JIME Virtual Special Collection – 2012 to 2022: The Decade of the MOOC

Abstract

In a New York Times article, Pappano (2012) declared 2012 as 'the year of the MOOC'. It was a year which saw a surge in interest in this new, open form of online higher education. While the initial hype around Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) subsided and their form has changed significantly from the first large-scale courses, more learners than ever are registered with the platforms, which have attracted substantial levels of investment. In this special collection, we bring together articles published in the Journal of Interactive Media in Education over the past ten years, which have focused upon MOOCs from a diverse range of research perspectives. First, we provide an overview of major events and trends in relation to MOOCs over the past ten years. We then take a closer look at the 25 papers published in JIME and included in the virtual special collection, arranged in relation to four main themes, including: situating MOOCs; learning design and roles; MOOCs and languages; and accessibility and inclusion.

MOOCS and Micro-Credentials as Launch Pads to Further Education: Challenges and Experiences

“…Factors that impact on the willingness to pay include course topics and the institution affiliation -learners are more willing to pay if the micro-credentials are offered by highly regarded institutions [32]. Of course, ability to pay is also a notable factor [35]. On the positive side, micro-credentials were seen as a helpful route into larger qualifications [36].…”

Perspective Chapter: MOOCs in India – Evolution, Innovation, Impact, and Roadmap

“…They identify Redefining openness in MOOCs (to provide open infrastructure for content creators besides content consumers), Complementing AI with human effort (human-in-the-loop systems), and moving from Engagement to Knowledge as some of the priorities for research. Jordan et al [165] also provide a nice survey of studies over 2012 to 2022: The Decade of the MOOC.…”

Investigating the Views and Use of Stackable Microcredentials within a Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has been a more recent and global influence on online learning as institutions sought to temporarily (and sometimes permanently) expand the boundaries of the classroom and increase access to learning at a distance. Jordan and Goshtasbpour (2022) recently reflected on a decade of research on MOOCs and highlighted that MOOCs have largely failed to live up to their initial hype (around 2012) to drastically disrupt education. However, this is not a new mantra in the sense that many digital technologies in education claim to revolutionise education yet few truly revolutionise or innovate the status quo (Divjak et al 2022;Hernández-de-Menéndez et al 2022).…”