What Is a MOOC?

The Canvas Network is a collection of MOOCs offered by numerous educational institutions around the world. Most classes do not provide anything beyond the educational experience, although a certificate of completion may be offered by some specific educational providers.

Only a few dozen classes are offered at any one time, with most consisting of written materials and exercises. All classes are free, but there is no opportunity for course credit or proof of completion.

One of the more well-known MOOC providers, Coursera works with many educational institutions to offer special programs, degrees and courses to students wishing to learn online. Many courses require a fee to officially enroll, but course materials are often available for free.

edX brings together many institutions of higher education and organizations from around the world to provide a wide variety of courses to anyone who wants to learn. Courses are free, although many will provide a certificate of completion for a fee. Academic is also available for certain courses that are offered by a degree granting institution.

FutureLearn is a MOOC provider based in the United Kingdom with free course offerings in addition to special programs that can lead to academic credit, accreditation or a degree. Courses are free unless a student intends to obtain recognized credit, such as a degree or accreditation.

The Khan Academy is one of the more well-known MOOCs with over 5,000 courses offered, mostly on YouTube. The Khan Academy is unique in that it has a larger number of classes tailored toward younger audiences, such as those in elementary, middle and high school. The Khan Academy also has special courses for major national exams, such as the GMAT, SAT and NCLEX-RN.

MIT OpenCourseWare is an on online compendium of the course materials from over 2,000 graduate and undergraduate courses offered by MIT, although no course credit or proof of completion is available. Additionally, not all courses offered will have online textbooks or recordings of lectures available.

Powered by Blackboard, a leading provider of online education, Open Education is a cloud-based collection of courses that allows anyone to take a MOOC using the same technology available to traditional and online college students.

OpenLearn is an educational website supported by Open University, which is one of the United Kingdom’s (and world’s) largest and most prominent online colleges. Academic credit is not provided, but participants may earn a Statement of Participation to prove completion of a class.

Udacity is unique among most MOOC providers in that the courses offered focus on technology-based subjects. Many classes are offered for free although if students would like to receive course credit, such as working toward their Master’s Degree in Computer Science from Georgia Tech, they will need to be accepted into Georgia Tech’s computer science program first.

Teachers can obtain a tremendous amount of professional development through MOOCs. Benefits of taking MOOCs including leaning new teaching styles and methods, completing continuing education requirements, collaborating with fellow teachers and obtaining additional knowledge and training to supplement the teacher’s current lesson plan. Then there’s also the interesting feeling of being a student again.

With almost nonexistent class limits and self-paced learning options, MOOCs make learning convenient for students. Students benefit from MOOCs in a wide variety of ways, whether it’s getting extra instruction on a class project, having access to self-tutoring materials for a difficult subject or obtaining course credit for a graduate degree. And since MOOCs are almost always free, students can take classes purely for learning enjoyment without using up semester course limits or paying tuition.

Working professionals are most able to benefit from MOOC’s self-paced and customizable curriculum features without the cost of formally enrolling in an online academic program. For those who need additional training to get that promotion or be better prepared for working in a different field, MOOCs offer a free way for working professionals to learn on their own time. MOOCs also offer special certificates that provide evidence of completion and mastery of a given subject, which can be nice to include with a resume.

Parents want to help their children succeed, but this is often hampered by the fact that the parent knows less about a particular subject than the child they are trying to help. Or perhaps a parent aced statistics back in college, but needs a refresher so they can help their high school senior child who is now taking AP Statistics. Either way, MOOCs provide a way for parents to learn on their own timetable, at no cost beyond the time needed to take the course. And of course, for parents who love to learn but don’t have the time or money to go back to school, MOOCs can quench that thirst for knowledge.

Many business owners could benefit from additional knowledge about accounting, marketing and other business topics, but simply don’t have the time or money to enroll in a formal class. Because business owners have full control over the business, any time away can mean lost income. But with the convenient nature of asynchronous learning, business owners can get the knowledge they need without having to take as much time away from their business.

With MOOCs, lifelong learners have a plethora of classes to choose from and the ability to learn only what they want to learn, on their own schedule. Since lifelong learners learn for the sake of learning, they don’t need a degree, diploma or certificate. This means all they need is time and can save their money for tuition on other things in their lives.

With more advanced technology becoming available to the public, many hobbyists see the benefit of technical training to take full advantage of leisure activities. For example, with 3D printing and drones becoming ubiquitous, many individuals who do not have a manufacturing, engineering or scientific background can benefit from taking these types of courses for free, on their own time.

Even though most MOOCs do not provide academic credit or result in a degree, some of the biggest beneficiaries of MOOCs are students formally enrolled in an academic program. Most students will struggle with at least a few classes in their academic career. And not all students have the money or resources to access additional assistance, whether from tutors or special academic programs. MOOCs provide a free way for students to obtain additional academic assistance that wouldn’t otherwise be available.

One of the biggest ways to make learning fun is to learn something because you want to – and MOOCs are the perfect way to learn on your terms. The fact that anyone can stop taking a MOOC without worrying about hurting their academic record or losing out on tuition takes away a lot of the pressure that can make learning less fun.

Learning has traditionally cost both money and time. With MOOCs, it now just costs time. The fact that there is no tuition or fees for MOOCs (as long as the student isn’t getting academic credit or a certificate of completion) means that many individuals can now receive a high-quality education, one that is effectively exactly the same as a student paying $50,000 per year at an elite private university.

Many highly skilled jobs have mandatory requirements, such as a specific degree or certificate. But in some jobs or industries, what’s important isn’t the academic credential, but rather the actual knowledge an individual has. Before MOOCs, individuals could only prove their knowledge with an academic degree or certificate. Although online certifications can provide a more convenient alternative to on-campus programs, they can still be cost-prohibitive for some individuals. MOOCs can provide an alternate method to proving skills and understanding of a variety of topics without forcing individuals to commit to a full degree or expensive credential.

Very few academic institutions can provide the same plethora of academic and technical subjects that MOOCs offer. Topics can range from middle school biology to theoretical mathematics for use in artificial intelligence and Big Data. And while it’s true the Internet has offered this wide range of knowledge almost since its inception, individuals usually did not have the information presented to them in an organized manner.