What are MOOCs?

MOOCs (massive open online courses) are a relatively new development in education. The importance of MOOCs is increasing in the contemporary world, propelled by the growing of blended learning and tendency of addressing the disparity in education. Below will be a detailed discussion of the meaning, examples, and benefits of MOOCs.

MOOCs Meaning

- MOOC is an abbreviation of massive open online course, offering free education in an online environment, with no limit on class size.

- MOOCs represent a trend towards affordable education availability for the masses in a collaborative and connected space.

- A MOOC refers to an online course that allows users from around the world to learn the same material in a flexible learning environment, without any prerequisites.

MOOCs Examples

- (Origin): In October 2011, three free online courses were launched by Stanford professors and made open to the public. One by one, these courses went massive, with enrollments topping 100,000 students each. Soon the media was calling these courses MOOCs, short for massive open online courses.

- As of September 2019, MIT’s Circuits and Electronics course (a MOOC) has reached nearly 500, 000 learners.

Benefits of MOOCs

- Democratize and reduce the cost of on-demand learning internationally while making better use of faculty resources.

- Bring the best courses from the best schools to millions of learners around the world.

- Teachers can deliver education at scale that is the same or better quality as on-campus learning.