Greek University MOOCs and Secondary Education Teachers’ Training (original) (raw)
Related papers
Given that the actions in hosting Massive Open Online Courses are limited in Greece, the Hellenic Open University and, specifically, the Laboratory of Educational Material and Educational Methodology implements the project "MOOC.HOU". The current project aims to design high-quality MOOCs that promotes research, blended learning, and Distance Education's pedagogical principles. In this vein, the recent case study aims to present the specifications and the selection process of the most suitable LMS platform for HOU's MOOCs. To achieve this, the Department of Creating and Managing Electronic Courses of HOU set the specifications of a Learning Management System as a MOOC provider via a complete prototype table. The specific table was formed based on a comparative study that took place in two phases. The first is a quantitative process of the essential features that the selection platform must-have. The second qualitative Phase evaluates the different capabilities of the two most suitable platforms, Moodle and Open edX. Finally, the particular characteristics of each platform were checked following the specific pedagogical goals set by HOU. All the criteria for selecting an LMS suitable for MOOCs have been established. As a result, all the technical and pedagogical features where Moodle and Open edX show capabilities and weaknesses have emerged compared to each other. Furthermore, the disadvantages of each platform have been assessed, and solutions have been explored. Finally, factors have emerged that need to be considered due to the unique nature of the ΗΟU. Conclusively, the research results highlight the pedagogical and technical aspects that must be matched with the specific nature of HOU's goals. Based on this, the specific case study can be used as a guideline framework to define the specification of the above platforms as a MOOC provider. The platform that HOU selected was Moodle.
OERs and MOOCs – the Romanian Experience
Using Open Educational Resources (OER) provides opportunities for collaboration both in the classroom and beyond. Started in 2008 and gathering momentum over the past two years, now an online phenomenon, MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) reunite different perspectives over a globalized online learning. The paper analyses the use of OER and MOOCs in different study cases in Romanian universities. Several OER initiatives resulted from the over 1000 academia involved in the DidaTec lifelong learning and training for higher education teachers in the technical sciences and engineering field as a training course for university professors in 12 universities, within the aim of improving the use of ICT in higher education. Four universities from Romania started a Romanian MOOC environment, the UniCampus, which provides free access to valuable education in Romanian language, presented by well-known professors. The evaluation and quality assurance challenges of the Unicampus are mainly due t...
The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning
The proliferation of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) in recent years has generated much debate. MOOCs have been presented as technology-based educational practices, but many researchers question if this kind of open courses really respects some of the consolidated principles behind the education offered at universities. In light of this situation, consulting the teachers most closely tied to this type of course can provide an authoritative view of the issue and can allow the most important elements to be highlighted in order to carry out further research. Using a qualitative methodology based on an open questionnaire, this work presents the opinions and perceptions of teachers/lecturers in educational technology regarding these new courses key elements. These key elements are analysed through analysing its controversial definition, their pedagogical advantages and limitations, the functions of a tutor in a MOOC and their assessment (or accreditation). In addition, a comparison is made between the contributions of teachers from a traditional university with a face-toface model and those from a distance university, which is based entirely on a virtual training offer and which has a greater possibility of coming into direct competition with these Massive Open Online Courses.
Education and Information Technologies, 2022
During the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown, edX launched an initiative, called the Remote Access Program, to give access to free certificates for its Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) to the communities of its partners. This paper describes the experience of a Higher Education (HE) institution in Europe participating in this initiative as a strategic action to spread MOOCs, not just as a resource to open the university educational offer but also to improve the professional development possibilities of its community. This case study explores general data about the participation of over 7,700 people (23,4% of the Universitat Politècnica de Valencia's community) in these courses and data from participants (1,515) about their initiative perceptions. The data obtained evaluates how a university community integrates MOOCs into their day-today life under certain conditions and their perception of the quality and usefulness of the courses. Data shows most of the community did not have experience or knowledge about MOOCs (73%), they used it (they obtained 5,202 certificates, a 33% completion rate), they value the course quality (4.1/5) and are happy with the initiative (4.7/5), and they think MOOCs will be useful for their career (3.67/5) and will take more MOOCs in the future (98%, with 71% thinking it is worth paying for the certificate). These results remark the importance of thinking about MOOCs in HE Institutions not just as a punctual resource but as a strategic investment affecting the university teaching offer, the professional development of its community, and their social compromise.
A Comparative Analysis of MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) Platforms
Informatica Economica, 2016
The MOOC platforms have known a considerable development in recent years due to the enlargement of online space and the shifting between traditional to virtual activities. These platforms made it possible for people almost everywhere to take online academic courses offered by top universities via open access to web and with unlimited participation. Thus, it came naturally to us to address the question what makes them so successful? The purpose of this paper is to report comparatively MOOC platforms in terms of features, based on the user's implication and demands. First, we chose four relevant lifelong learning platforms and then we structured three main categories for the platforms' qualification, depending on which we built our theory regarding the comparison between them. Our analysis consists of three sets of criteria: business model, course design and popularity among online users. Starting from this perspective, we built a range of representative factors for which we highlighted the major aspects for each platform in our comparative research.
2014
The MOOCs come to represent for public University the end of an institution of this kind: open transference of knowledge . Faced with the emergence of this new form of learning, there are news similar to, "the San Jose State University decides to ‘pause’ the experiment Udacity. The reason? Learning outcomes of the MOOC students are not similar to the attendance ones". Any university that is interested should consider some important aspects before implementing the use of the new active methodologies for dissemination of knowledge. Besides other issues identified below, the present study should be to reflect on the usefulness and interest of the MOOC and what should be taken into account to improve results in the case of courses with a mainly vocational guidance. Therefore, based on a case study released by the Universitat Jaume I in 2014, six aspects will be analyzed: (1) What are the reasons that led a group of professors in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Con...
When the Massive Open Online Courses, MOOC, become Hybrid at the Open University of Mauritius
Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd'18), 2018
With more and more courses being offered online, trainers are constantly being asked to change their teaching style. Online courses have taken another twist with innovation such as the MOOC. MOOC being non-fee paying courses by nature, are delivered mostly by established universities, course structure and management were bound to change. With less than 10% successful completion rate for MOOC courses and keeping in mind the Mauritian context, the Open University of Mauritius, OUM, decided to offer a hybrid MOOC. By hybrid, Daniel Peraya (2006) suggests blended courses that is online training and face to face sessions. It is more about tutoring and guiding learners rather than mere teaching. The main objective of this paper is to show the effectiveness of a hybrid MOOC in terms of organisation and course structure. The methododoly adopted in this paper is a survey questionnaire and data from a MOODLE platform. The fact that this course has been organised in a blended mode has assured a higher completion rate. Face to face sessions helped learners to interact. The use of MOODLE as an additional platform accessssed by a restricted number of participants proved to be helpful to get aquainted to online learning.
Massive open on-line courses (MOOCs): global education paradigm shift?
2015
Massive open on-line courses or «MOOCs» is the current catchphrase of the on-line education sector. Many see MOOCs as representing a «disruptive innovation» that will change the education. There are many supporters and many cynics who have weighed in on the MOOC debate. This paper provides an overview of the development and evolution of MOOCs with a view to looking at possible Future directions that might be available for these types of courses.
Analizying MOOCs from an educational perspective in Spain
This article is the result of a Teaching Innovation Project funded by the University of Cantabria’s Vice-Rectorate for Teaching Staff. Its goals are to analyze the phenomenon of MOOCs with pedagogical criteria and to develop a Best Practice Guide. The project was developed by the Universities of Cantabria and Oviedo, all the work was divided into three phases: 1) Theoretical review and the design of classroom activities, 2) The implementation of classroom activities and analysis of the main results and 3) The development of a MOOC Best Practice Guide. The results of the second phase at the University of Cantabria are presented here. They demonstrate the need to introduce these massive open online courses into degree programmes in Education, updating higher education studies and providing valuable knowledge for understanding the educational potential (not just technological or financial) of this online training.