MOOC’s

Wednesday 14th April 2021

What is a MOOC?

• M – massive
• O – open
• O – online
• C – course

So in basic terms a MOOC is a new type of online class that allows anyone from around the world, to attend the class via video lectures, computer graded tests and different types of forums. I think these are really good ideas to be using, as it opens up the world of education to those who may not be able to attend in a physical way or if the class is in another country. I think that in this current climate with the pandemic it could have been used more to enable those who were unable to attend class and to keep their education going. I also think that there should be more advertising of MOOC’s, I don’t think I have seen any that are available for people. It might appeal to more students if they knew what was available to them.

Advantages of a MOOC

• Online
• Usually no fee to pay to join
• No restrictions on who can apply
• User friendly
• Accessible
• Discussion forums
• Learn at your own pace

Disadvantages of a MOOC

• Only 10% of students finish the course
• There no special attention from a teacher if the student needs help
• There is no requirements for signing up to the course
• Students have to browse through the course material – meaning a lack of attention

Whilst I agree there are a lot of advantages of a MOOC, whilst we were in our groups for discussion we discussed the fact that not all students may have access to either the technology or even an internet connection. We wondered how those types of students would be able to enrol. So in theory it is not actually accessible to everyone I don’t think. I also think the fact that only about 10% of students actually finish the course they have enrolled on is quite shocking. But, as they have not paid anything to do it they probably don’t feel the need to finish if they don’t have the time. They haven’t lost anything, it’s not like attending college or university where you pay a fee. I like the fact that it is online, I actually enjoy learning online so I think this would appeal to me and help me decide to enrol on a MOOC.

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