e-Learning Ecologies MOOC’s Updates
MOOCS - Reflections
Professional development opportunities come few and far between for non-tenured faculty and contract staff at many institutions. Accessing MOOCs and other easily accessed online learning opportunities present possible solutions to this dilemma. However, there is a noticeable difference in the quality of courses, depending on their source. Quickly compare the University of British Columbia's Novel Writing Series (https://www.classcentral.com/course/edx-how-to-write-a-novel-writing-the-draft-3938) which is depthful, interactive, multimodal and ubiquitous in terms of ongoing access (beyond the completion of the course), and the Centre of Excellences version (https://www.centreofexcellence.com/course/novel-writing-diploma-3786/) which describes itself as a 'portal', and charges $65 for a 'diploma'. For the uninitiated, the two versions might seem similar. However, UBC's version employs experienced professors, technicians, and guest speakers. It also engages students with each other in meaningful ways, and promotes learning from wherever one may be in their process. The Centre of Excellence course, while inexpensive, does none of those things. Perhaps these courses serve different ends. Still, I believe there needs to be greater accountability to students, and repercussions for institutions who are selling a product, as opposed to providing a legitimate educational experience or opportunity.
I totally agree with you that learners need to do a lot of research before commiting to one course. There are so many sources providing the same course subjects but the quality is always so different. The positive thing is that since they are online courses, most of the times you can find reviews of former students online or in social media and have a clearer view of the actual content.