A new classification for MOOCs by Gráinne Conole

This post argues that the current discourse around the concept of xMOOCs (primarily based around interaction with content and essentially adopting a behaviourist learning approach), and cMOOCs (which focus on harnessing the power of social media and interaction with peers, adopting a connectivist learning approach), is an inadequate way of describing the variety of MOOCs and the ways in which learners engage with them. It will introduce an alternative means of categorising MOOCs, based on their key characteristics. It will describe how this can be used as part of the 7Cs of Learning Design framework, to design more pedagogically informed MOOCs, which enhances the learner experience and ensure quality assurance. A fundamental aspect of ensuring a good learner experience is the quality of the course. It is important to distinguish between three main aspects of quality: quality audit, quality assurance and quality enhancement.
Gráinne Conole is Professor of learning innovation at the University of Leicester. Her research interests include the use, integration and evaluation of Information and Communication Technologies and e-learning and the impact of technologies on organisational change. She regularly blogs on www.e4innovation.com and is @gconole on Twitter. She has successfully secured funding from the EU, HEFCE, ESRC, JISC and commercial sponsors). She was awarded an HEA National Teaching Fellowship in 2012. She has published and presented over 1000 conference proceedings, workshops and articles, including the use and evaluation of learning technologies. She has recently published a Springer book entitled ‘Designing for learning in an open world.’ She was involved in the OLDS MOOC on Learning Design and is leading a team for a new Masters in Learning Innovation http://www2.le.ac.uk/study/postgrad/distance. Read more...