The OER Knowledge Cloud makes use of cookies. By continuing, you consent to this use. More information.
The discrete optimization MOOC: An exploration in discovery-based learning
Coffrin, Carleton and Hentenryck, Pascal Van

Alternate titleIssue No.37 Experiences and best practices in and around MOOCs
PublishedMarch 2014
JournaleLearning Papers
Volume 37, Issue March 2014, Pages 51-56
Publisherelearningeuropa.info
Original PublicationEMOOCS 2014 conference
EditorsUllmo, Pierre-Antoine and Koskinen, Tapio
CountrySpain

ABSTRACT
The practice of discrete optimization involves modeling and solving complex problems which have never been encountered before and for which no universal computational paradigm exists. Teaching such skills is challenging: students must learn not only the core technical skills, but also an ability to think creatively in order to select and adapt a paradigm to solve the problem at hand.
This paper explores the question of whether the teaching of such creative skills translates to Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). It first describes a discovery-based learning methodology for teaching discrete optimization, which has been successful in the classroom for over fifteen years. It then evaluates the success of a MOOC version of the class via data analytics enabled by the wealth of information produced in the MOOC.

Keywords computer science education · discovery-based learning · MOOC · problem solving skills

Published atBarcelona
ISSN1887-1542
RefereedYes
Rightsby-nc-nd/3.0
URLhttp://openeducationeuropa.eu/en/article/The-Discrete-Optimization-MOOC%3A-An-Exploration-in-Discovery-Based-Learning?paper=136477
Export optionsBibTex · EndNote · Tagged XML · Google Scholar



AVAILABLE FILES
From-field_37_2.pdf · 743.4KB86 downloads



Viewed by 294 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

Gli Open Educational Path: per una accezione epistemologica di “apertura”
Calvani, Antonio; Menichetti, Laura
L’e-learning universitario ha visto affermarsi nuovi orientamenti all’insegna di una filosofia di “apertura” (openness) intesa come libero accesso e/o gratuità: i MOOC ne sono l’esempio più noto. È questa ...
Match: MOOC

If Freire made a MOOC: Open education as resistance
Morris, Sean Michael; Stommel, Jesse
On November 21 at the OpenEd Conference in Washington, DC, Sean Michael Morris and Jesse Stommel will present on critical digital pedagogy and MOOCs. This is the second of three articles that inspired that talk. The ...
Match: MOOC

Effectiveness of integrating MOOCs in traditional classrooms for undergraduate students
Israel, Maria Joseph; Conrad, Dianne; McGreal, Rory
The idea of a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) has attracted a lot of media attention in the last couple of years. MOOCs have been used mostly as stand-alone online courses without credits. However, some researchers, ...
Match: MOOC

The MOOC model for digital practice
McAuley, Alexander; Stewart, Bonnie; Siemens, George; Cormier, Dave
The MOOC Model for Digital Practice responds to the “Building Digital Skills for Tomorrow” section of the consultation paper Improving Canada’s Digital Advantage: Strategies for Sustain- able Prosperity by ...
Match: MOOC

OER and MOOCs at the National Open University of Nigeria
McGreal, Rory
The National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) is the second largest university in Africa with more than 180,000 students. The OER project at NOUN was initially motivated in response to the 2012 UNESCO/Commonwealth of ...
Match: MOOC

MORF: The MOOC Replication Framework
Educational Technology Collective
The MOOC Replication Framework (MORF) is a framework that facilitates the replication of previously published findings across multiple data sets. It facilitates the construction and evaluation of end-to-end pipelines ...

Starting MOOCs in African university: The experience of Cadi Ayyad University, process, review, recommendations, and prospects
Jouicha, Abdellah Idrissi; Berrada, Khalid; Bendaoud, Rachid; Machwate, Said; et al.
The increasing number of enlistees claiming their right to enroll in the programs of African Universities and the limited number of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) were the prime reasons of students overcrowding in ...
Match: MOOC

Open Educational Resources (OER)-based flipped classroom practice in an undergraduate course
Li, Yan; Zhang, Muhua; Bonk, Curtis J.; Zhang, Wenjun; et al.
The purpose of this study was to explore the process and effectiveness of Open Educational Resources (OER)-based flipped classroom practice in an undergraduate course named "Internet and Distance Education.'' The course ...
Match: MOOC

Digital culture clash: “massive” education in the E-learning and Digital Cultures MOOC
Knox, Jeremy
While education has been both open and online, the sizeable enrolment numbers associated with massive open online courses (MOOCs) are somewhat unprecedented. In order to gauge the significance of education at scale, ...
Match: MOOC

Interactions in MOOCs: The hidden part of the iceberg
Cisel, Matthieu
Interactions that take place between MOOC users outside of discussion forums, and out of the reach of course designers, have received little attention from the scientific community despite their potential influence on ...
Match: MOOC