Online Learning Research
Development of a maturity model for blended education: A delphi study
Article written by Katie Goeman, Wiebe Dijkstra, Stephan Poelmans, Pavani Vemuri, Willem Van Valkenburg and published in the International Journal on E-Learning: Corporate, Government, Healthcare, and Higher Education.
Abstract
In order to embed blended learning environments in a strategic and sustainable manner, a multi-actor, multidimensional approach is necessary. This paper reports the results of a 3-round Delphi study involving 28 experts which focuses on the refinement and validation of a layered maturity model that assesses key aspects of blended practices in higher education. The study examines the wording of the proposed assumptions, dimensions and indicators, whether they bear validity and if there are others that are not accounted for. We present the findings of each round, the confirmed maturity model and a series of recommendations for its future usage. As such, it is helpful for lecturers, program coordinators, support services or institutional leaders to decide upon follow-up actions and to achieve up-scaled blended programs and courses in higher education institutions.
Keywords
Maturity model, blended learning, blended teaching, blended education, EMM, higher education
Reference
Goeman, K., Dijkstra, W., Poelmans, S., Vemuri, P., & Van Valkenburg, W. (2021). DEVELOPMENT OF A MATURITY MODEL FOR BLENDED EDUCATION: A DELPHI STUDY. International Journal on E-Learning: Corporate, Government, Healthcare, and Higher Education, 20(3), 229-258. https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/217682/
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De lerende als rode draad: Weten wat de (werkende) student nodig heeft
Artikel geschreven door Nida K. van Leersum, Willem F. van Valkenburg en Rob F. Mudde en gepubliceerd in het Tijdschrift voor Hoger Onderwijs
Samenvatting
Het permanent najagen van kennis en vaardigheden voor onze persoonlijke en professionele ontwikkeling zal ons steeds meer veranderen in levenslang lerenden. Maar wat houdt ‘een leven lang ontwikkelen’ precies in, en welke rol kunnen universiteiten daarin spelen?
Keywords
Higher education, lifelong learning
Referentie
van Leersum, N. K., van Valkenburg, W. F., & Mudde, R. F. (2021). DE LERENDE ALS RODE DRAAD: WETEN WAT DE (WERKENDE) STUDENT NODIG HEEFT. Tijdschrift voor Hoger Onderwijs, jaargang 28(2), 32-37. https://www.themahogeronderwijs.org/bladerversie/
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Book Review of Responsive Open Learning Environments: Outcomes of Research from the ROLE Project
Book review written by Naomi Wahls and published in Open Praxis.
Abstract
In summary, Responsive Open Learning Environments (ROLE): Outcomes of Research from the ROLE Project is an ebook that covered the Responsive Open Learning Environment (ROLE) Project between multiple universities. ROLE investigated and operationalized PLEs. PLEs could provide new outlets for online education. Student or participant responses could have been covered more in the book and how ROLE affects culture could have been explored. The academic book is commendable for the number of authors and universities represented and is recommend for those interested in OER.
Reference
Wahls, N. (2019). BOOK REVIEW OF RESPONSIVE OPEN LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS: OUTCOMES OF RESEARCH FROM THE ROLE PROJECT. Open Praxis. https://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.11.3.988
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License
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, so long as attribution is given to the creator. The license allows for commercial use.
Pioneering Online Design Teaching in a MOOC Format: Tools for Facilitating Experiential Learning
Article written by Jaap Daalhuizen and Jan Schoormans and published in International Journal of Design.
Abstract
Providing online design education offers a unique opportunity for learning, by providing high quality learning experiences to distributed audiences for free. It has its challenges as well, particularly when the aim is use ‘active learning’ strategies (Biggs & Tang, 2011), which are necessary when teaching design. In this paper, we report on the development of one of the first massive open online courses (MOOC) in the field of product design. We provide insight into the way the course was designed to stimulate active learning, highlighting the tools that were developed to engage students in a mode of experiential learning (Kolb, 1984). We present the results of the course evaluation, through (post-course) surveys and interviews, focusing on the way the newly developed active learning tools were experienced by the students. We found that experiential learning strategies are applicable to the MOOC context, and that dedicated didactic tools were evaluated more positively in terms of stimulating reflection, motivation and learning that conventional ones. We conclude with an analysis of the outlook on future developments for online design education.
Keywords
Design Education, Design Methods, Massive Open Online Learning.
Reference
Daalhuizen, J., & Schoormans, J. (2018). Pioneering online design teaching in a MOOC format: tools for facilitating experiential learning. International Journal of Design, 12(2), 1-14.
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Online Courses on Business Model Innovation for Practitioners in SMEs
This article is published in the Journal of Business Models (2019), Vol. 7, No. 3.
Abstract
We develop and evaluate five online courses (MOOCs) on business model innovation, tailored to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Six design principles are found for such courses: regarding type and form of learning contents; time investments from participants; practical examples and tools; integration with daily practice; and participative learning.
Keywords
Business model innovation; Online learning; MOOC
Reference
de Reuver, M., Cligge, M., and Haaker, T. (2019), Online courses on business model innovation for practitioners in SMEs, Vol. 7, No. 3, pp. 13-24
Acknowledgements
This publication was developed within the project `Regeling open en online hoger onderwijs’ of the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, guided by SURF (www.surf.nl). The course development received part of its funding from the European Community’s Horizon 2020 Program (2014–2020) under grant agreement 645791. The content herein reflects only the authors’ view. The European Commission is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains. We thank the other course team members Harry Bouwman, Gudo Reekers, Stephan Kool, Thea Dullemans and Johannetta Gordijn for invaluable contributions to the courses. We also thank our colleagues from the H2020 ENVISION project. An earlier version of this paper was presented to Open Education Global Conference 2018, and we thank the reviewers and audience for helpful comments.
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MOOC Analytics: Learner Modeling and Content Generation
Doctoral thesis of Guanliang Chen, successfully defended on May 6th 2019.
Abstract
Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), as one of the popular options for people to receive education and learn, are endowed with the mission to educate the world. Typically, there are two types of MOOC platforms: topic-agnostic and topic-specific. Topic-agnostic platforms such as edX and Coursera provide courses covering a wide range of topics, while topic-specific MOOC platforms such as Duolingo and Codeacademy focus on courses in one specific topic. To better support MOOC learners, many works have been proposed to investigate MOOC learning in the past decade. Still, there are many other aspects of MOOC learning to be explored.In this thesis, we focused on (i) learner modeling and (ii) generation of educational material for both topic-agnostic and topic-specific MOOC platforms.
Keywords
Reference
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Large-Scale Learning Analytics: Modeling Learner Behavior & Improving Learning Outcomes in Massive Open Online Courses
Doctoral thesis of Dan Davis defended on May 7th 2019.
Keywords
learning analytics, web information systems, learning science, educational data mining, MOOCs
Reference
Davis, D. (2019). Large-Scale Learning Analytics: Modeling Learner Behavior & Improving Learning Outcomes in Massive Open Online Courses. https://doi.org/10.4233/uuid:b8be8302-84a0-4b29-a6fe- 761a3f872420
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Social Presence in MOOCs
This article is published in the international journal IRRODL Vol 19, No 3 (2018).
Abstract
The capacity to foster interpersonal interactions in massive open online courses (MOOCs) has frequently been contested, particularly when learner interactions are limited to MOOC forums. The establishment of social presence—a perceived sense of somebody being present and “real”—is among the strategies to tackle the challenges of online learning and could be applied in MOOCs. Thus far, social presence in MOOCs has been under-researched. Studies that previously examined social presence in MOOCs did not account for the peculiar nature of open online learning. In contrast to the existing work, this study seeks to understand how learners perceive social presence, and the different nuances of social presence in diverse MOOC populations. In particular, we compare perceptions of social presence across the groups of learners with different patterns of forum participation in three edX MOOCs. The findings reveal substantial differences in how learners with varying forum activity perceive social presence. Perceptions of social presence also differed in courses with the varying volume of forum interaction and duration. Finally, learners with sustained forum activity generally reported higher social presence scores that included low affectivity and strong group cohesion perceptions. With this in mind, this study is significant because of the insights into brings to the current body of knowledge around social presence in MOOCs. The study’s findings also raise questions about the effectiveness of transferring existing socio-constructivist constructs into the MOOC contexts.
Keywords
social presence, MOOCs, forum participation
Reference
Poquet, O., Kovanović, V., de Vries, P., Hennis, T., Joksimović, S., Gašević, D., & Dawson, S. (2018). Social Presence in Massive Open Online Courses. The International Review Of Research In Open And Distributed Learning, 19(3). doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v19i3.3370
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Activating learning at scale: A review of innovations in online learning strategies
The Article “Activating learning at scale: A review of innovations in online learning strategies” was published in the journal Computer & Education.
Higlights
- A systematic review on scalable learning strategies was conducted.
- Results synthesize 126 studies including 132,428 participants.
- Large-scale experiments yield a far lower rate of positive results.
- Cooperative, gamified, and interactive learning strategies are the most effective.
Abstract
Making advantage of the vast history of theoretical and empirical findings in the learning literature we have inherited, this research offers a synthesis of prior findings in the domain of empirically evaluated active learning strategies in digital learning environments. The primary concern of the present study is to evaluate these findings with an eye towards scalable learning. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have emerged as the new way to reach the masses with educational materials, but so far they have failed to maintain learners’ attention over the long term. Even though we now understand how effective active learning principles are for learners, the current landscape of MOOC pedagogy too often allows for passivity — leading to the unsatisfactory performance experienced by many MOOC learners today. As a starting point to this research we took John Hattie’s seminal work from 2008 on learning strategies used to facilitate active learning. We considered research published between 2009 and 2017 that presents empirical evaluations of these learning strategies. Through our systematic search we found 126 papers meeting our criteria and categorized them according to Hattie’s learning strategies. We found large-scale experiments to be the most challenging environment for experimentation due to their size, heterogeneity of participants, and platform restrictions, and we identified the three most promising strategies for effectively leveraging learning at scale as Cooperative Learning, Simulations & Gaming, and Interactive Multimedia.
Keywords
Teaching/learning strategies, Adult learning, Evaluation of CAL systems, Interactive learning environments, Multimedia/hypermedia systems
Reference
Dan Davis, Guanliang Chen, Claudia Hauff, Geert-Jan Houben (2018) Activating learning at scale: A review of innovations in online learning strategies, Computers & Education, Volume 125, 2018, Pages 327-344, ISSN 0360-1315, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2018.05.019.
A Paradigm Shift in Teaching Aerospace Engineering: From Campus Learners to Professional Learners
Article “A Paradigm Shift in Teaching Aerospace Engineering: From Campus Learners to Professional Learners – a Case Study on Online Courses in Smart Structures and Air Safety Investigation” presented at 2018 AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting 8–12 January 2018 in Kissimmee, Florida.
Abstract
In this paper, the transition from teaching on-campus to an online audience consisting of working professionals in an Aerospace Engineering context is described. The differences in the learner’s needs and the transition in teaching methods and style that is required from teaching staff is discussed. This is illustrated by two case studies: for Smart Structures and for Air Safety Investigation. Recommendations on how universities can contribute to Life Long Learning are given.
Keywords
aerospace engineering, online education, pedagogical model, mooc, lifelong learning, professional education
Reference
Saunders, G., Rans, C., Schuurman, M., De Breuker, R., & van Staalduinen, J-P. (2018). A Paradigm Shift in Teaching Aerospace Engineering: From Campus Learners to Professional Learners – a Case Study on Online Courses in Smart Structures and Air Safety Investigation. In 2018 AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting 8–12 January 2018, Kissimmee, Florida. [AIAA 2018-0810] AIAA. DOI: 10.2514/6.2018-0810