5 reasons to do a MOOC & 5 reasons not to

5 reasons to do a MOOC

5 reasons NOT to do a MOOC

Overview Brief history of MOOCs H817Open 5 Reasons to do a MOOC 5 Reasons NOT to do a MOOC MOOC reactions Conclusions

The early MOOCers

David Wiley George Siemens & Stephen Downes Alec Couros Dave Cormier Jim Groom

http://www.flickr.com/photos/happymichael/3679460209/

MOOCs tended to be..

Short – 8-10 weeks Open to all Use mixture of free technology Run by individuals Often not accredited Combine synchronous &

asynchronous Bring in range of experts Experimental in nature

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mysnapps/2801547080/

How did they fare?

High drop-out rate Often confusing for learners Better suited to experienced

learners

• Popular• Inspirational• Platform for open research• Successful for many learners

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dnnya/2559183847/

Enter the big players

Thrun – Stanford AI course Becomes Udacity EdX Coursera

http://www.flickr.com/photos/wallyg/4017680287/

New wave of MOOCs

Free, but not entirely open Commercial basis Institutional Conventional in pedagogy & technology Linked to accreditation (Pearson & EdX, badging)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/barenboime/2355747124/

H817 Open

An open course in Open Education

7 weeks Informal and formal learners Running in OpenLearn Badges 2 ALS moderating forums Blog aggregator Collaboration-lite activity based model Starts March 16th

Also an OER

Student spaces

Course spaces

The #H817Open ecosystem

5 reasons to do a MOOC #1

Raise profile

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jepoirrier/6703754863/

Room to experiment

5 reasons to do a MOOC #2

http://www.flickr.com/photos/robboudon/2928675554/

5 reasons to do a MOOC #3

Broaden Curriculum

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ljb/25759982/

5 reasons to do a MOOC #4

Students as networkers

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31065898@N08/8220970905/

5 reasons to do a MOOC #5

The joys of openness

5 reasons NOT to do a MOOC #1

Reputation risk

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carolyncoles/2389407045/

5 reasons NOT to do a MOOC #2

Bad learner experience

5 reasons NOT to do a MOOC #3

Technology stress

5 reasons NOT to do a MOOC #4

Costly

5 reasons NOT to do a MOOC #5

It’s bloody hard work

MOOC reactions

The end of education as we know it Hype and nonsense Complementary to existing practice

Image – David Kernohan

MOOCs are your friend (?)

Open up first 6 weeks of all courses Increase retention Widen participation

Open boundary courses Shop window Gives students access to broader group eg Phonar

Collaborate on MOOCs Higher quality Free up to teach what your best at

Credit for MOOCs Shorter courses Higher retention Lower costs = more students?

Experiment with curriculum Lower risk Fewer constraints

Conclusions MOOCing can be fun & innovative It carries risk It isn’t easy It isn’t for everyone Being MASSIVE & OPEN raises issues Be sure why you want to do one