ERIC Number: EJ1185117
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018-Jul
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1492-3831
EISSN: N/A
Teaching Massive, Open, Online, Courses (MOOCs): Tales from the Front Line
Lowenthal, Patrick R.; Snelson, Chareen; Perkins, Ross
International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, v19 n3 p1-19 Jul 2018
Very little research has been conducted about what it is like to teach a MOOC. Given this, a mixed methods study, involving a survey of 186 MOOC instructors and 15 follow-up interviews, was conducted to explore the motivation, experiences, and perceptions of instructors who have taught massive open online courses. Findings indicate that instructors were motivated to teach MOOCs for three main reasons: (1) interest and passion, (2) publicity and marketing, or (3) benefits and incentives. Most instructors had little online teaching experience prior to teaching their first MOOC, but were satisfied with the experience. The majority believed their own MOOC provided a high quality learning experience but thought that MOOCs overall might not be as good as face-to-face courses. Concerns were raised about the future of MOOCs for online learning.
Descriptors: Online Courses, Teaching Methods, Open Education, Mixed Methods Research, Teacher Surveys, Followup Studies, Interviews, Teacher Motivation, Teaching Experience, Teacher Attitudes, Instructional Effectiveness, Relevance (Education), Higher Education, Educational Practices
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A