Instructor outcomes of teaching a STEM MOOC

Zelinski, Mitchell; Hicks, Nathan M.; Su, Wang; Douglas, Kerrie A.; Bermel, Peter; Diefes‐Dux, Heidi A.; Madhavan, Krishna

doi:10.1109/fie.2017.8190590

Cited by 6 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Moreover, this additional understanding of how instructors perceive quality learning occurring in MOOCs can reinforce and inform instructional design (Najafi et al, 2015) of MOOCs to leverage the opportunities for learners to achieve their learning goals via collaborative, social learning on a global scale. The emergent themes from this case study can also contribute to a broader framework for evaluating the effectiveness of a MOOC (Zelinski et al, 2017).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…General themes emerging from the literature include flexible learning design of MOOCs to accommodate the diverse needs and goals of learners (Park et al, 2015;Walji et al, 2016) and learner satisfaction (Liu et al, 2015). Fewer in number are the studies and articles that give voice to the perspectives of the instructors of the MOOCs (Czerniewicz et al, 2017;Lowenthal et al, 2018;Zelinski et al, 2017). For example, Veletsianos and Shepherdson (2016) reviewed the literature on MOOCs and found that of the 183 studies they reviewed, only 8.2% focused on topics that related to instructors and teaching.…”

Section: Instructor Perceptions Of Quality Learning In Moocsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several studies in the literature to date have focused on MOOC instructors and do offer some helpful insights into their experience. These studies, however, focus on and articulate the experiences, motivations, and viewpoints of MOOC instructors in broad terms, highlighting the experiences and challenges of developing and teaching MOOCs (Haavind & Sistek-Chandler, 2015;Najafi et al, 2015;Zelinski et al, 2017;Zheng et al, 2016) as well as the opportunities to try new pedagogical approaches in a new platform (Evans & Myrick, 2015;Toven-Lindsey et al, 2015). Annaraud and Singh's (2017) study concluded that students and faculty have varying perceptions and enthusiasm regarding MOOCs; a potential cause of the disparity, they said, could have been the faculty members' deeper understanding of challenges to developing and teaching a MOOC.…”

Section: Instructor Perceptions Of Quality Learning In Moocsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ongoing discussions regarding the instructional and learning value of MOOCs vary among scholarly and practitioner arenas (Brahimi & Sarirete, 2015;Czerniewicz, Deacon, Glover, & Walji, 2017;Haggard, Wang, & He, 2014;Honeychurch & Draper, 2013). For example, some correlate the overall low completion rates to poor instructional quality (Onah, Sinclair, & Boyatt, 2014), while others argue that course completion is an inaccurate indicator of MOOC success given the wide variety of reasons that bring learners to a MOOC (DeBoer, Ho, Stump, & Breslow, 2014;Ho et al, 2014;Liu, Kang, & McKelroy, 2015;Zelinski, Hicks, et al, 2017). Furthermore, some contend that instructional and learning quality are poor in most MOOCs (Margaryan, Bianco, & Littlejohn, 2015), and yet others claim it is feasible that MOOCs meet the standards of quality set for other online courses (Lowenthal & Hodges, 2015).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Instructor Perceptions of Quality Learning in MOOCs They Teach

Askeroth

Richardson

2019

OLJ

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Included in the discussions regarding the instructional and learning value of massive open online courses (MOOCs) is the question of whether MOOC learners gain much value, if any at all, and has been a continuing debate since MOOCs began. Skeptics argue that MOOCs lack academic rigor and are superficial, while proponents praise them as addressing important global issues of educational access and affordability, providing pathways to more substantial learning opportunities. An important viewpoint in this conversation that warrants consideration is that of the professors/instructors who teach MOOCs and how they perceive the quality of learning that takes place in their MOOCs. In this case study, we used semistructured qualitative interviews with three MOOC instructors in addition to course and document reviews to identify examples of their perceptions in practice. The findings from this case study suggest that instructors do believe that quality learning can take place within a MOOC and is often accomplished through social constructivism and self-regulated learning approaches. Discussions, dialogues, negotiations, and collaborations as well as learners accomplishing their intended goals in the course were all considered to be manifestations of quality learning in a MOOC. Implications of the findings for additional research and practice are also discussed.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Instructor Perceptions Of Quality Learning In Moocsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Instructor Perceptions Of Quality Learning In Moocsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Instructor Perceptions of Quality Learning in MOOCs They Teach

Askeroth

Richardson

2019

OLJ

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“…Previous research has found that instructors are especially interested in the outcomes of the relatively few learners who fully utilize the course, but it is difficult to understand who those learners are and how to help them best [4]. Also, instructors are interested in whether the larger groups of learners achieve their intended learning goals [5]. However, without understanding more about their learners-specifically, what they hope to gain from the course and why they only utilize part of the course-instructors and course designers must primarily rely on their intuition and direct feedback to guide their decisions.…”

Section: Beyond the Means -Visualizing Learner Activity And Outcomes mentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond the Means – Visualizing Learner Activity and Outcomes for Online Instructors

Williams¹,

Douglas²,

Bermel³

et al.

2019 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

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“Houston, we have a problem”: Revealing MOOC practitioners' experiences regarding feedback provision to learners facing difficulties

Topali

Ortega‐Arranz

Martínez‐Monés

et al. 2020

Comp Applic In Engineering

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In spite of the high impact of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), learners frequently disengage from the course contents and activities due to unexpected problems of different natures, such as content-related or technical issues. Feedback has been identified as an important aspect of the learning process directly connected with learners' engagement. However, the massive and impersonal nature of MOOCs hinders the provision of efficient and timely feedback to those learners facing problems. This paper examines how MOOC practitioners identify and support learners facing problems, what challenges they encounter, and what strategies they apply to overcome such challenges.Additionally, the current study aims to compare the learners' problems and practitioners' experiences between engineering-related and nonengineering related MOOCs. A qualitative phenomenological study has been conducted through semistructured interviews with 14 MOOC practitioners. The evidence gathered shows diverse learners' and practitioners' problems shared among engineering and nonengineering courses and a general concern on how to address individual learners' needs in time. A common practice of problem identification regards checking the self-reported issues in communication forums. Identification strategies with the use of learning analytics are limited due to platform restrictions or lack of practitioners' skills in interpreting the provided information. The synthesis of MOOC practitioners from both engineering and nonengineering disciplines may provide insights that are either globally applicable to all disciplines or specific to engineering. The results could be shaped into conceptual and technological solutions to help MOOC stakeholders (e.g., researchers, practitioners) identify potential learners facing difficulties and support them during the course process.

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Instructor outcomes of teaching a STEM MOOC

Cited by 6 publications

References 11 publications

Instructor Perceptions of Quality Learning in MOOCs They Teach

Instructor Perceptions of Quality Learning in MOOCs They Teach

Beyond the Means – Visualizing Learner Activity and Outcomes for Online Instructors

“Houston, we have a problem”: Revealing MOOC practitioners' experiences regarding feedback provision to learners facing difficulties

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