Integrating MOOCs into traditional higher education modules: a MOOC-based blend framework
Keywords:
MOOCs, Blended Learning, Higher Education, Open Education, Online Learning
Abstract
Online learning platforms, such as MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses), continue to expand, and some academics are taking advantage of these resources by integrating them into their teaching. The literature shows that there are many different ways that MOOCS are being blended into on-campus university teaching, and it would be helpful to have a framework that demonstrates the relationship between the in-person and MOOC curricula content, and the Blended Learning models used in practice. This study investigated how some UK academics are blending MOOCs into their in-person teaching and whether the blends used had any impact on course design. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six participants with MOOC blending experience, and data were analysed using an inductive approach to Thematic Analysis. Results from this study generated an understanding of (1) what parts of MOOCs lecturers are using and how these resources are being blended into their in-person courses, (2) what kind of impact a MOOC-based blend can have on a course design and (3) the MOOC-based blend framework – a framework to assess the extent to which readily available MOOCs are integrated into lecture-based university modules in terms of curricular alignment and types of blend.
Downloads
Download data is not yet available.
References
Albó, L. & Hernández-Leo, D. (2016) ‘Blended learning with MOOCs: towards supporting the learning design process’, The Online, Open and Flexible Higher Education Conference, Rome, Italy, 19–21 October, pp. 578–588. Available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10230/27478
Albó, L., Hernández-Leo, D. & Oliver, M. (2015) ‘Blended MOOCs: university teachers’ perspective’, Trends in Digital Education: Selected papers from EC-TEL 2015 Workshops CHANGEE, WAPLA, and HybridEd, Toledo, Spain, 18 September, pp. 11–15. Available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10230/36387
Barber, M. (2021) ‘Gravity assist: propelling higher education towards a brighter future – digital teaching and learning review’, Office for Students, [online] Available at: https://ofslivefs.blob.core.windows.net/files/Gravity%20assist/Gravity-assist-DTL-finalforweb.pdf
Barber, M., Donnelly, K. & Rizvi, S. (2013) An Avalanche is Coming: Higher Education and the Revolution Ahead, Institute for Policy Research, [online] Available at: https://www.ippr.org/files/images/media/files/publication/2013/04/avalanche-is-coming_Mar2013_10432.pdf
Bergmann, J. & Sams, A. (2012) Flip Your Classroom: Reach Every Student in Every Class Every Day, International Society for Technology in Education, Washington, DC.
Borthwick, K. (2018) ‘What our MOOC did next: embedding, exploiting, and extending an existing MOOC to fit strategic purposes and priorities’, in Flipping the Blend Through MOOCs, MALL and OIL – New Directions in CALL, eds M. Orsini-Jones & S. Smith, Research-publishing.net, pp. 17–23. doi: 10.14705/rpnet.2018.23.786
Borthwick, K. (2021) ‘Making MOOCs go further: utilising MOOCs in teaching and learning’, AdvanceHE, [online] Available at: https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/news-and-views/making-moocs-go-further-utilising-moocs-teaching-and-learning
Bovill, C. & Bulley, C. (2011) ‘A model of active student participation in curriculum design: exploring desirability and possibility’, in Improving Student Learning, Proceedings of the ISSOTL/ISL Conference, eds C. Rust, Oxford Centre for Staff and Learning Development, Oxford, pp. 176–188. Available at: http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/57709/
Bovill, C., Cook-Sather, A. & Felten, P. (2011) ‘Students as co-creators of teaching approaches, course design, and curricula: implications for academic developers’, International Journal for Academic Development, vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 133–145. doi: 10.1080/1360144X.2011.568690
Braun, V. & Clarke, V. (2006) ‘Using thematic analysis in psychology’, Qualitative Research in Psychology, vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 77–101. doi: 10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Braun, V. & Clarke, V. (2013) Successful Qualitative Research: A Practical Guide for Beginners, SAGE Publications Ltd, London.
Braun, V., Clarke, V. & Rance, N. (2014) ‘How to use thematic analysis with interview data’, in The Counselling & Psychotherapy Research Handbook, eds A. Vossler & N. Moller, London, Sage, pp. 183–197.
Bruff, D. O., et al., (2013) ‘Wrapping a MOOC: student perceptions of an experiment in blended learning’, MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 187–199. Available at: https://jolt.merlot.org/vol9no2/bruff_0613.pdf
Castañeda, L. & Selwyn, N. (2018) ‘More than tools? Making sense of the ongoing digitizations of higher education’, International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, vol. 15, no. 22, pp. 1–10. doi: 10.1186/s41239-018-0109-y
Caulfield, M., Collier, A. & Halawa, S. (2013) ‘Rethinking online community in MOOCs used for blended learning’, EDUCAUSE Review Online, [online] Available at: http://er.educause.edu/articles/2013/10/rethinking-online-community-inmoocs-used-for-blended-learning
Conole, G. G. (2015) ‘MOOCs as disruptive technologies: strategies for enhancing the learner experience and quality of MOOCs’, Revista De Educación a Distancia, vol. 39, pp. 1–17. doi: 10.6018/red/50/2
Davies, A. (2017) ‘Do Moocs generate return on investment?’, THE, [online] Available at: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/blog/do-moocs-generate-return-investment
De Lima Guedes, K. K. (2020) ‘Integrating MOOCs into traditional UK higher education: lessons learnt from MOOC-blend practitioners’, in Education 4.0 revolution: transformative approaches to language teaching and learning, assessment and campus design, eds K. Borthwick & A. Plutino, Research-publishing.net, pp. 29–36. doi: 10.14705/rpnet.2020.42.1084
Dunne, E. & Zandstra, R. (2011) ‘Students as change agents: new ways of engaging with learning and teaching in Higher Education’, ESCalate, [online] Available at: https://dera.ioe.ac.uk//14767/7/8242_Redacted.pdf
Flavin, M. (2012) ‘Disruptive technologies in higher education’, Research in Learning Technology, vol. 20, pp. 102–111. doi: 10.3402/rlt.v20i0.19184
Garrison, D. R. (2011) E-Learning in the 21st Century: A Framework for Research and Practice, 2nd edn, Routledge, New York, NY.
Garrison, D. R. & Kanuka, H. (2004) ‘Blended learning: uncovering its transformative potential in higher education’, Internet and Higher Education, vol. 7, pp. 95–105. doi: 10.1016/j.iheduc.2004.02.001
Graham, C. & Robison, R. (2007) ‘Realizing the transformational potential of blended learning: comparing cases of transforming blends and enhancing blends in higher education’, in Blended Learning: Research Perspectives, eds A. G. Picciano & C. Dzuiban, The Sloan Consortium, Needham, MA, pp. 83–110.
Hone, K. S. & El Said, G. R. (2016) ‘Exploring the factors affecting MOOC retention: a survey study’, Computers & Education, vol. 98, pp. 157–168. doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2016.03.016
Israel, M. J. (2015) ‘Effectiveness of integrating MOOCs in traditional classrooms for undergraduate students’, International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, vol. 16, no. 5, pp. 102–118. doi: 10.19173/irrodl.v16i5.2222
Jordan, K. (2014) ‘Initial trends in enrolment and completion of massive open online courses’, The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 133–160. doi: 10.19173/irrodl.v15i1.1651
Kloos, C. D., et al., (2015) ‘Mixing and blending MOOC Technologies with face-to-face pedagogies’, IEEE Global Engineering Education Conference (EDUCON), Tallinn, Estonia, 18–20 March, pp. 967–971. doi: 10.1109/EDUCON.2015.7096090
Moura, V. F., et al., (2017) ‘MOOCs’ potential for democratizing education: an analysis from the perspective of access to technology’, in Information Systems, eds M. Themistocleous & V. Morabito, EMCIS 2017. Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, Springer, Cham, vol. 299, pp. 139–153. doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-65930-5_12
Orsini-Jones, M. (2015) ‘Innovative pedagogies series: integrating a MOOC into the MA in English Language Teaching at Coventry University’, Higher Education Academy. Available at: https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/knowledge-hub/integrating-mooc-ma-english-language-teaching-coventry-university-innovation-blended
Orsini-Jones, M., et al., (2018) ‘B-MELTT: blending MOOCs for English language teacher training’, in British Council ELT Research Papers, pp. 1–41. Available at: https://englishagenda.britishcouncil.org/sites/default/files/attachments/pub_j121_blending_moocs_for_english_language_teacher_training_final_web.pdf
Orsini-Jones, M., Conde Gafaro, B. & Altamimi, S. (2017) ‘Integrating a MOOC into the postgraduate ELT curriculum: reflecting on students’ beliefs with a MOOC blend’, in Beyond the language classroom: researching MOOCs and other innovations, eds Q. Kan & S. Bax, Research-publishing.net, pp. 71–83. doi: 10.14705/rpnet.2017.mooc2016.672
Pérez-Sanagustín, M., et al., (2017) ‘H-MOOC framework: reusing MOOCs for hybrid education’, Journal of Computing in Higher Education, vol. 29, pp. 47–64. doi: 10.1007/s12528-017-9133-5
Picciano, A. (2009) ‘Blending with purpose: the multimodal model’, Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 7–18. doi: 10.24059/olj.v13i1.1673
Powell, A., et al., (2015) ‘Blending learning: the evolution of online and face-to-face education from 2008–2015’, in Promising Practices in Blended and Online Learning Series. International Association for K-12 Online Learning, pp. 1–19. Available at: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED560788.pdf
Rambe, P. & Moeti, M. (2017) ‘Disrupting and democratising higher education provision or entrenching academic elitism: towards a model of MOOCs adoption at African universities’, Educational Technology Research and Development, vol. 65, no. 3, pp. 631–651. doi: 10.1007/s11423-016-9500-3
QAA. (2011) UK Quality Code for Higher Education, The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, [online] Available at: https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/13488/3/Quality-Code-Chapter-A3.pdf
Shah, D. (2021, December 14) ‘A decade of MOOCs: a review of MOOC stats and trends in 2021’, Class Central, [online] Available at: https://www.classcentral.com/report/moocs-stats-and-trends-2021
Staker, H. & Horn, M. B. (2012) ‘Classifying K-12 blended learning’, Innosight Institute, pp. 1–20. Available at: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED535180.pdf
Wintrup, J., Wakefield, K. & Davis, H. (2015) ‘Engaged learning in MOOCs: a study using the UK Engagement Survey’, The Higher Education Academy, [online] Available at: https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/373640/1/HEA_engaged-learning-in-MOOCs.pdf
Yuan, L., Powell, S. & Olivier, B. (2014, January 21) ‘Beyond MOOCs: sustainable online learning in institutions’, CETIS, [online] Available at: http://publications.cetis.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Beyond-MOOCs-Sustainable-Online-Learning-in-Institutions.pdf
Footnotes
1https://www.futurelearn.com
2Course specifications are the description of the intended learning outcomes from UKHE courses, and how these outcomes are achieved and demonstrated (QAA, 2011). They are usually submitted months or even over a year prior to the beginning of a course as they need to go through a quality assurance approval process within the institution.
Published
2022-05-30
How to Cite
de Lima Guedes K. K., Davis H. C., & Schulz J. (2022). Integrating MOOCs into traditional higher education modules: a MOOC-based blend framework. Research in Learning Technology, 30. https://doi.org/10.25304/rlt.v30.2702
Issue
Section
Original Research Articles
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors contributing to Research in Learning Technology retain the copyright of their article and at the same time agree to publish their articles under the terms of the Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) allowing third parties to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format, and to remix, transform, and build upon the material, for any purpose, even commercially, under the condition that appropriate credit is given, that a link to the license is provided, and that you indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
.png){kind=spacer}
