MOOC
MOOC stands for Massive Online Open Course. It’s a way of providing learning content to the “masses” through the internet. The access one has to recent high level content seems to be without boundaries. MOOCs have the potential of slashing social and geographical barriers. People can learn whatever they want on whatever topic. They can learn whenever they want. And they can adapt the pace of learning. It only takes access to the internet. This might be an issue in some parts of the world.
In order to have some idea of what I am writing about, check this list.
E-Learning?
It’s not the first time that initiatives like this have been undertaken. Not many of these were a big success. Maybe the easy access of MOOCS combined with participative learning through social media will change the odds. Another disadvantage is that the courses do not provide academic credit. This is related to the aberrant insistance on diplomas instead of experience and learning. MOOCs can open up the world to many people, but it will not open up the job market in many countries. For that, you still need to register and pay.
You can find MOOCs everywhere, but the biggest MOOC providers are Coursera, Udacity, EDX and Futurelearn. But also universities and consultants like IDEO offer MOOCs.
For a recent overview about what MOOCS are go here.
The infographic below is (C) of Courseforme.
