Learning in a small, task–oriented, connectivist MOOC: Pedagogical issues and implications for higher education
Published | 2013 |
Journal | The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning Volume 14, Issue 4, Pages 1-20 |
Publisher | AU Press |
Editors | McGreal, Rory and Conrad, Dianne |
ABSTRACT
Despite the increase in massive open online courses (MOOCs), evidence about the pedagogy of learning in MOOCs remains limited. This paper reports on an investigation into the pedagogy in one MOOC - Oxford Brookes University’s ‘First Steps in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education’ MOOC (FSLT12).FSLT12 was an open and free professional development opportunity for people moving into HE teaching. It was a small course (200 participants registered from 24 countries) which was focused on introducing HE teaching skills, and, uniquely, to deliberately integrate open academic practice as a vital part of professional development for HE teachers. A qualitative, case-study approach was used in the research, based on surveys, interviews, and social media, to provide evidence about how people learned in this course and consider wider implications for teaching and learning in higher education.
The evidence shows that participants who completed the course were able to learn autonomously and navigate the distributed platforms and environments. The most challenging issues were acceptance of open academic practice and difficulty in establishing an academic identity in an unpredictable virtual environment. An interesting and significant feature of the course was the support for learners from a number of MOOC ‘veterans’ who served as role models and guides for less experienced MOOC learners.
The research shows that small task-oriented MOOCs can effectively support professional development of open academic practice.
Keywords | higher education · MOOC · Open Academic Practice |
Published at | Athabasca, AB |
ISSN | 1492-3831 |
Refereed | Yes |
Rights | by/3.0 |
URL | http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/1548 |
Export options | BibTex · EndNote · Tagged XML · Google Scholar |
AVAILABLE FILES
Viewed by 46 distinct readers
CLOUD COMMUNITY REVIEWS
The evaluations below represent the judgements of our readers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Cloud editors.
Click a star to be the first to rate this document
▶ POST A COMMENT
SIMILAR RECORDS
Liminal participants and skilled orienteers: Learner participation in a MOOC for new lecturers
Waite, Marion; Mackness, Jenny; Roberts, George; Lovegrove, Elizabeth
This case study explored learner participation in First Steps in Learning and Teaching in
Higher Education (FSLT12), a short massive open online course (MOOC) aimed at
introducing learning and teaching in higher ...
Match: Lovegrove, Elizabeth; Roberts, George; Waite, Marion; Mackness, Jenny
Participant association and emergent curriculum in a MOOC: Can the community be the curriculum?
Bell, Frances; Mackness, Jenny; Funes, Mariana
We investigated how participants associated with each other and developed community in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) about Rhizomatic Learning (Rhizo14). We compared learner experiences in two social networking ...
Match: Mackness, Jenny; MOOC
MOOCs: A learning journey
Smith, Becky; Eng, Min; Cheung, Simon K. S.; Fong, Joseph; et al.
MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) have been radically changing the direction of online education in the last few years. Although sharing many common features, there has been an emergence of two distinct varieties of ...
Match: MOOC
The pedagogic architecture of MOOC: A research project on educational courses in Spanish
Fernández-Díaz, Elia; Rodríguez-Hoyos, Carlos; Salvador, Adelina Calvo
This study has been carried out within the context of the ECO European Project (E-learning, Communication Open-Data: Massive Mobile, Ubiquitous, and Open Learning) which is being financed by the European Union over four ...
Match: higher education; MOOC
Changing the tune: MOOCs for human development? A case study (pre-print)
Balaji, Venkataraman; Kanwar, Asha; Bonk, Curtis J.; Lee, Mimi M.; et al.
The Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) is covered in critical analysis as well as in popular media as a development exclusively bearing on the Higher Education sector (The Economist, 2014). This term has also acquired an ...
Match: higher education; MOOC
Democratising higher education through OER - What are the possibilities?
Kanwar, Asha
International Conference on Science and Technology for Economic Diversification, Trinidad & Tobago, 7 June 2013, Democratising Higher Education through OER: What are the Possibilities? by Professor Asha Kanwar, ...
Match: higher education; MOOC
Implementation of Tel Aviv University MOOCs in academic curriculum: A pilot study
Soffer, Tal; Cohen, Anat; McGreal, Rory; Conrad, Dianne
The study presented in this paper examines the feasibility of using MOOCs as a learning environment in academic courses. This paper focuses on the students who participated in two MOOCs offered by Tel Aviv University ...
Match: higher education; MOOC
OpenCases: Catalogue of mini cases on open education in Europe
Lazetic, Predrag; Souto-Otero, Manuel; Shields, Robin; dos Santos, Andreia Inamorato; et al.
This catalogue contains 50 mini cases that highlight the practices of universities and educational institutions around open
education in Europe.
It showcases the different strategies followed by institutions that are ...
Match: higher education; MOOC
Rhizo14: A Rhizomatic learning cMOOC in sunlight and in shade
Mackness, Jenny; Bell, Frances; Gil-Jaurena, Inés
The authors present findings from the first stage of research into a ‘home-grown’ connectivist MOOC, Rhizomatic Learning: The Community is the Curriculum (Rhizo14). We compare the surface view of the MOOC that has ...
Match: Mackness, Jenny
Integrating MOOCs in traditionally taught courses: Achieving learning outcomes with blended learning
Bralić, Antonia; Divjak, Blażenka
It has been several years since Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) have entered the higher education environment and many forms have emerged from this new way of acquiring knowledge. Teachers have been incorporating ...
Match: higher education; MOOC