Analyzing Completion Rates in the First French xMOOC

This special issue of the eLearning Papers is based on the contributions made to the EMOOCS 2014 conference jointly organized by the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) and P.A.U. Education. Download Print Version.
Analyzing Completion Rates in the First French xMOOC
By Matthieu Cisel. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have spread incredibly fast since the foundation of Coursera and edX in 2012, initiating a worldwide debate over the place of online learning in educational systems.
Their low completion rates have repeatedly been criticized over the past two years, forcing researchers to take a closer look at their complex dynamics. Introduction to Project Management is the first French xMOOC; it was organized on Canvas.net in early 2013. Two certificates involving significantly different workloads were proposed to address the various expectations and constraints of MOOC participants. We show that learners’ personal aims and achievements are highly dependent upon their employment status, geographical origin and time constraints. Furthermore, the use of forums and involvement in peer-assessment are significantly associated with the level of achievement at the scale of the MOOC. Learners who interact on the forums and assess peer assignments are more likely to complete the course. More...