Guidelines and strategies for fostering and enhancing self-directed online learning

Use MOOC to learn image denoising techniques

“…MOOCs provide a structured, flexible, and cost-effective environment in which learners can delve into the intricacies of image denoising [70]. The advantages of MOOCs, such as comprehensive course content, access to expert instructors, hands-on projects, and a supportive online community, make them a compelling choice for those seeking to master this critical aspect of digital image processing [71].…”

On the Trail of Self-Directed Online Learners

“…Among the instructional design items recently highlighted in Zhu and Bonk (2022) are the following set of ten guidelines and strategies: (1) provide MOOC learners with reflection questions for them to contemplate their knowledge gains and install time management routines for what is remaining to learn; (2) provide flexible timelines to grant the learner more power and autonomy in making their learning decisions; (3) insert progress indicators and other visual cues or markers of progress as metacognitive aids to help with self-monitoring one's advancement within the course; (4) help learners establish personal learning goals through various activities and reminders; (5) make available optional learning materials for those who want to venture into tangential areas or examine particular topics of interest in greater depth; (6) highlight the estimated time frames for particular units and remaining activities within those units as well as offer weekly overviews that are chunked into manageable parts; (7) find ways to build a sense of learning community such as with maps of participant locations and various commonly used social media; (8) embed quizzes and quick check tasks to give MOOC learners opportunities to self-assess their learning progress and mastery; (9) find ways to offer community support, such as having community mentors, tutors, and teaching assistants who have completed the course and can moderate discussion forums, post questions, and monitor course activities overall; (10) design short learning units and keep video lectures brief to continue to motivate students and help them with time management. While MOOC instructors and learners mentioned several other instructional design items such as the use of gamification (An et al, 2021), the items listed above were among the ones most often mentioned.…”

“…We repeatedly beat this particular drum in a series of studies until we had more than a dozen compelling suggestions that were frequently mentioned regarding crafting MOOCs to support SDL (e.g., Zhu, 2021, 2022; Zhu et al, 2020; Zhu & Bonk, 2019a, 2019b). Recently, we proposed a set of 15 strategies and guidelines for fostering self-directed online learning (Zhu & Bonk, 2022), and we hope that MOOCs can be designed, taught, and evaluated based on these guidelines.…”

“…While MOOC instructors and learners mentioned several other instructional design items such as the use of gamification (An et al, 2021), the items listed above were among the ones most often mentioned. A full list of the 15 guidelines and the research that supports each of them can be found in Zhu and Bonk (2022).…”