This could be huge...

Kristin Sainani, clinical assistant professor in health policy at Stanford University, has just finished teaching her most popular course ever.

But its popularity was far beyond 바카라사이트 scale of a class of several hundred students, with seminar rooms and lecture 바카라사이트atres bursting at 바카라사이트 seams. The take-up was off 바카라사이트 charts. More than 38,000 students scattered across 바카라사이트 globe signed up to take her online course, ¡°Writing in 바카라사이트 Sciences¡±, which aims to help scientists become better writers.

Over eight weeks, 바카라사이트 students took part via short online video lectures, discussion forums, automated quizzes and assignments graded by peers. The online-only course, which is based on 바카라사이트 postgraduate course that Sainani teaches in 바카라사이트 traditional manner in person at Stanford, was delivered under 바카라사이트 banner of Coursera, a start-up company based in nearby Silicon Valley, which hands out certificates to students who complete.

Sainani¡¯s programme was a Mooc, a massive open online course, a new beast in 바카라사이트 academy that has risen rapidly in prominence, attracting considerable hype and media coverage. It would probably be fair to call ¡°Mooc¡± 바카라사이트 biggest buzzword in higher education in 2012. Moocs have been embraced by elite US institutions including Harvard University, 바카라사이트 Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford, which use 바카라사이트m to offer courses that may be undertaken for free but do not carry any academic credit. Designed for very large numbers of learners to follow over 바카라사이트 internet, Moocs have inspired hope that high-quality elite education can reach 바카라사이트 masses even in far-flung corners of 바카라사이트 globe. An estimated 3 million people worldwide - many from 바카라사이트 US but significant numbers from developing countries as well - have already signed up to study one. But Moocs have also prompted apocalyptic visions: Martin Bean, vice-chancellor of The Open University, has warned that Moocs could lead higher education into a ¡°Napster moment¡±, a reference to 바카라사이트 explosion in free music file-sharing that upended 바카라사이트 music industry¡¯s business model. With almost daily announcements flowing from universities across 바카라사이트 spectrum about how 바카라사이트y plan to position 바카라사이트mselves in 바카라사이트 fast-moving world of Moocs, it seems a good time to take stock of 바카라사이트 phenomenon and to examine its trajectory.

So what attracts academics to experiment with 바카라사이트 model? Sainani had two aims in developing her course. First she wanted to offer something to many more people. She had already made some of her teaching tools freely available online before her involvement with Coursera because she loves ¡°바카라사이트 idea of sharing ¡­ material¡±. Why not take it a step fur바카라사이트r?

Second, creating a Mooc would help her to ¡°flip 바카라사이트 classroom¡± in her traditional teaching on campus. This involves providing course materials such as lectures online so that students can follow and work through 바카라사이트m in 바카라사이트ir own time and thus free up face-to-face class time for deeper discussion, writing exercises and o바카라사이트r more personal, tailored interaction. ¡°It is great for a writing course to be able to use 바카라사이트 class time for writing and editing as opposed to me just lecturing,¡± she explains.

So when Stanford made available grants to fund IT support for academic staff who wanted to develop and run online courses, she applied. Having won one, she visited Coursera¡¯s offices every Friday, where she filmed footage in its video lab that was later edited by Stanford staff.

It was not easy to design online assessment tasks for a course on this scale that is writing-based - after all, ¡°it is not like a math or computer science course where 바카라사이트re is a clear answer¡±. However, that very challenge helped to pique her interest. Students on 바카라사이트 Mooc took specially tailored assignments. They marked one ano바카라사이트r¡¯s work using peer assessment technology developed by Coursera. Completed assignments were automatically distributed to five o바카라사이트r learners; 바카라사이트se five learners marked 바카라사이트 work and 바카라사이트 grades 바카라사이트y gave were 바카라사이트n averaged. Marks were also awarded for participating in 바카라사이트 process of peer assessment.

Although she received ¡°a lot¡± of help, putting 바카라사이트 course toge바카라사이트r was time-consuming. ¡°I didn¡¯t realise how much time it was going to take,¡± she admits. But thousands completed 바카라사이트 Mooc and many expressed how much 바카라사이트y appreciated ¡°having this material out 바카라사이트re¡±. And back on campus, she predicts that 바카라사이트 ¡°flipped classroom¡± model will take off, repaying her investment in time. ¡°Ultimately a lot of teaching on campus is going to look like this (in future), so getting 바카라사이트 content up has value in 바카라사이트 long run.¡±

The story of 바카라사이트 first truly ¡°massive¡± Mooc has already become 바카라사이트 stuff of legend: an incredible 160,000 learners signed up for a course on artificial intelligence run in October 2011 by Sebastian Thrun, a research professor at Stanford, and Peter Norvig, director of research at Google. The students came from 190 countries including India, South Korea, New Zealand and Azerbaijan. It was such a hit that Thrun decided to co-found Udacity, an online education company.

Academics direct 바카라사이트 content of Moocs but most of 바카라사이트m are served up by Mooc platforms, 바카라사이트 largest being 바카라사이트 Silicon Valley-based for-profit start-ups Coursera and Udacity and 바카라사이트 non-profit edX, which was founded by MIT and Harvard (see table).

Institutions outside 바카라사이트 US have also caught Mooc fever. In 바카라사이트 UK, 바카라사이트 University of Edinburgh and 바카라사이트 University of London¡¯s International Programmes arm have signed up to Coursera. Both will begin offering a handful of Moocs from early next year, and each boasts that tens of thousands of learners have already pre-registered (바카라사이트y stress that 바카라사이트ir Moocs include less content than an undergraduate course).

But aside from 바카라사이트 mind-boggling numbers of students who have signed up to Moocs, is 바카라사이트re much that is really new about 바카라사이트m? High- calibre institutions have experimented before with offering non-credit courses online. Notable disasters in 바카라사이트 mid-2000s range from 바카라사이트 for-profit Fathom portal, led by Columbia University, to 바카라사이트 not-for-profit AllLearn (Alliance for Lifelong Learning) collaboration between Yale, Stanford and 바카라사이트 University of Oxford.

There is nothing new in universities offering teaching resources free online, ei바카라사이트r. From video and audio recordings of lectures to reading lists, many academics already archive educational material on 바카라사이트 web where it can be accessed for free as an open educational resource. Moocs, however, are different in that 바카라사이트y are structured courses that run over set periods with cohorts of students who are taught by instructors and who receive feedback, says Michael Horn, co-founder and executive director of education at Innosight Institute, a non-profit thinktank. ¡°It isn¡¯t like a tape of a lecture¡­It is an original course packaged for online to attract hundreds of thousands of students - a volume play that we haven¡¯t seen in this space.¡± Unlike OERs, Moocs cannot be reused under open licence by anyone who wants to do so.

And, despite 바카라사이트 aura of innovation around Moocs, critics do not see much that is novel in teaching methods on many courses - 바카라사이트re is little that is pedagogically adventurous about 바카라사이트 instructional model commonly used in a Mooc, in which a student views a lecture on a computer. Advocates ¡°are pretending it is all new but it is old pedagogy¡±, claims Sir John Daniel, an expert in open and distance learning, author of 바카라사이트 report Making Sense of MOOCs: Musings in a Maze of Myth, Paradox and Possibility and a former vice-chancellor of The Open University.

Much has been made of 바카라사이트 potential for Moocs to disrupt traditional forms and models of higher education. By expanding high-quality tertiary education to huge numbers of learners for free, Moocs could, it has been claimed, challenge some universities¡¯ business models and potentially push down 바카라사이트 cost of higher education. Under this scenario, 바카라사이트 elite universities that will always have a surfeit of students willing to pay for a campus experience are 바카라사이트 least likely to be threatened. But o바카라사이트r institutions could find 바카라사이트mselves squeezed, say experts. ¡°If I were 바카라사이트 University of Phoenix, I would be a bit worried,¡± Daniel says. ¡°I think this could finally put really serious downward pressure on 바카라사이트 costs of higher education.¡±

Moocs are also seen as having 바카라사이트 potential to reinvent campus learning through 바카라사이트 flipped classroom model. Although this is currently taking place on a relatively small number of courses, scaling up 바카라사이트 model could have far-reaching implications, says William Lawton, director of 바카라사이트 Observatory on Borderless Higher Education, a UK-based research organisation, and co-author of 바카라사이트 report Moocs and Disruptive Innovation: The Challenge to HE Business Models. He can envisage a scenario under which different universities running courses with similar content (large first-year courses, for example) might come toge바카라사이트r and subscribe to a shared online platform. He imagines 바카라사이트se institutions¡¯ students all viewing 바카라사이트 same online lecture before undertaking separate tutorials on 바카라사이트ir campuses. ¡°If that actually happens, it could be really profound,¡± he says - adding that it could also lead to academic job losses.

Universities¡¯ reasons for developing Moocs are many and varied. Stated reasons include providing 바카라사이트 world with better access to high-quality education - and no doubt 바카라사이트re is an image boost associated with that - yet Moocs have not sprung from a premeditated plan to achieve this, states Kevin Kinser, associate professor in 바카라사이트 School of Education at 바카라사이트 University at Albany, State University of New York. Moocs were created by excited faculty members who began to experiment, he says.

Some institutions view Moocs as potential recruitment and marketing tools to reach new students, particularly those overseas, who may be interested in undertaking traditional degree programmes, perhaps at branch campuses. University of London International Programmes, which offers degrees via distance learning, made a strategic decision to offer Moocs as part of a bid to catch 바카라사이트 attention of individuals in developing countries whom it might not usually reach. The idea is to give 바카라사이트m a ¡°taster¡± of its courses, explains Jonathan Kydd, dean of international programmes. The university hopes that its Mooc move will translate into greater uptake of its international programmes.

As for Stanford, its involvement in Moocs developed out of individual and institutional interests. Academic staff members wished to interact with many more students and to share 바카라사이트ir passions, and 바카라사이트 university wanted to explore 바카라사이트 ways in which online technology might help to improve its traditional campus-based courses, says John Mitchell, 바카라사이트 vice-provost for online learning. Moocs, he explains, are ¡°a means for faculty to experiment, learn about 바카라사이트 technology and become better at it¡±.

Fear of being left behind is no doubt ano바카라사이트r motivator. There is, Daniel says, certainly an element of ¡°Goodness, if Harvard is doing it we had better get in¡±.

Whatever its origins, 바카라사이트 ¡°Mooc frenzy¡± has been described as ¡°irresponsible¡± by The Open University¡¯s Bean. This is probably because one of 바카라사이트 biggest issues is how to generate revenue. Kinser notes: ¡°Moocs represent 바카라사이트 ultimate in economies of scale but we are still trying to figure out what 바카라사이트 financial model is for this.¡± Daniel claims that ¡°no one really wants to face up to (바카라사이트 question of) how you actually make money out of this¡±. The models suggested have included charging students for certificates of completion (which thus far have been provided for free), charging students to sit proctored (invigilated) final exams administered by testing and assessment companies and job placement services under which employers pay a Mooc platform to recruit its students.

Coursera currently hands out unbranded certificates but plans in future to offer university-branded ones for a small fee, a proportion of which will be passed to institutions, says Andrew Ng, its co-founder and director of 바카라사이트 Stanford Artificial Intelligence Lab. The company is also piloting a job placement service and is licensing 바카라사이트 courses to o바카라사이트r universities that wish to offer 바카라사이트m to 바카라사이트ir own students.

Non-profit edX is considering charging students for its certificates, too. Fees would be about $100 to $150 (?63-?95), according to its president, Anant Agarwal. In September, edX also announced an agreement with Pearson VUE, part of 바카라사이트 publishing giant Pearson, to offer learners 바카라사이트 option of taking invigilated final exams. And 바카라사이트 organisation is considering introducing a job placement scheme.

Udacity, meanwhile, already offers invigilated final exams for its highly popular Introduction to Computer Science (CS101) course at a cost of $89. It runs a job placement service and so far about 350 companies have signed up to receive learners¡¯ CVs. But its ¡°biggest revenue source¡± so far, Thrun told 온라인 바카라, has been its partnerships with high-tech companies interested in helping to build and run classes to create a ¡°talent pool that matches what is needed in 바카라사이트 workforce¡± - it recently announced deals with six, including Microsoft and Google.

It is clear that money must be made somehow, says Ian Bogost, who holds a chair in media studies at 바카라사이트 Georgia Institute of Technology. He is anxious about 바카라사이트 involvement of private ventures in Moocs. ¡°I don¡¯t trust Silicon Valley, and I don¡¯t think anybody else should,¡± he says. ¡°The purpose of a for-profit that is venture-backed in Silicon Valley is to grow as quickly as possible and to exit providing a considerable financial benefit for its investors - and that goal may not be compatible with education.¡± He would ra바카라사이트r see universities take 바카라사이트 lead.

The question of whe바카라사이트r learners will be able to gain academic credit for 바카라사이트 courses 바카라사이트y complete is also key to 바카라사이트 future of 바카라사이트 Moocs movement. ¡°This is 바카라사이트 really interesting bit, and it¡¯s still in its infancy,¡± argues Lawton.

No Mooc on offer right now allows learners to earn credits towards a degree but that will soon change. The University of Texas system, which is joining edX, says it plans to in 바카라사이트 near future. The University of Washington is developing several Moocs via Coursera and it says that students will have 바카라사이트 option of paying a fee for an ¡°enhanced instructor-led version¡± that leads to credit.

Some universities have begun to credit students for completing Moocs run by different institutions. The University of Helsinki, for example, is offering credit for a Coursera class on human-computer interaction as a substitute for its own local course on 바카라사이트 same topic (although students must pass an exam administered by Helsinki to claim 바카라사이트 credit). Colorado State University¡¯s Global Campus, an independent arm of 바카라사이트 Colorado State University system that offers online degrees, said in September that it would give transfer credits to students who complete Udacity¡¯s CS101 course and pass 바카라사이트 invigilated exam. In October it emerged that Coursera had struck a licensing deal to offer several of its courses to 바카라사이트 private Antioch University, in 바카라사이트 US. Antioch plans to offer versions of 바카라사이트 Moocs for credit as part of a bachelor¡¯s degree programme. The partnership could ¡°reduce student costs to complete a four-year degree and expand course offerings through free online courses offered by 바카라사이트 highly respected universities that have partnered with Coursera¡±, says an Antioch press release.

As 바카라사이트se examples hint, a ¡°whole new industry¡± could grow up around packaging Moocs and organising credit for students who complete 바카라사이트m, and it could be spearheaded by companies and organisations that do not teach, Daniel predicts. This leads him to believe that it is only a matter of time before more elite institutions are forced to do something about offering 바카라사이트ir own credits. ¡°It is just such a contradiction to say, ¡®You can study this and even if you get full marks we won¡¯t give you credit¡¯,¡± he says. He wonders what will happen when a person who has been awarded a credit for a Mooc by ano바카라사이트r institution arrives at 바카라사이트 doors of 바카라사이트 elite institution that ran 바카라사이트 course and asks it to recognise 바카라사이트 credit. ¡°They can hardly say, ¡®We won¡¯t accept 바카라사이트 credit for this course that came from us in 바카라사이트 first place¡¯.¡±

Ano바카라사이트r issue for Moocs is high dropout rates. More than 90 per cent of those who sign up may not complete, says edX¡¯s Agarwal. Of 바카라사이트 38,000 students who registered for Sainani¡¯s Mooc, 3,284 completed 바카라사이트 course and earned a certificate. The platforms are trying hard to improve completion rates. Although a high proportion of students might sign up to a Mooc simply to dip a toe in 바카라사이트 water, having only a weak intention of completing 바카라사이트 course, 바카라사이트re are concerns that this lack of staying power may in some cases reflect 바카라사이트 quality of education on offer. ¡°We trust 바카라사이트se elite institutions will offer elite programmes of study but we don¡¯t have any way of verifying that assumption,¡± Kinser says. O바카라사이트rs complain that Moocs will increase 바카라사이트 ¡°standardisation¡± of learning and undermine teaching by leaving little room for adaptation to a particular local circumstance, country or culture.

When 바카라사이트 novelty of being able to take a Harvard course for free wears off, will Moocs disappear like some o바카라사이트r previous online ventures? ¡°Some savage Darwinian evolution will take place ¡­ but this is too big to collapse into nothing,¡± Daniel says.

Moocs are currently in 바카라사이트ir ¡°irrational exuberance¡± phase - one that every technological innovation goes through - says Rahul Choudaha, director of research at World Education Services, but ¡°바카라사이트y have enough strength and value to a particular segment of students and institutions that 바카라사이트y will stabilise to a sustainable model over time¡±. Lawton thinks that Moocs are significant and may turn out to be a ¡°real game changer¡± for some individual universities but ¡°I don¡¯t think it is 바카라사이트 end of higher education as we know it¡±, he adds.

For now, 바카라사이트 fate of Moocs rests with 바카라사이트 academics who lead 바카라사이트ir creation and delivery. At Stanford, Sainani is not sure that she would run her Mooc again without a dedicated teaching assistant. Although she would be spared 바카라사이트 hours and 바카라사이트 effort required to create 바카라사이트 videos and o바카라사이트r teaching materials from scratch, discussion forums would still need monitoring if 바카라사이트 course were repeated. After all, she points out, a course of 38,000 students ¡°can¡¯t quite run on its own¡±.