MOOC Research Paper 1

MOOC Research Paper

Marty G. Scarberry II
Azusa Pacific University
EDTC 515
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MOOC Research Coursera

The mission of edX is to, Increase access to high-quality education for everyone,

everywhere. Enhance teaching and learning on campus and online. Advance teaching and

learning through research. (edX, 2012) EdX is accomplishing this by being one of leading

massive open online course (MOOC) providers. Per Tech Target, A massive open online course

(MOOC) is a free Web-based distance learning program that is designed for the participation of

large numbers of geographically dispersed students. Tech Target further explains that a MOOC

may be patterned on a college or university course or may be less structured. Also, that MOOCs

don't always offer academic credits, but they do provide education that may enable certification,

employment or further studies. (Rouse, 2013)

More people signed up for MOOCs in 2015 than they did in the first three years of the

modern MOOC movement (which started in late 2011when the first Stanford MOOCs took

off). According to data collected by Class Central, the total number of students who signed up

for at least one course has crossed 35 millionup from an estimated 16-18 million last year.

There are 500+ Universities, 4200 courses, 35 Million Students. (Dhawal, 2015)

With these statistics, we know that MOOC is not another passing technology fad.

MOOCs have two fundamental differences from previous educational technology: (A) MOOCs

are available anywhere/anytime in small digestible components that allow students to learn easily

and under a wide variety of places, times, and situations; (B) Successful MOOCs have engaged

and socially active communities of students that pose problems, resolve questions, add additional

material to the class, and support other students learning. (Klemmer, 2013)
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With my own personal experiences, I learned a lot about myself as a student on this one!

I did all 8 courses for the real estate brokers license successfully online, my teaching credential

was mostly online 4.0, and God only knows how many other classes, courses, workshops, etc. I

have done online all successfully! This course by Johns Hopkins was a little much for me I am

not sure where I failed or if it was a combination of several things. There were several instructors

that created the material and it flowed pretty well but there was no personal relationships at all.

There were some pretty good videos with speakers but the test were very specific on an exact

fact or numbers from the course material, so I had to review a bunch. Then I could retake the

quizzes as many times as I wanted. So, you know how that goes, I started taking the quizzes first.

It was nice that they reminded me once or twice of due dates, however it wasn't enough because I

could just complete them late. Also, I have learned to love collaboration and communication,

there was no one to discuss and share the topics with or compete with. When all is said and done,

there was no reward/degree/certificate at the end, and I was still supposed to buy it! Although it

was a good course, I now understand why everyone has NOT dropped out of universities for

these FREE courses.

Reflecting on this research and my perspective of the future of this technology the

following quote from mooc.org explains what this technology provides. MOOCs provide

affordable and flexible way to learn new skills, pursue lifelong interests and deliver quality

educational experiences at scale. Whether you're interested in learning for yourself, advancing

your career or leveraging online courses to educate your workforce. (MOOC, 2016) Reflecting

on how far we have come so far in technology from cameras in the back of the classroom to

massive open on line classes. Just think of what the future will hold and the expansion of MOOC

technology.
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References

edX (2012). Quality education for everyone, everywhere. Retrieved from

https://www.edx.org/about-us
Rouse, M. (2013). Massive Open Online Course (MOOC). Retrieved from
http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/massively-open-online-course-MOOC

Dhawal, S. (2015). By the Numbers: MOOCS in 2015. Retrieved from https://www.class-

central.com/report/moocs-2015-stats/
Klemmer, S. (2013). Will Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) Change Education?
Retrieved from http://hci.stanford.edu/publications/2013/MoocPanel-CHI2013.pdf
Mooc.org (2016). Open Online Courses (MOOCs) can help change your life. Retrieved from
http://mooc.org/