Downsize a MOOC

Brenda M. Perea

Instructional Design Project Manager

Targeted Learning Outside Higher Ed’s Traditional Models

Session Evaluations Contest

• Open OLC Conferences Mobile App• Navigate to session to evaluate • Click on "Rate this Session“• Complete Session Evaluation*(As part of our "green" initiatives, OLC is no longer using paper forms for session evaluations.)

*Contact information required for contest entry but will not be shared with the presenters. Winners will be contacted post-conference.

Each session evaluation completed (limited to one per session) = one contest entryFive (5) $25 gift cards will be awarded to five (5) individuals Must submit evals using the OLC Conferences mobile app

Expected Outcomes…..Hopefully

As a result of this session attendees will be able to:

• Understand the potential benefits for institutions to incorporate MOOCs into their educational pathways

• Understand the benefits of higher ed. Institutions partnering with industry to offer non-traditional learning

• Discuss the benefits and challenges in building MOOCs

Why Develop a MOOC?

• Learning access and opportunity

• Scale

• Student success

Who Takes MOOCs and Who Succeeds

Image from EduCause Infographic-crash course in MOOCs info graphic

Why CCCS Developed 3 MOOCs

• Required in the SOW for the consortium’s TAACCCT3 grant

• Scale - Cost effective for participants (free resources)

• Student success - Flexible access, targeted learning and no cost to the student

• Introduction to the Colorado Community College System

We Selected to build a . . .

sMOOC

smaller Massive Online Open Course

Why. . . .• Industry request to accelerate the time

frame for their employees to become certificate and degree completers.

• Specific participation group to identify

• Provided with $0 to build an of the MOOCs

• Learning access and opportunity -community centered learning with world-wide access

sMOOC Prep 101

What, why, when, who, how

Need to Recognize Challenges

• Launching a MOOC in a traditional community college semester based system

• Developing “buy-in” from existing math faculty to “accept” the MOOC vs. traditional semester course

• Completers passing at a certain level what does that mean for a participant

• What does this do to faculty FTE

Decisions to Make

•Credits, Credentials, and Certificates

• Badging? —Not yet, but estimate ETA SU15 for 1 sMOOC

• Do we want badges for skill attainment? all modules?

• Or identify what skills are high priority, backwards design those skills to a competency, and award badge for competency?

• Credentials—How and Why?

• Certificates?

• What is acceptable?

• Completing all modules?

• Completing at 70%, 80%?

Design Challenges

• Needed to be designed and launched within 6 months

• MOOC length 4-7 weeks?—settled for a 5 week course

• Designing micro-learning “chunks” tied to specific competencies

• Needed non-textbook based course material

• Required Content contextualized for Advanced Manufacturing

sMOOC 1---A MOOC for Technical Math Skills

Focus on supplementing math skills not on replacing traditional MAT108 course

• Tool to “refresh” their math skills to test out of MAT108

• Critically evaluated the “must” cover

• measurements, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, graphs, and finance.

• Supplemental resource for struggling current students

sMOOC 2- Employability Skills

• Focus on soft skills needed in the work place whether new hire or current employee

• Content based on

• Employer and industry advisory board, Colorado 21st Century Workforce Skills Report, Colorado Workforce Training

•Demand from business partners for better prepared employees

sMOOC 3-Prior Learning Assessment

• Change in SB Policy

• Need to build a standard level of awareness of accessibility

• Effectively deliver professional development to all Colorado Community College employees (13 colleges spread across the state)

Final MOOC template

Detailed MOOC plan

Typical Online Look and Feel

Typical Micro Learning Lesson

Content Designed to Create “Stickiness”• Easy to “jump in and around” content

• Each topic had a clear “golden nugget”

•Provide relevant content

• Embed the critical ideas throughout the content

•Provide visuals

• Facilitate connection or relationship to the content

Technical Bumps in the Road

• Lack of OER materials other than Khan Academy

• MOOC host requested us to change title and refine course description to appeal to a broader audience.

• Ideas on a “new” name was Career Math

• However, that was in direct conflict with an existing CCCS courses which might lead students to confuse the course with a credit bearing course

QUESTIONS????

CC BY License

This Workforce Solution Downsize a MOOC by Brenda M. Perea is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at www.cccs.edu.

This workforce solution was funded by a grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. The solution was created by the grantee and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Labor. The Department of Labor makes no guarantees, warranties, or assurances of any kind, express or implied, with respect to such information, including any information on linked sites, and including, but not limited to accuracy of the information or its completeness, timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, continued availability or ownership.