The discussion highlights the shortcomings of massive open online courses (MOOCs) such as those offered by Udacity, edX, and Coursera, which were initially heralded as a revolutionary solution to educational access and affordability. Despite the potential for free classes from esteemed professors, participants express disappointment in the actual learning outcomes, attributing this to a lack of student engagement and effort. The conversation critiques the notion that technology alone can enhance education, emphasizing that the responsibility for learning ultimately lies with the student.
PREREQUISITESEducators, instructional designers, and policymakers interested in the effectiveness of online education and the integration of technology in learning environments.
One year ago, many were pointing to the growth of massive open online courses, or MOOCs, as the most important trend in higher education. Many saw the rapid expansion of MOOCs as a higher education revolution that would help address two long-vexing problems: access for underserved students and cost.
In theory, students saddled by rising debt and unable to tap into the best schools would be able to take free classes from rock star professors at elite schools via Udacity, edX, Coursera and other MOOC platforms.
Tobias Funke said:universal literacy was supposed to lead to a utopia, projectors in the classrooms were supposed to revolutionalize learning, ditto for graphing calculators, language labs, laptops, smartboards, flipped classrooms, etc. Have any of them lived up to the hype?