Monthly Archives: August 2015

08/3/15

MOOCs: A Dead End?

Massive Online Open Courses for education (MOOCs) do have some benefits such as enhancing accessibility, lifelong learning, and perhaps increased student engagement (until students begin to drop-out). However, considering “an essential characteristic of open education is the removal of barriers to learning” (Bates, 2014), there are many challenges to MOOCs, especially when trying to design a “one size fits all model” assuming it will benefit learners from all over the world. Yuan and Powell (2013) discuss implications for higher education:
1.   Pedagogy:

Do MOOCs follow a sound pedagogy and organizational approach to online learning that will lead to quality outcomes and experiences for students?

What new pedagogies and organizational mechanisms might be required if MOOC are to deliver a high quality learning experience?
2. Quality and Completion Rates:

Compared to most online courses, MOOCs lack structure and rarely include the role of an instructor.  Drop-out rates are also significantly high, for example “MOOCs offered by Stanford, MIT and UC Berkley were 80-95%” (cited in Yuan & Powell, 2013, p. 11).
3. Assessment and Credit:

These courses are a platform for tremendous knowledge-building, but most of them do not actually qualify as being “recognized” courses for employment or for credible institutions.

Other issues to consider when thinking about MOOCs and developing countries:
Language barrier – still remains to be the biggest issue as in most parts of the developing world, English is not the primary language, even though it could be the official language.  They also demand a certain level of digital literacy from the participants, which has raised concerns on inclusivity and equality of access.
Community Priorities – MOOCs are designed with a specific topic or focus in mind and unless the course reflects community priorities, then how will it strengthen capacity?
Cultural Divide – What is the context of the course being offered? Translations are taken literally and often have no familiar cultural context.
References:

Bates, T. (2014). MOOCs; Chapter 10: Trends in Open Education. Teaching in digital age (online book)

Yuan, L., Powell, S., & CETIS, J. (2013). MOOCs and open education: Implications for higher education.

08/3/15

GAFE vs Microsoft Office 365

When looking at examples between restrictive and choice broadening types of solutions, I had a conversation with my sister around the decision to go with Google Apps For Education (GAFE) vs other alternatives for the Calgary Board of Education (CBE).  As she was a part of this decision, her team looked closely at, and tested and compared all features of Microsoft Office 365 and GAFE. At the time, the decision to use GAFE ultimately came down to the seamless synchronous functionality and the ability for collaboration to occur on Google in real time.  I then questioned the decision to go with a Google cloud-based service and the privacy issues related to FOIP. She mentioned that after much prototyping of the product, it came down to the fact that the educational benefits of using GAFE far outweighed the risks in terms of FOIP.

 

Taken from: http://www.baschools.org/pages/uploaded_files/tigertracks_apr08-2015.pdf

Microsoft Office 365 Office 365is a cloud-based service that offers several upgrades from older Microsoft versions including the ability to:

• Create and edit Word, Excel andPowerPoint files wherever and whenever.

• Enjoy a consistent Office experience across PCs, Macs, Windows tablets, iPads and most mobile devices.

• Utilize Microsoft OneDrive, which gives users unlimited personal cloud storage that can be accessed from anywhere and that syncs with their computers foroffline access. • Access Outlook and OneDrive from home or your personal devices.

• Share and edit documents with other colleagues throughOneDrive.

• Download Office 365, including Word, Powerpoint, Excel and other tools, for free on up to five devices.

Google Apps for Education Created as a teaching and learning tool, GAFE gives educators and students the ability to create, edit, and collaborate with one another. It also organizes and simplifies workflow in the classroom. This teacher to-student tool creates a teaching and learning experience that enhances engagement while also preparing students for current and future technology.

• This does not replace Outlook for email or other Microsoft Office applications currently utilized for various job functions, but it is intended to be an additional tool for instructional purposes.

• You can share and collaborate on Google products with other staff members OR students. These may include documents, presentations, spreadsheets or forms.

• Educators can instruct students to collaboratively work together in real time without having to be in the same room.

• A student’s ability to organize and access work is now easier than ever
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