technology
MOOC with meaning
Free course aims to boost
dementia knowledge globally.
By Kate Prendergast
A
massive open online course
(MOOC) is seeking to improve
the understanding of dementia
around the world.
In a paper published recently in Science
of Learning, a partner journal of Nature,
a research team from the University of
Tasmania assessed the effectiveness of
a nine-week Understanding Dementia
MOOC (UDMOOC) across enrolled
participants. The 42 per cent who
completed the course showed “substantial
improvements” in knowledge.
Improvement was found across
participant groups too, regardless of
differences in expertise through formal
education, occupational experience,
or experience relating to caring for a
significant other. Significantly, completing
the course minimised the degree of
knowledge differences associated with
these different levels of exposure.
While the MOOC was launched in 2013,
the study took place over two years (2016–
17). In the first year, 20,061 participants
from 117 countries enrolled and in the
second the figure was 29,039 participants
from 132 countries. Australians represented
the majority of all enrolments (66.5 per
cent), followed by the UK (9.8 per cent) and
New Zealand (7 per cent).
40 agedcareinsite.com.au
With a growing number of informal
carers in the international community,
who are typically women with low levels of
previous education, the course is designed
to maximise accessibility for adult learners.
Enrolment is free, with a varied pedagogy,
encompassing a conversational framework,
video discussions, summaries, games,
quizzes and more.
Modules focus on basic neurobiology,
dementia pathophysiology, medical
management and person-centred care.
Researchers scored participants’
knowledge levels through the Dementia
Knowledge Assessment Scale, a validated
measurement tool for dementia
researchers. They found that while those
who had experience in care tended to
score highly, this experiential learning
“rarely addresses all of the relevant
domains of knowledge”. The MOOC
was therefore able to supplement this
base knowledge, providing a more
comprehensive awareness around the set
of conditions that characterise dementia,
from onset through progression.
When they first emerged in 2008,
MOOCs were hailed as a disruptive and
democratising system of learning in the
new ‘global classroom’. Since then, in part
due to a catastrophic drop-out rate, their
potential has been cast into doubt.
The Tasmanian research lends legitimacy
to the form in its given context, with the
authors describing the course as “an
effective knowledge translation strategy to
improve dementia knowledge for a diverse,
international learner group”.
It has been so successful, in fact, that the
research team developed a second MOOC
called Preventing Dementia. Launched in
2016, the course explores the modifiable
risk factors for dementia.
There is an urgent need for knowledge
enhancement in this area, too – which is
only going to ratchet up in the near future.
“There are nearly 50 million people
with dementia worldwide, and this
number is predicted to triple by 2050,”
the paper’s co-author, Claire Eccleston,
told Aged Care Insite. “Yet two out of
three people globally believe there is
little to no understanding of dementia in
their country.
“Stigma about dementia is common, and
formal care workers and those who care
for people with dementia at home often
lack the knowledge required to provide
quality care. Understanding dementia
reduces stigma, and helps communities
to become more inclusive of people living
with cognitive impairment.
“It also supports the provision of
informed, appropriate and compassionate
care by health professionals and others
caring for people with dementia.”
In Australia, with a population that is
both rapidly expanding and ageing fast, the
number of people being diagnosed with
dementia is expected to increase to 318
people per day by 2025, and more than
650 people per day by 2056.
“The aged care workforce is inadequately
resourced and prepared to meet the
growing need for dementia care, and
dependency on informal community care
is increasing,” write the researchers.
They also point out that literacy of
dementia is important in shaping national
policies around the disease.
In Australia, the ongoing Royal
Commission into Aged Care Quality
and Safety has found a critical lack of
awareness in areas of the Australian
healthcare industry relating to dementia,
including a dangerous over-reliance on
physical and chemical mechanisms of
restraint. This was further underlined in
the third hearing in Sydney, which focused
on residential care and those living
with dementia.
Enrolment for the Preventing Dementia
MOOC opened in May, while enrolment for
the Understanding Dementia MOOC opens
in July. Both run twice a year. ■