10 Ways to Take Advantage of MOOCoholism

Hamideh iraj

Active Member
Study Buddy
This article was first published on CourseTalk.

10 Ways to Take Advantage of MOOCoholism

Believe it or not, I am not going to write about how you can get rid of MOOCoholism because I do not consider MOOCoholism to be bad. So if you are diving into new courses, devouring knowledge, warming up with quizzes, wrestling with assignments or knocking down educational gaps, keep reading this article. If you are not sure whether you are a MOOCoholic, do not hesitate to read my earlier post.

What I really want to write about is how you can make the best use of MOOCs, how you can help other people do the same and, in doing so, make the world a better place.

1. Develop a personal MOOC strategy:

You will get the most out of MOOCs when you learn in a goal-oriented and disciplined way. Before starting, think about the things you want out of MOOCs. The main goal may be developing skills for your field of study or job. Another goal could be broadening your general knowledge and penetrating unknown areas.

For example, you could plan to spend 12 hours a week on MOOCs: 70 percent on courses in your main field and 30 percent on other courses, or vice versa. Remember that the latter can be as important as the former. Sometimes new ideas and innovation come to life when you get an idea from another field and implement it in your own area. Always dedicate some time for your curiosity; take a look at courses that seem interesting, and wait for a brand new idea to come to your mind!

2. Go back to school:

Being a MOOCoholic may be a sign that, deep down, you want to go back to school. It may be traditional graduate school, or you may want to dedicate some time to pursue a self-made curriculum. Listen to your heart, and think about this seriously.

3. Change your job:

Being a MOOCoholic could also be a sign that you are ready to change careers. If you have learned a lot recently, but are not using the knowledge in your daily work, why not look for a job where you can apply your new skills?

4. Share your self-made curriculum:

If you have already come up with a self-made track of courses, try sharing it with a community of learners! It might be turn out to be a complete MBA program on par with the one designed by the university in your neighborhood. It is time for you to play your role in the circulation of knowledge and produce something new. Do not hesitate to share your track on social media or on your own website or blog.

5. Share your MOOC story:

If MOOCs have changed something in your life, why not share your story and inspire others? Learning is interesting and enjoyable on its own. When it changes one’s life, it becomes even more thrilling, so let others enjoy your story, as well.

6. Pursue your dreams:

If you have always loved music, but never had the chance to study it, now is your opportunity. Take a music class! Maybe you have always thought about learning Chinese, but never had enough time to take a course. These days you can find a wide variety of courses online. So think about yourself, and brainstorm. You could learn something you have wanted to your whole life. Just do it!

7. Start a learning group:

Starting a learning group allows you to learn about diverse topics with a limited amount of time. For example, I want to participate in education, project management, sports physiology, and data science MOOCs, but it is impossible to take all the courses available. One solution is to find people with similar interests and have one person take a certain class and then teach the material to others. This way, everyone can learn more and learn it more quickly.

8. Bring your MOOC classmates into the real world:

Your MOOC classmates are not different from school classmates, except for the facts that they have come to MOOCs by their own intention and many of them are lifelong learners. Visit them. They can be good friends. Believe me, I have tried it.

9. Bring MOOCs to your workplace or university:

When many people enthusiastic about learning are taking part in MOOCs in solitude, why not organize study groups? By doing this, people will enjoy learning much more and also learn more in the process. Your workplace or university will be grateful that you have provided a popular, flexible and free way of learning.

10. Start a MOOC business:

Although the industry is definitely in its infancy, we are now in a time when making money from MOOCs is not a joke. That means there are a lot of opportunities you can make use of. If you love MOOCs, you may have ideas on how to develop, extend and add to them. Google the topic and you will find many startups that are working on MOOCs. MOOC review websites, translation and tutoring are some examples of businesses that are based on MOOCs. Think about what you can do with MOOCs to help people.

If you know another way to learn or benefit more from MOOCs, leave a comment and share your idea with the world!

Good luck, and keep learning!
 

Bluebeard

Active Member
I don't have time to comment right now, but I enjoyed reading your article. I will have a think and post any other ideas I can think of.:)
 

MDH

Active Member
4. Share your self-made curriculum:

If you have already come up with a self-made track of courses, try sharing it with a community of learners! It might be turn out to be a complete MBA program on par with the one designed by the university in your neighborhood. It is time for you to play your role in the circulation of knowledge and produce something new. Do not hesitate to share your track on social media or on your own website or blog.
I think this is a very valid point @Hamideh iraj . Sharing study paths can truly assist others with their learning without having to trail through the multitude of courses.
Thanks for sharing.
 

MattB

Active Member
Thanks for posting your article, @Hamideh iraj . I'd be interested to know what your motivations are with taking MOOCs and if they have helped you in any concrete way :)
 

JosepRamon Badia

Active Member
This article was first published on CourseTalk.

10 Ways to Take Advantage of MOOCoholism

Believe it or not, I am not going to write about how you can get rid of MOOCoholism because I do not consider MOOCoholism to be bad. So if you are diving into new courses, devouring knowledge, warming up with quizzes, wrestling with assignments or knocking down educational gaps, keep reading this article. If you are not sure whether you are a MOOCoholic, do not hesitate to read my earlier post.

What I really want to write about is how you can make the best use of MOOCs, how you can help other people do the same and, in doing so, make the world a better place.

1. Develop a personal MOOC strategy:

You will get the most out of MOOCs when you learn in a goal-oriented and disciplined way. Before starting, think about the things you want out of MOOCs. The main goal may be developing skills for your field of study or job. Another goal could be broadening your general knowledge and penetrating unknown areas.

For example, you could plan to spend 12 hours a week on MOOCs: 70 percent on courses in your main field and 30 percent on other courses, or vice versa. Remember that the latter can be as important as the former. Sometimes new ideas and innovation come to life when you get an idea from another field and implement it in your own area. Always dedicate some time for your curiosity; take a look at courses that seem interesting, and wait for a brand new idea to come to your mind!

2. Go back to school:

Being a MOOCoholic may be a sign that, deep down, you want to go back to school. It may be traditional graduate school, or you may want to dedicate some time to pursue a self-made curriculum. Listen to your heart, and think about this seriously.

3. Change your job:

Being a MOOCoholic could also be a sign that you are ready to change careers. If you have learned a lot recently, but are not using the knowledge in your daily work, why not look for a job where you can apply your new skills?

4. Share your self-made curriculum:

If you have already come up with a self-made track of courses, try sharing it with a community of learners! It might be turn out to be a complete MBA program on par with the one designed by the university in your neighborhood. It is time for you to play your role in the circulation of knowledge and produce something new. Do not hesitate to share your track on social media or on your own website or blog.

5. Share your MOOC story:

If MOOCs have changed something in your life, why not share your story and inspire others? Learning is interesting and enjoyable on its own. When it changes one’s life, it becomes even more thrilling, so let others enjoy your story, as well.

6. Pursue your dreams:

If you have always loved music, but never had the chance to study it, now is your opportunity. Take a music class! Maybe you have always thought about learning Chinese, but never had enough time to take a course. These days you can find a wide variety of courses online. So think about yourself, and brainstorm. You could learn something you have wanted to your whole life. Just do it!

7. Start a learning group:

Starting a learning group allows you to learn about diverse topics with a limited amount of time. For example, I want to participate in education, project management, sports physiology, and data science MOOCs, but it is impossible to take all the courses available. One solution is to find people with similar interests and have one person take a certain class and then teach the material to others. This way, everyone can learn more and learn it more quickly.

8. Bring your MOOC classmates into the real world:

Your MOOC classmates are not different from school classmates, except for the facts that they have come to MOOCs by their own intention and many of them are lifelong learners. Visit them. They can be good friends. Believe me, I have tried it.

9. Bring MOOCs to your workplace or university:

When many people enthusiastic about learning are taking part in MOOCs in solitude, why not organize study groups? By doing this, people will enjoy learning much more and also learn more in the process. Your workplace or university will be grateful that you have provided a popular, flexible and free way of learning.

10. Start a MOOC business:

Although the industry is definitely in its infancy, we are now in a time when making money from MOOCs is not a joke. That means there are a lot of opportunities you can make use of. If you love MOOCs, you may have ideas on how to develop, extend and add to them. Google the topic and you will find many startups that are working on MOOCs. MOOC review websites, translation and tutoring are some examples of businesses that are based on MOOCs. Think about what you can do with MOOCs to help people.

If you know another way to learn or benefit more from MOOCs, leave a comment and share your idea with the world!

Good luck, and keep learning!
Absoutely agree with you, @Hamideh iraj, and I specially love your ....oh, actually, with all of them. Buyt for me sounds so well #10, it's a holy true MOOC,s industry is a perfect opportunities field, and we have to be responsible focusing on value proposal if we're decided to start a sort of Business in this area. And to be fully comitmed spreading the word MOOC all around the worls....so let's start at the office, the workplace, share in social nets and....every place we can imagine! Congratulations fir this nice post!
 
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