MOOCs or MOCs — can our online learning platforms really be called ‘open’ ?

As a computer science graduate (and general tech geek) the subject of Open Knowledge and Learning is fascinating for me. The exponential progress made in web technologies has led to some truly interesting platforms for both online study. There have been great developments in different online networks, courses and information repositories dedicated to providing open learning opportunities, and the number of learners enrolled online is an upwards trend in the USA. Many of these platforms are Open Educational Resources — aimed at providing educational content that can be freely accessed by teachers and learners.

A variety of the skills and programming practices that I gained throughout my Computer Science degree are, unfortunately, now irrelevant or outdated (particularly in terms of web development) — for me this has made the concept of online learning a reassuring safety blanket. At times when I toy with the idea of jumping ship from student support and back in to IT, it is good to know that I could, theoretically, refresh my knowledge and update my programming skills in a few weeks or months using free courses provided by top universities. My previous experience with open learning started when I took on a massively open online courses (MOOCs) on Android App Development with FutureLearn — a platform that offers a wide range of MOOCs provided by UK Universities.

In 2013, when I was just starting out in my career in Higher Education, MOOCs were making headlines as either the beginning of the end for traditional HE or as a platform that would help widen participation in Higher Education and address issues such as limited access to Higher Education in developing countries. Studying towards the PGCert and taking on this module on Open Knowledge in Higher Education made me want to consider the question of whether MOOCs did indeed help open up participation in online learning — or were they just hyped up? In order to answer this question I decided to look at MOOCs as an open learning platform while considering the definition of open learning outlined by Roger Lewis. This definition gives several key factors that must be considered in order to achieve openness. When it comes to open learning for Roger Lewis, the aim of the game was to remove the barriers that might typically obstruct access to learning, including Physical, Educational and Financial. Analysing MOOCs in a ‘blue sky’ perspective shows that they could be an ideal platform for open learning as they are not restricted by these barriers:

· Physical — there is no need to travel in order to engage with a MOOC, access to the internet is all that is needed to enrol and complete the course content. Lessons take place when and where the student wants to access them.

· Educational — MOOCs allow learners to study at their own pace according to when they have the free time, completing assignments as they go. Often the course content can be accessed in the order the student wants — allowing them (if they so choose) to simply pick up the knowledge they want and not complete the course.

· Financial — there are no financial implications of studying a MOOC, the majority of courses and learning materials can be accessed in their entirety free of charge.

Given the lack of these barriers it seems (in theory) that MOOCs are a great platform for open learning and widening participation as they offer a route to further study for disadvantaged or underprivileged learners. There is no financial repercussion for failure and learners can study at their own time and take assessments when ready. Of course, the lack of barriers as outlined above is an ideal scenario for MOOCs, the kind of wishful thinking that was promoted when MOOCs were heralded as a game changer for widening participation in HE. Given that we are now a few years into the lifetime of MOOCs — have they really become such a ready platform for Open Learning? Re-examining these barriers in light of recent research reveals a bit more of a ‘dark cloud’ hanging over the offerings of MOOCs:

· Physical — there is still a need for an internet connection which is not a universally available service. The majority of people who are studying MOOCs are already employed or have achieved higher education, underprivileged students may be less willing (or have less time) to undertake study that isn’t guaranteed to have tangible benefits

· Educational — many students from traditionally low represented backgrounds do not have high levels of digital literacy and are therefore less ready to study using online resources. The work of Xu and Jaggars also showed that students who have low levels of academic education will tend to perform worse in online courses

· Financial — while many MOOCs offer their courses for free, there is often a fee for gaining certification. It must be noted that as few courses hold credit value this kind of expenditure may be easier justified for more privileged students with more disposable income. The co-founder of Coursera herself outlined how imbalance in global incomes could be an issue for MOOC users.

From looking at the research being performed into MOOCs, it is obvious that despite offering a platform with less barriers, it is still not “open learning” as defined by Roger Lewis. In their current state MOOCs are still more likely to be completed by people in developed countries than in underdeveloped countries and that the majority of people taking these courses are well educated males in developing countries as shown in the work of Christensen et. al. With the current levels of tuition fees and limited places in top universities MOOCs could be the key to ensuring that the old ideal of higher education remains accessible to all those who have the potential for it. However, in their current state it is obvious that we still have a long way to go in order to get to that point. It’s disheartening to see that the same barriers that affect access to traditional Higher Education are still pervasive in our online offerings… I am optimistic though that by working to identify and overcome these barriers MOOCs could become a platform for open learning in its purest form.

ps. MOOCs, MOOCs, MOOCs (just in case you hadn’t seen the acronym enough times by now!)