Get the best from MOOCs
Though online courses have proved to be a boon, they fall short in some crucial areas. Here's an analysis
Digitization has revolutionised several
spheres of our lives — from education to online shopping, ordering food, net
banking and much more. In the education sector, particularly, it has broadened
the scope of learning. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have emerged as a
popular medium of learning, making educational content on various topics and
subjects available online for any learner.
With MOOCs, learners have an opportunity to
study university-quality courses at a lower cost. Though MOOCs are non-degree
courses, there are a few institutions that have started offering advanced
learning options, certificates and credit preferences at an additional cost.
This is an ideal medium for individual learners as they have the liberty to
select courses from different institutions. MOOCs do not require a fixed
location or a system. A user can access information from any location and
computer. There is no hard and fast rule for maintaining attendance. Anyone can
get enrolled for free, irrespective of their present educational or
professional level. One can even show a MOOC as a qualification through a paid
verified certificate. This makes the certificate and the course more authentic
and adds value to the resume.
MOOCs have a lot of opportunity in K-12 sector,
especially as they provide a structure similar to that of tuitions. They enable
students to master their concepts in subjects such as science, maths and
English. Beyond K-12, MOOCs’ reach is also estimated to expand in higher
education, vocational studies and corporate training.
In just few years, MOOCs have seen a massive
demand, with over one million registrations. Coursera is one of the largest
MOOCs’ provider, with over 200 courses in different subjects such as social
science, economics, computer, music, business, health and science. Udacity and
edX are the other leading online course providers. These brands have now joined
hands with renowned universities from across the world such as Harvard,
Edinburgh, Stanford, Melbourne and Toronto, to work together. According to a
study conducted in the U.K. in 2013, though the percentage of students opting
for MOOCs is more in North America and Europe, there is a rising demand and
scope for it in Asia and Africa as well. In India, higher education is expensive
and MOOCs have come as an antidote to this problem with their free classes.
Other than that, the current faculty-student ratio in different institutions of
the country has pushed the need and demand for MOOCs.
At present, in India, the participation or enrolment
level is limited in such courses. But there are chances that in the future, the
number of learners will see a spike. The reason being increased availability
and access of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) through
smartphones and tablets.
Drawbacks
Every technology comes with its own set of
benefits and drawbacks. MOOCs provide authentic information on the websites,
but do not undertake any responsibility of its accuracy. Universities offering
MOOCs may change the information on courses and related services on their
website without any prior notice.
Another drawback is that not every student
completes the course and many leave it half way. A major reason for this is
that the MOOC content designed by various universities does not take into
consideration the local context and requirements of the student taking the
course.
A possible challenge pointed out by
academicians is that the content generated could be totally independent and
created by multiple users, which could lead to a chaotic learning experience if
the user making changes is lacking in relevant subject expertise.
There are chances that some learners don’t
take MOOCs seriously due to the non-certified degree or qualification attached
to it. Not all MOOC projects would have open licensing of content, well defined
learning goals, serious pedagogies and an open structure. In some of the MOOCs,
the content is very short, non-engaging and incomplete, thus defeating the true
purpose of MOOCs.
At present, some of the prominent American
MOOC providers such as MIT (via edX), Stanford University and Harvard
University have come together to resolve many of these issues by developing
software platforms for delivering the online courses effectively. One can hope
that MOOCs would soon provide more flexibility along with the required
resources and make online learning a hub of opportunities for the next
generation.
Source | The Hindu | 18 July 2016
Regards
Pralhad
Jadhav
Senior
Manager @ Library
Khaitan
& Co
Best
Paper Award | Received the Best Paper Award at TIFR-BOSLA National Conference on
Future Librarianship: Innovation for Excellence (NCFL 2016) on April 23,
2016. The title of the paper is “Removing
Barriers to Literacy: Marrakesh VIP Treaty”
Note | If anybody use these post for forwarding in any social media coverage
or covering in the Newsletter please give due credit to those who are taking
efforts for the same.
No comments:
Post a Comment