As you have read before in my posts, I’m mildly obsessed with learning and growth. I have a mind that never stops and is constantly hungry for new information. Since my personal PD budget is $0 this year, post Harvard, I’m trying out my first MOOC I’m “taking” a course offered by Coursera on the topic of “e-learning and digital cultures” from a group of professors at the University of Edinburgh.
The premise of the course looks at how Digital Culture is shaping the world and what role does e-learning play in the development of these cultures. (Or at least, that is what I take as the premise.) The topic is interesting to me but this is more an exercise in seeing how my own MOOC or e-learning experience works. How do I take in, analyze, synthesize and share information when I participate in a class with 10k+ people enrolled. Since my largest lecture class in undergrad was a class of 75, I am particularly daunted by this prospect. But since e-learning/blended learning/online learning are all buzz words of the day, I want to experience it for myself.
At this point, I realize I’m already a week behind on the coursework but since this is a course without face to face connections and so many participants, I don’t feel a sense of urgency. There are massive snippet discussions via Twitter and long threads on the forum, but I have yet to make human connections. It is a bit overwhelming. So as I go through this learning process, both literally and figuratively, I hope to reflect on how this type of learning might work for and against a varied population of teachers (and older students).
Welcome to the MOOC boat. I’ll be your reflective cruise director.
Teach2Connect 