When MOOC Profs Move
Carl Straumsheim, Inside Higher Ed, March 18, 2014
I'm going to teach a lesson in this post. But first, let me set it up. In this article, the question of the ownership of MOOC materials is raised. Who owns the materials when faculty move to a new institution? MIT of course says "we've found the answer." Meanwhile, Cathy Davidson, who is moving from Duke to CUNY, declares this: "I own my own course content. No one at Duke (or anywhere) can teach with my videos without my permission. I can reuse my videos and course materials at CUNY, but need to acknowledge that they were produced at Duke." Now for the lesson. I am using this video to teach it. More...

The Rise of MOOCs: Past Successes, Future Challenges
Stephen Downes, March 24, 2014, ICT advisory board meeting, Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization, Tunis, Tunisia

(Photos: Demetrios Sampson)

In this presentation I outline the major influences leading to the development of MOOCs, including learning objects and open educational resources. I then describe the basis for the creation of our original connectivist MOOCs, describe the learning theory behind them, and review attribues of a number of cMOOCs over the years. Finally I develop the concept of the personal learning environment as it is being implemented in our LPSS program.

[Link] [Slides] [Audio]. More...

Online university courses can't change the world alone
Gayle Christensen, Brandon Alcorn, New Scientist, March 17, 2014

According to New Scientist, "Ultimately, MOOCs are not by themselves a mechanism for development but require certain levels of education and technology. They are reaching millions of people around the world, but to truly revolutionize access, improvements in the broader education and technology ecosystem are vital." I guess this is true, but would be true of any form of education. More...

Does teaching presence matter in a MOOC?
Terry Anderson, Virtual Canuck, March 13, 2014

Terry Anderson reports on a studty of a Coursera MOOC showing "that teacher presence had no significant relation to course completion, most badges awarded, intent to register in subsequent MOOCs or course satisfaction." This may concern teachers, but one of the aims of the MOOCs we've designed is to support presence with student-student interaction. More...

Invasion of the MOOCs: The Promises and Perils of Massive Open Online Courses
Steven D. Krause, Charles Lowe, Parlor Press, March 10, 2014

Poor bandwidth means a leaan newsletter, but here's a book on MOOCs that you migth want to read. (I'm in Valencia where I gave a talk today.) "Unlike accounts in the mainstream media and educational press, Invasion of the MOOCs is not written from the perspective of removed administrators, would-be education entrepreneurs/venture capitalists, or political pundits. More...

The MOOC of One
Stephen Downes, March 10, 2014, INTED 2014, Valencia

In this talk I examine the transition from the idea of the massive open online course - MOOC - to the idea of the personal learning environment. In the process of this discussion I question what it is to become 'one' - whether it be one course graduate, one citizen of the community, or one educated person. I argue that (say) 'being a doctor' isn't about having remembered the right content, not about having done the right things, not even about having the right feelings, nor about having the right mental representations - being one is about growing and developing a certain way.

[Slides] [Audio]. More...