A learning model for improving in-service teachers’ course completion in MOOCs

Abstract

The use of massive open online courses (MOOCs) for teacher professional development (TDP) has increased in the past decades. This study explored the key factors that influenced teachers' online course completion as a significant indicator of their success in a TPD MOOC. Participants' selfassessment of Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK), interaction with curriculum content and peers, satisfaction, and overall course score were identified as key influencing factors. Employing a learning model that was constructed as a hypothesis path model based on literature review, we analysed these influencing factors' effects on participants' online learning completion. Results showed that participants' TPACK self-assessment and overall course score had a strong direct effect on their course completion, while their interaction with course content and peers had a significant indirect effect on their course completion. The important role of social activities and formative feedback in the design of MOOC was emphasized in this study. Surprisingly, participants' TPACK self-assessment had a weak negative impact on teachers' online learning completion, which warrants further research. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Factors of dropout from MOOCs: a bibliometric review

“…Next, there is a positive relationship between interaction and a learner's motivation. It has been found that the interaction between learners can reduce loneliness and increase satisfaction, thus promoting the continuance intention (Ma et al, 2022). The interaction between instructors and learners directly affects a learner's motivation to complete the course (Khan et al, 2021).…”

“…Next, there is a positive relationship between interaction and a learner's motivation. It has been found that the interaction between learners can reduce loneliness and increase satisfaction, thus promoting the continuance intention (Ma et al. , 2022).…”

role of learning-related emotions, emotion regulation and technology acceptance in learner engagement with online professional development

“…Online PD has gained popularity over the past 2 decades (King, 2002;Powell & Bodur, 2019) with many universities offering the option of completing PD online (Al-Bargi, 2021;Mulla et al, 2020). However, access to online education does not guarantee active use of such learning resources or high-level learning engagement (Gibson et al, 2008;Ma et al, 2022). For online learning success, the priority needs to shift from ensuring online learning readiness to learners' actual acceptance and engagement (He et al, 2023).…”

How does online social interaction promote students’ continuous learning intentions?

“…Despite the appeal of providing education with very flexible time and space boundaries, some real concerns about online learning exist. Many authors state that traditional MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) are not very effective due to the lack of student–teacher and student-to-student interaction; however, when opportunities for interaction and teacher responsiveness are added, the effectiveness can be improved significantly ( Ma et al, 2022 ). Moreover, previous research has shown that high interaction rates are positively associated with students’ intention to continue learning ( Fang et al, 2019 ; Zhang et al, 2022 ).…”