Stanford University professors who are now two years into teaching Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) say they are starting to realize some of the promised potential of the online innovation.
Some also are reporting that they see less drop outs then they did in the first year of MOOCs.
Much of the adjustment for professors has been the same as it is for anyone who teaches courses online – they must learn the role of a the professor in an online classroom environment, according to an article from Inside Higher Ed. Many have discovered it is not that different than teaching classes with a large amount of students.
Repetition can become an issue as well.
Scott Klemmer, an associate professor of cognitive science, computer science and engineering at the University of California at San Diego, told Insider Higher Ed, “When you run it for the 10th time, how do you have it so you can be involved in the class at the level you want without you feeling like ‘Groundhog Day,’ where you’re doing the same thing over and over again?”
Keith Devlin, a Stanford researcher, told Inside Higher Ed that the number of students who stay in the course past the first two weeks has increased. Devlin said he has learned that MOOCs can be a lot like multiplayer online role-playing games.
He said “World of Warcraft” has been especially instructive. The game is designed in such a way that you cannot win the “really cool stuff” unless you work cooperatively with others. He said the same thing can be applied to online classes – students benefit by working with other students, perhaps collaborating on a project or studying together.
Devlin told Insider Higher Ed that the changes he has made to his classes are “about putting students in a position where they feel comfortable forming communities.” He also has changed the focus of the course from getting a good grade at the end to participating. Those who do so get a certificate, and those who complete a further “test flight” program get another certificate as well as finding out what percentile of students they tested into.
Some other additions to Stanford classes have been a community teaching assistant and a Linked In group for former students.
