MOOCs (massively open online courses), considered by academic critics and Silicon Valley visionaries as the great disruptor of college education, are now experiencing a lot of criticism for their inability to offer significant educational outcomes that were predicted by their proponents. The main concern of the cynics is the remarkably low rates of completion for numerous MOOCs, which can be as low as only 4 per cent according to some studies. Although there are several reasons behind this, but attractive videos along with engaging activities and problems are clearly insufficient to encourage commitment most learners.
Innovation & progress
However, these types of setbacks are actually expected while moving on the route to disruption. The constant evolution of the online learning market is an excellent case study for prospective disruptors as well as disruptees in different markets. Latest technologies will progress and eventually improve to reach an important point resulting in accelerating innovation. The new technology will exceed heritage technologies on crucial amplitude of merit, especially during the accelerating phase.
Moving through this curve are innumerable actions by courageous entrepreneurs and ingenious incumbents. Learning has become imperative and experimentation is being considered as the norm. Although most of the efforts will not succeed, but a handful of achievements have the ability to drive disruption. This the the scenario of online learning. The inventive attempts of remarkable incumbents as well as the strong visions of bold startups are currently pushing and encouraging the industry to move forward.
Encouraging commitment
New studies reveal that developing a community of learners is essential for boosting commitment and creating an effective learning environment for everyone. V.G. Narayanan, Jan Hammond and
Bharat Anand's experience with HBX of Harvard show that the completion rates have been raised substantially, which was as high as 85 per cent for HBX CORe. Other eLearning providers have observed similar outcomes, including NovoEd, an EdTech start-up which hosts different courses, along with one of the initial MOOCs, Technology Entrepreneurship by professor Chuck Eesley of Stanford. From the beginning, the course needed the learners to develop teams for working collaboratively for building entrepreneurial ventures.
Narayanan, Hammond and Anand believe that “social learning can substitute for expert knowledge.” This is crucial as one of the major restrictions to MOOCs is the instructor's scalability. In the last 2 years, nearly 400,000 learners have enrolled in Foundations of Business Strategy (MOOC), which is offered via the Udemy and Coursera platforms.
Engaging learners
Michael Lenox, Samuel L. Slover Research Professor of Business and Associate Dean for Innovation Programs at UVA’s Darden School of Business, and Academic Director of Darden’s Batten Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, wrote “While the videos and assignments that I created are easily scaled, my ability to directly engage students in the course is limited. The “massive” element of MOOCs makes it very difficult for the instructor to meaningfully engage students on a one-to-one basis. With tens of thousands of participants, it is easy to get overwhelmed by the thousands of threads in discussion forums and hundreds of emails one may receive.”
Lenox added “As the instructor, my time is best spent creating the conditions under which students are encouraged, if not required, to engage in discussions with and learning from one another. This ability to bring diverse voices together at massive scale has always been part of the promise of MOOCs. Unidirectional learning, such as watching a video or completing a problem set, can be greatly enhanced when students are challenged to discuss learnings and to critique and support each other.”
What are your thoughts on online education? Want to add to the discussion? Then feel free to share your opinions with us by commenting here.
Innovation & progress
However, these types of setbacks are actually expected while moving on the route to disruption. The constant evolution of the online learning market is an excellent case study for prospective disruptors as well as disruptees in different markets. Latest technologies will progress and eventually improve to reach an important point resulting in accelerating innovation. The new technology will exceed heritage technologies on crucial amplitude of merit, especially during the accelerating phase.
Moving through this curve are innumerable actions by courageous entrepreneurs and ingenious incumbents. Learning has become imperative and experimentation is being considered as the norm. Although most of the efforts will not succeed, but a handful of achievements have the ability to drive disruption. This the the scenario of online learning. The inventive attempts of remarkable incumbents as well as the strong visions of bold startups are currently pushing and encouraging the industry to move forward.
Encouraging commitment
New studies reveal that developing a community of learners is essential for boosting commitment and creating an effective learning environment for everyone. V.G. Narayanan, Jan Hammond and
Bharat Anand's experience with HBX of Harvard show that the completion rates have been raised substantially, which was as high as 85 per cent for HBX CORe. Other eLearning providers have observed similar outcomes, including NovoEd, an EdTech start-up which hosts different courses, along with one of the initial MOOCs, Technology Entrepreneurship by professor Chuck Eesley of Stanford. From the beginning, the course needed the learners to develop teams for working collaboratively for building entrepreneurial ventures.
Narayanan, Hammond and Anand believe that “social learning can substitute for expert knowledge.” This is crucial as one of the major restrictions to MOOCs is the instructor's scalability. In the last 2 years, nearly 400,000 learners have enrolled in Foundations of Business Strategy (MOOC), which is offered via the Udemy and Coursera platforms.
Engaging learners
Michael Lenox, Samuel L. Slover Research Professor of Business and Associate Dean for Innovation Programs at UVA’s Darden School of Business, and Academic Director of Darden’s Batten Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, wrote “While the videos and assignments that I created are easily scaled, my ability to directly engage students in the course is limited. The “massive” element of MOOCs makes it very difficult for the instructor to meaningfully engage students on a one-to-one basis. With tens of thousands of participants, it is easy to get overwhelmed by the thousands of threads in discussion forums and hundreds of emails one may receive.”
Lenox added “As the instructor, my time is best spent creating the conditions under which students are encouraged, if not required, to engage in discussions with and learning from one another. This ability to bring diverse voices together at massive scale has always been part of the promise of MOOCs. Unidirectional learning, such as watching a video or completing a problem set, can be greatly enhanced when students are challenged to discuss learnings and to critique and support each other.”
What are your thoughts on online education? Want to add to the discussion? Then feel free to share your opinions with us by commenting here.