MOOCS or MOUCS?

The title I have chosen for this update is a slight modification of what we are all actually engaged in here. A Massive Open Online Course or should it read Massive Open Ubiquitous Course? Well, I am just trying to highlight the very nature of this learning revolution that has attracted and influenced me - as it did so many other people all over the world – profoundly.

Well, I’ll refrain from presenting the various characteristics of MOOCs that make them so popular and I will stick to the very notion of ubiquitousness that the first module of this MOOC is concerned with.

I am keen on laptops – not tablets or smartphones. But this long Greek summer provided me with the chance – not to say compelled me – to use other portable devices, since I was often away from a place where I could use a laptop and of course often not within a proper WiFi network. My android phone, equipped with the Coursera Application worked wonders, as it even downloaded for offline watching the lessons’ videos and readings. The time and place  boundaries had collapsed! I went through the materials whenever I had time wherever I could, in between everyday errands and occasional journeys to the sea. My tablet also proved very handy when I needed a better gadget!

I just want to mention that this breakup of the material in many small chunks that can be dealt with in short time periods available during a day (or even the little hours of night), a great characteristic of MOOCs is what makes them “more ubiquitous”.

I have to say that MOOCs meet the first affordance (1A and 1B) of new learning very nicely and are especially pertinent for Continuous Professional Development as they can offer rich material for online ubiquitous learning and can perhaps form part of in-service teacher training among other things.

In my institution, we have dealt with the issue of shortage of places for in-service training concerning new technologies in education, e-learning and blended learning. To deal with the issue, the school administrator advised educators to enroll on MOOCS of appropriate content and show participation by acquiring a statement or a certificate of completion/participation. The relevant MOOC should be chosen amongst three of the major platforms, namely Coursera, EdX and FutureLearn. Enrolling on a series of courses leading up to a specialization would be optimal.

Relevant MOOCS (collectively decided) were considered the following:

The Virtual Teacher Specialization
The Educational Technology XSeries Program
The Blended Learning essentials

The following links are a selection of numerous articles and research findings of the flexibility and ubiquitousness of MOOCs, although the term is hardly found elsewhere apart from the context of the university of Illinois.

http://www.researchinlearningtechnology.net/index.php/rlt/article/view/29369

https://dern.acer.edu.au/dern/research-reviews/page/moocs-and-professional-development-of-teachers

https://online.duke.edu/doe-endorses-duke-moocs-teacher-professional-development/

http://www.edudemic.com/5-moocs-educators-should-take-as-students/

http://www.onlineuniversities.com/blog/2013/05/why-moocs-are-good-for-teacher-professional-development/