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Carolyn McIntyre, CEO of MoocLab
Slighting MOOCs has become trendy, it seems. They’re not what they were deemed to be; they’re failing to disrupt the educational world as we know it; they have high dropout rates, no universal certification system, blah blah blah.
Hold on: MOOCs are only a few years old. They’re in the early stages of infancy with their whole lives ahead of them. And their future looks promising.
MOOCs bring thousands of individuals together around a common interest. Evidence suggests these individuals are mostly qualified professionals seeking to further their learning. Although social interaction around MOOCs has been slow to take off, this collective pool of knowledge has huge potential — the masses teaching the masses. The development of more efficient interactive and social tools will open the door to a high-quality online education not only through more engaging courses, but also through peer-to-peer learning.
Innovations underway
Combining learning with ever-advancing technology is where the real disruption will come from, in the form of personalized learning. Knewton, in partnership with Gutenberg Technology, has launched an adaptive learning platform in which course publishers can send real-time recommendations to instructors and use predictive analytics to help students understand their progress. The MindWave headset from NeuroSky measures brainwaves and student attention levels. Affectiva has developed Q Sensor, a bracelet that detects when a student is anxious, bored or excited. With the way technology is evolving, improved understanding and assessment of online student learning will soon propel MOOCs into a new realm of credibility.
Corporations jump on board
Corporations are now beginning to jump on the MOOC bandwagon, having recognized the potential of both providing and consuming online courses. Companies are developing MOOCs to teach customers to use their products and discovering that they’re a valuable marketing tool for forming closer relationships with consumers. MOOCs, typically free, also provide an excellent opportunity for smaller companies with limited training budgets, and larger organizations have started to partner with MOOC platforms to deliver their own courses to fill specific skills gaps. Certification is unnecessary in these cases, as organizations are after skills and competencies, not bits of paper. It’s no surprise that MOOC platforms are embracing the corporate market. Sebastian Thrun, CEO of Udacity, says, “For some jobs, companies are looking for specific credentials that MOOCs can provide, and not necessarily a degree.” Here, MOOCs have an important role to play, filling an educational void that campus-based universities have missed.
Give MOOCs a chance
MOOCs have a lot of growing up to do, and growing up is a difficult thing fraught with uncertainties and insecurities. But, eventually, they will blossom into fully rounded and complete models of education. Let’s be patient, nurture them, and watch them grow.
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Carolyn McIntyre is CEO of MoocLab.club, a community website connecting people to online learning via forums, information, independent reviews and more.
This post originally appeared on eLearning Industry.
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