.html
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21. 6 million students / 54 staff
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22. Content is NOT free
Students can NOT support
each other
MOOCs can NOT solve the
problem of educational
scarcity in emerging
economies
Education is NOT a mass
customer industry
MOOC myths
It's NOT all about money
Will NOT create a two-
tier educational system
MOOCs are NOT
inherently inferior
We've have NOT seen
how this plays out
Against (from Laurillard) For (from Educause)
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23. Coursera
How Higher Education is becoming more open
Source: https://www.coursera.org/
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24. MOOCs
The current and future state of Higher Education
Source: http://edfuture.net/
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25. The Quality Challenge
The quality challenge:
• Start from digital and technological
innovation,
• move on to educational (r)evolution
and change, and
• Lead to a quest for quality and
innovation strategies.
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26. MOOCs and quality
• Should we care about the MOOC drop outs?
• Do MOOCs challenge the current HE model?
• How will it be looking when learning and
certification will be disaggregated?
• What is it that makes a model with high drop
out, little success rates and heterogenious
target groups popular?
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27. 1. Massive Target Audience?
• Change from „no target audience“-thinking
to having one in mind, even if it is wide. Take
into acount new participation profiles.
MOOC
Lurkers
Passive
participants
Active participants
Drop-ins
HILL, P. (2013) “The Four Student Archetypes Emerging in MOOCs” [Online]
e-Literate blog post 02/03/13 [accessed 19/04/13]. Available:
http://mfeldstein.com/the-four-student-archetypes-emerging-in-moocs/
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28. 2. Mixing Groups?
Be aware that inviting the world
means to bring in the worlds
opinion (existing groups might be
disturbed)
Mixing campus and MOOC
Students might be challenging:
drive in/by learners vs. highly
motivated learners who want a
masters degree.
http://www.teleskop-service.de/Veranstaltungen/ITT2007/Blick_in_die_Berge.jpg 28

29. 3. Learning Across Contexts
Be aware that the quality paradigm “fitness for
purpose” is not working for MOOCs because
MOOCs mean learning across contexts and
purposes.
Quality measures become individualised, quality
methods like self- & peer-assessment and –
reflection are suitable.
http://www.teleskop-service.de/Veranstaltungen/ITT2007/Blick_in_die_Berge.jpg 29

30. 4. Support Self-Organization
Be open about your requirements of self-
organisation, provide scaffolding for those who
lack that self-organisation.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Fugle%2C_%C3%B8rns%C3%B8_073.jpg
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31. AmyMullarkey
5. Declare What‘s in it!
Be precise about the content and purpose of the
MOOC (self-declaration) and keep promises!
(Use a MOOC description model) - (Conole 2013)
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32. 6. Peer-to-Peer Pedagogy
Use peer-to-peer pedagogy: peer-learning, peer-
review, peer-assessment, collaborative learning,
multiple learning pathways and exploratory
learning
Understand that teaching is not a prerequsite of
learning.
http://www.naset.org/uploads/pics/choice.gif

33. 7. MOOCs Support Choice Based
Learning
Move away from the notion that „ending a MOOC
early“ means dropping out ; looking at MOOCs
like (structured, paced, timebound) courses
Be aware that MOOC learning is an opt-in/out
learning model - MOOCs follow voluntary
sequencing and are based on choices. The
choices they offer make their attractiveness.
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34. The ‘Network Enabler’ – common design
elements in MOOCs
Common Grounds
Fosters
Engagement
Tutors as
Facilitators
Reflects
Global
Perspectives
Uses Social
Media
channels
Collective
Scaffolding
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35. • Imagination is more important than
knowledge – Einstein
• We need diversity of thought in the world to
face new challenges – Sir Tim Berners Lee
Where is the future taking us?
Source:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/682
89482@N05/6277834810/
CPD Session - Faculty of Education, May 2014

36. Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lgb06/4390432853/
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37. THANK YOU!
Vanessa Camilleri, Leonard Busuttil, Matthew
Montebello
vanessa.camilleri@um.edu.mt
leonard.busuttil@um.edu.mt
matthew.montebello@um.edu.mt