Open and free-for all

6-8pm Mon. 15 July. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) began in September 2011 at Stanford and it is already clear that they have radically changed higher education. Free programs from brand name universities with world leading experts, with online assessment and Ivy League certificates of completion at the end of a rigorous program, are a real competitor for face-to-face universities in the international education market, especially now that MOOC programs are recognized by many universities. And some institutions are incorporating MOOC units in their own programs, radically reducing teaching costs. Will academic staff numbers in Australia fall? What are the implications for the teaching/research nexus and for national research capacity? But should the world take its curriculum content from the American Ivy League and a handful of others. And is online assessment adequate and does the excision of face-to-face teaching and discussion take vital elements out of degrees? What do students want?
Confirmed speakers:
A/Prof. Gregor Kennedy, Director of eLearning, University of Melbourne
Prof. Beverley Oliver, Pro Vice-Chancellor Learning Futures, Deakin University
Chair: Prof. Simon Marginson, Chair of Higher Education, Centre for the Study of Higher Education, University of Melbourne
VENUE: Woodward Conference Centre, 10th Floor, Melbourne Law School, Pelham St, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria.
Jointly presented by the Centre for the Study of Higher Education & the LH Martin Institute.