The document discusses Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). It begins by asking why MOOCs exist and defining them as online courses that have no limit on attendance, no formal entry requirements, and use open resources and social media tools. It then covers the history of MOOCs, different types of MOOCs including those from universities and independent organizations, issues with MOOCs, and how to participate in or create MOOCs. The document provides details on MOOC characteristics, types, benefits and challenges, business models, quality, completion rates, certification, pedagogy, and considerations for creating a MOOC. It concludes by reflecting on the impact of MOOCs and providing suggestions for how

1. MABITSELA KHUTSO
http://www.slideshare.net/Mabitselakhutso
03 August 2015
Online and eLearning Conference
CHRONICLES OF THE
MOOCs

2. Why MOOC??
“In completely rational society, the best of us would
aspire to be teachers, and the rest of us would have
to settle for something less”_____ Lee Lacocca

3. What is a MOOC?
http://youtube.com/watch?v=eW3gMGqcZQc
 Anant Agarwal: Why massively open online courses
(still)
matter//https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYwTA5R
A9eU
]

4. Contents… Lets get to it now!!
 What is a MOOC?
 The Chronicle of Open Learning
 Brief History of MOOCs
 Types of MOOCs
 Hot Issues in MOOCs
 Participating in or building MOOCs
 Discussion

5. Characteristics… Hooked??
 No submission of assignments or examinations
 Scale of numbers – no participation limit
 No formal entry requirement
 Virtual Learning Environment is not the center of the
course
 Use a variety of (new) social media and online tools
 Accommodative and engages
 Increased student participation and self-direction
 Facilitators create the environment not way of learning
 J Green 2015

6. MOOC TypesC X
Academics, Non profits,
Individuals
Major Universities
Constructivist, Connectivist
approach
Behaviourist, Cognitivist 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
J Green (2015)

7. Benefits and Downsides
Benefits Downsides
• Able to organise a MOOC in
any setting with connectivity
• Use any online tools that are
relevant
• Use your own devices
• Work across time zones and
boundaries
• Connect across disciplines
and institutions
• Do not need a degree to
enter
• Improve lifelong learning
skills
• Feeling of chaos
• Demands digital literacy
• Demands self-directed learning
capacity
• Requires time and effort (often
more than expected)
• Possible steep learning curve
• Technology can distract from
learning purpose and content

8. Empowers… unlock the abilities!
Openness
Business
Models
Quality
Completion Certification Privacy
Pedagogy Impact

9. Now the fundamentals of it….
 Provide opportunities and capacity for lifelong learning
 Learner-centred processes and encourage active
engagement leading to independent and critical thinking
 Flexible provision, allowing learners to increasingly
determine where, when, what and how they learn, as well
as the pace
 Prior learning and experience is recognised
 Conditions created for a fair chance of learner success
through learner support, contextually appropriate
resources and sound pedagogical practices

10. Business Models…..
 Certification – pay for badge or certificate
 Secure assessments – pay for proctored exams
 Recruitment – employers pay for access to records [Privacy]
 Marking – students pay for markers or tutoring
 Platform sales – sell platform to institutions
 Third party Sponsorships
 Tuition fees
 Publishers – reach new readers and sell more books

11. Quality and Completion
 University brand does not equal teaching and learning
quality
 Elite institutions gained reputations in research
 Importance of Quality Assurance criteria
 Improving rate of course and degree completion
 Require not just access but access to success
 Example: MIT’s Circuits and Electronics Course
 155 000 registrations, 23 000 did the first problem set, 7157 passed
 MOOC <10% completion is disastrous
 But includes the curious and the tourists

12. Certification and specialities
 Mostly, success in a MOOC does not lead to credit
but to a certificate
 Elite institutions define quality by numbers of
applicants that they exclude, not after admission
 Certificates can be traded for credit but very
expensive

13. Pedagogy
 Linked to a learning strategy (costs, resources)
 Interactive content design and feedback
 Safe learning environment with guidelines
 Clear learning pathways
 Roles of facilitators and tutors
 Extent of learner support, assessment and
feedback
 Match to technical infrastructure (technology
should not be a distractor)

14. More benefits… Still not hooked??
 MOOCs may encourage development of eLearning
 MOOCs will not address the challenge of
expanding higher education in the developing
world
 However it will…
 Access to technology
 Independent learning and study skills

15. Considering a MOOC….
 http://www.mooc-list.com/
 http://www.openculture.com/free_certificate_courses

16. Being Successful in a MOOC
 http://popenici.com/2013/08/21/shmoocs/#!
1.
Orient
• Tools
• Materials
• Times
• Links
2.
Declare
• Thoughts
• Blog
3.
Network
• Connect
• Comment
• Discuss
4.
Cluster
• Communit
y
• Small
network
5.
Focus
• Motivation
• Goals

17. Considerations before rolling out a
MOOC
1. Build upon what you know and have
2. Make sure there is a need (purpose)
3. Estimate online tools and audience devices/connectivity
4. Overall design and selection of core resources
5. Choose media carefully
6. Option of accreditation
7. Copyright and intellectual property
8. Create room for emergence (added content, shared expertise)
9. Create strong learning environment (including technology)
10. Get your course known to people
)

18. Platform
s
RSS
Content
Curation
Discussio
n Groups
Blog and
Microblo
g
Social
Network
s
Multi-
media
Sharing
Virtual
Meeting
Rooms
Sites & Followings

19. Reflections on MOOCs
 Impact on the high costs of higher education
 Extent of the “presence of the teacher”
 In experimentation phase, changes lie ahead
 Keeps continuous focus on teaching and pedagogy
 Reassessment of the intellectual quality and rigour
of institutions
 Emergence of institutions and commercial
partners

20. Suggestions for using MOOCs
• Use MOOC with local tutorials / groups as
supplementary
• May be physical groups offline
Blended Approach
• Use as central focus
• Plan other activities / assessment / etc
• Use as a collection of OER – extract what you need for
your purpose and context
Core Approach

21. My field of interest
1. I'm interested in social development, relationships
and communications
2. I'm also interested writing, prose and poetry

22. My topic…..?
 My topic is going to be communications and social
developments
 My second to pic is going to be Writing and linguistics
 I will be studying and developing my communication
skills and accommodative language. I will also
developing my writing and literature skills

23. Mabitselakcm@mail.com
http://www.slideshare.net/Mabitselakhutso

24. References and available online
courses
 Popenici, S (2013). MOOCs and The Change of Higher
Education. http://popenici.com/2013/08/21/shmoocs/#!
 Saide (2012). Empowering Learners through Open Learning.
[CC-BY] http://www.saide.org.za/design-guide/11-open-learning
 Daphne Koller: What we're learning from online
education//https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6FvJ6jMGHU
 Anant Agarwal: Why massively open online courses (still)
matter//https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYwTA5RA9eUslid
 ePaper Towns | John Green |
TEDxIndianapolishttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mUDw0
sRZV0
hare.net/oerafrica/the-