Internet Learning Volume 3, Number 1, Spring 2014 | Page 64

Many Shades of MOOC's
to-BSN program and receiving academic
credit. By the time the MOOC closed, 50%
of these were already moving forward with
the application process.
Lessons learned
There were numerous lessons
learned as part of this offering. Developing
a MOOC is different than developing
a traditional course as the learners have
different motivations; course developers
need to be clear about what they want to
accomplish for the course and build with
the learner’s goals in mind. It is also important
to focus on engagement strategies
and develop a sense of community (“high
touch”) even though you are constructing
the course to be “low touch” from the
perspective of faculty/facilitators. For discussions,
it is helpful to use case studies
revolving around actual patient care situations
and use facilitators to help students
feel more engaged with the course and the
instructor. It is also important to determine
if the course will run in a set “term”
or run “open access.” Obtaining useful metrics
is difficult – but critical – and needs to
be considered from the start. Developing
an evaluation plan should not be an after-thought.
It is important to have a clear
definition of “success” and a plan to assess
for any mid-course corrections or revisions
when running the course again is critical.
UTACON’s inaugural MOOC2Degree
effort provided important information
that will inform the approach taken in the
future with the initiative. In particular, it
provided valuable insight into the ways that
MOOCs differ from traditional for-credit
courses and the ways in which the group
might consider adapting our approach
as it relates to course design, student engagement,
and measurement in the future.
Early indicators give the group reason to
be enthusiastic about the potential of this
initiative, and this group looks forward to
sharing more detailed results once it has
implemented the initiative on a broader
scale.
Case Study 3: Cuyahoga Community
College, Development Mathematics
MOOC
A Competency-Driven MOOC Using
Game-Based Mechanics
Background
Cuyahoga Community College
(Tri-C) is a multicampus college in Cleveland,
Ohio, serving over 52,000 credit and
noncredit students. As an Achieving the
Dream Leader College, Tri-C has committed
substantial staff and financial resources
to develop, implement, and evaluate highly
structured, multiyear initiatives designed
to improve student success. The College
is a member of the League for Innovation
in the Community College, a 19-member
international organization committed to
improving community colleges through
innovation, experimentation, and institutional
transformation. In Fall 2013, Tri-C
was awarded one of the Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation grants to expedite the
transition into mainstream college coursework
for massive numbers of development
education students. This was the beginning
of turning the vision into a reality.
The Tri-C MOOC ran four separate
offerings: March, April, May, and June 2013.
These were four faculty-facilitated offerings
each spanning four weeks. The Tri-C faculty
also utilized the MOOC content in one
blended offering during Summer 2013.
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