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There is now a CONTENT FREEZE for Mercury while we switch to a new platform. It began on Friday, March 10 at 6pm and will end on Wednesday, March 15 at noon. No new content can be created during this time, but all material in the system as of the beginning of the freeze will be migrated to the new platform, including users and groups. Functionally the new site is identical to the old one. webteam@gatech.edu
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Atlanta, GA | Posted: June 10, 2013
Amelia Pavlik
Institute Communications
404-385-4142
This article is part of a series about Tech’s mini innovation hubs, which are researching questions related to massive open online courses and online learning.
Links to Other Articles in the Series:
MOOC Innovation Hubs Provide Updates
Summary Sentence:
Are my students engaged? This is the burning question that can be challenging to answer when you’re teaching students face to face — let alone when they are squirreled away behind a computer screen halfway across the world.
Full Summary:
Are my students engaged? This is the burning question that can be challenging to answer when you’re teaching students face to face — let alone when they are squirreled away behind a computer screen halfway across the world.
Impact on Learning: Preliminary Survey ResultsAre my students engaged? This is the burning question that can be challenging to answer when you’re teaching students face to face — let alone when they are squirreled away behind a computer screen halfway across the world.
That’s why a group of faculty members from Georgia Tech is looking into the issues related to keeping students engaged and involved in massive open online courses (MOOC).
“We’re trying to figure out what can and cannot be replicated when you transition a course from an on-campus to an online learning environment,” said Al Ferri, associate chair for
Undergraduate Studies in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering and the project “champion.” “And we also want to know about subtle things that can help students successfully complete MOOCs.”
This project is one of seven being explored by a group of mini innovation hubs that are researching questions related to MOOCs and online learning. The hubs are part of an initiative led by the Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning and the Center for 21st Century Universities.
“As luck would have it, when our hub was forming, ME was getting ready to run a special course called ‘The Buzz on Open Online Courses,’” Ferri said. “The students who signed up for the course each took two MOOCs of their choice and were the perfect subjects to help us learn more about our research topic.”
During spring of 2013, 13 students enrolled in a number of MOOCs — ranging from Aboriginal Worldviews and Education offered by the University of Toronto to Introduction to Finance offered by University of Michigan — and completed all assignments.
As part of their participation, the students gave final presentations about their experiences with the MOOCs. There were a number of common themes that students shared:
The hub is taking the information gained from the students and will continue their research in the months to come.
“The study that we did in the spring semester showed what sorts of things a MOOC developer could do to encourage students to stay engaged, and what mistakes can discourage or frustrate students,” Ferri said. “But we need to know much more about what drives a student to complete a MOOC, why the attrition rate is so high in MOOCs, and why completion and pass rates in face-to-face classes are so much higher in
comparison.”
For more information or to join this hub, contact Ferri at al.ferri@me.gatech.edu. For video and PowerPoint presentations from the May 8 showcase, click here.
