MOOCs: From ‘course

and a half syndrome’

to the micro-courseAdam Forrester

Associate Director, English Language Centre

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Asia TEFL International Conference 2019

Outline

1. Background on MOOCs

2. ELC PolyU MOOCs

3. Course and a half ‘syndrome’ Implications

4. Time on task analysis

5. From macro to micro

6. Recommendations

MOOCs Background

Massive Open Online Course

2012 - Year of the MOOC

2015 – 4200 courses

2018 – 11,000 courses

Over 100 million students

(Shah, 2019)

MOOCs Providers

Background

HK PolyU ELC MOOCs

Job applications

Job interview skills

Five runs since end of 2015

120,000+ students since launch

“Course and a half syndrome”

Asia TEFL presentation

25 minutes + 5 minutes Q&A

How many slides?

39 hour subject – 13 weeks

How many LOs / assessments / amount of materials?

3 hour class

How much materials?

How many activities?

“Course and a half syndrome”

Online course /materials (e.g. MOOC / LMS)

Instructor – no time limits

Automatic marking

Self/Peer assessments

Tendency to keep adding more materials

Always adding; never taking away(Sabourin, 2014)

Course and a half: Implications

Bloated online materials

Overwhelming for students

Low completion rates

Lack of engagement

Difficult for teachers to integrate into f2f subjects

Course and a half: Implications

MOOC completion rates - Lederman, D. (2019)

Course and a half: Implications

Swop, J. (2013)

Teacher feedback

“I don’t have enough time to go through all the online materials”

“The curriculum is already packed”

“My students are already busy”

“I just use some of the videos”

Original Courses

English@Work: Job applications

5 week course Importance of leadership and creativity

CVs

Cover letters

Online presence

Assessment

Original Courses

English@Work: Job interviews

4 week course (assessments embedded)

Preparing for a job interview

Answering basic questions

Answering challenging questions

Ending the job interview + follow-up + skype interviews

Original Courses: One week

English@Work: Job interviews

Preparing for a job interview

6 steps for interview success

Standing out in an interview

STAR technique

Vocabulary for hard and soft skills

Interview practice

Assessment

Solution: Time on Task Analysis

evaluate course from learner-centered point of view: how much time spent:

watching videos

reading texts

completing quizzes

participating in discussions

finishing assessments

reflecting / downtime

Solution: Time on Task Analysis

Estimate time spent completing course estimate from a novice student perspective

estimate will improve with time / as more students complete course

have required and optionalmaterials

Solution: Time on Task Analysis

6 steps for interview success

Learning sequence – break down1. Pre-video questions – (raise interest)

2. Video - (Length 1:33) (input)

3. Quiz on summary of video (consolidation)

4. Discussion (extension)

Total time: 45-60 minutes + ?

Solution – From Macro to Micro

Original Courses New courses

1. English@Work: Job

applications

2. English@Work: Job

interviews

1. English@Work: CVs

2. English@Work: Application

letters

3. English@Work: Online

presence

4. English@Work: Basic job

interviews

5. English@Work: Advanced job

interviews

New Courses: Desired impact

Easier for students to find information - less overwhelming

Higher completion rates

More engagement

Easier for teachers to find relevant materials to integrate into their subjects

New Courses: Detailed Outline

English@Work: Online presence Introduction

What is an online presence

Case study

Vocabulary

Creating a LinkedIn profile

Assessment

New Courses: Still issues

English@Work: Online presence Introduction

What is an online presence

Case study Vocabulary

Creating a LinkedIn profile

Assessment

(required)

(required)

(required)

(optional)

(optional)

MOOCs: From ‘course and a half

syndrome’ to the micro-course

Do a ‘time on task analysis’

Remove old materials – do not

only add new materials

Have required and optional

materials

Micro rather than Macro courses?

ELC PolyU MOOCs New run starting September 2019

https://elc.polyu.edu.hk/MOOCs/

Q&A

adam.forrester@polyu.edu.hk

tiny.cc/AdamF

References

Lederman, D. (2019). Why MOOCs Didn't Work, in 3 Data Points.

https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/article/2019/01/16/study-offers-

data-show-moocs-didnt-achieve-their-goals

Pappano, L. (2012, Nov 14). The Year of the MOOC. New York Times,

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/04/education/edlife/massive-open-online-courses-

are-multiplying-at-a-rapid-pace.html

Sabourin, K. (2014). How much is too much? Avoiding the course and half syndrome.

Educational Technology Publications.

Shah, D, (2018). By The Numbers: MOOCs in 2018, Class Central,

https://www.classcentral.com/report/mooc-stats-2018/

Swope, J. (2013). What Do We Know About MOOC Students So Far?: A Look At Recent

User Data. http://moocnewsandreviews.com/what-do-we-know-about-mooc-students-

so-far/#ixzz5sBvk0tnu