If you only do one thing… Week 8

Write down in short bullet point form a list of:

• elements of the Saylor or xMOOC approach that you think could be applicable to your context (what you’re involved in teaching, to whom, with what goals and constraints), and
• problems you might anticipate with the approach.

Saylor

Q. What do I like?

A. Their clarity

They are strong on treating the learner as an adult, which to me means:

• informing the learner, hence the importance of their clarity, and then
• providing choices, as they do with their electives

which in practice means that Saylor are good at...

• Clear, and clean, website design. Good use of icons to provide info, and great use of a key to decode the icons.
• Even more clear in how it shows the structure of courses.
• The electives are key, as you can pick with accuracy what fascinates you, so it will appeal more strongly to more people. The clarity mentioned above also helps with the accuracy.
• Opinionated: To have a core is necessary, so it's good that they do so, rather than provide simply a list of electives, i.e. a list of resources for you to take or leave. It is good, in summary, that they are opinionated and clear.

A. Their use of OERs

• As mentioned above, they make it clear that they look for OER first.
• When they do make their own material, they seem to release it under a CC BY licence.

What we can learn from Saylor

• Clean website design, uncluttered.
• Put the structure of the courses upfront, as the first element.
• Clarify the choices of study available.
• Clarify the choices we've made for the students.

None of the above are likely to encounter large opposition, compared to the next item:

• Use OERs as a first choice.
• Release what you create under a CC licence.

Likely trouble spots

ocTEL describes Saylor's achievement as, "they have developed 241 degree-level courses, available

1. free of cost,
2. free of accreditation and
3. largely free of professors."

For an existing UK university, it is unlikely that:

• a university executive could universalise the first in the absence of a replacement business model for the current fee-based one.
• students or employers would welcome the second, or
• staff would welcome the third.

Udacity

Q. What do I like?

The problem-based learning approach

• Their aim to set students problems, rather than lecturing.
• The use of videos that the students can refer to when they have made a mistake.

What we can learn from Udacity

• Simple approach to filming works: a marker pen on an OHP transparency. It's the explanation that counts.

Likely trouble spots

Plainly it would be easiest from the point of view of staff to simply capture lectures. Some would push for this approach instead.

Q. Where might efficiencies be important?

A. If you are:

• Running a MOOC of your own.
• Competing in developing markets.
• Increasing the conversation within a course without a corresponding increase in staff time.

Credits: Written with StackEdit. OER image from Wikipedia. Magnifying glass image from: http://openclipart.org/
Written with StackEdit.