Massive Online Open Course (MOOC)
A New Hero on the Block
Abstract
The Massive Online Open Course (MOOC) has made an impact amongst many universities in the West, particularly in the United States, in that some universities are considering the inclusion of such open online courses in their regular curricullar offerings. Although there is still much research to be conducted in evaluating their effectiveness, relevance and utility, the sheer magnitude of the phenomenon compels some immediate response from educational and training organisations. Basically, it is a better packaging of online course offerings, employing renowned experts, providing more innovative and insightful communication of learning content worldwide and to a large extent at no negligible charge. Now more than two years old, MOOC is a novel way to use available technology to communicate with and teach large numbers of students and trainees. Although it has caught on well in the West, universities and organisations in the East and other developing countries have yet to follow suit. Whilst many universities still question the philosophy and wisdom of the new mode of “interfacing” with students, others question the status of intellectual properties of the professors and/or the universities they belong to, whilst others worry about sustainability and how the does the online system recover its costs. These are lingering issues that this article shall allude to in sharing this ‘new kid’ or ‘new hero’ in the online communication media.
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