3 Ways MOOCs Unleash the Power of Massive International Attendance

By Roxana Bassi. During my life I have always been interested in how ICTs can contribute to a better and sustainable development of the world. Education is one of the areas where that contribution can really make a difference. MOOCs (massive open online courses) might be one of the most versatile ways to offer access to quality education, especially for those residing in far or disadvantaged areas.
I have been reading many recent articles on MOOCs and how universities –mostly US ones – either feel threatened or believe it to be a universal solution to their budgetary issues. So far the immediate effect caused by MOOCs on those of us growing up far from prominent universities is the opportunity to access quality education to complement “traditional” education one might be receiving locally. If you have participated in any MOOC, you might agree or not about the delivery or evaluation method or question its effectiveness, but you cannot deny the quality of most of them. But from my point of view it is the massive attendance to the course the most relevant and interesting characteristic for analysis. Read more...