Exactly how is personalization operationalized with the design & delivery of open courses?

A study was conducted to better understand how massive open online courses (MOOC) instructors adapt their courses to enhance or personalize MOOC design and delivery. This study explored the activities, tools, and resources that instructors of MOOCs used to improve the personalization of their MOOCs. Following email interviews with 22 MOOC and open education leaders, regarding MOOC personalization, a questionnaire was developed and completed by 152 MOOC instructors from around the world. While more than 8 in 10 respondents claimed heavy involved in designing their MOOCs, only one-third placed extensive effort on meeting unique learner needs during the actual design of that course and even fewer were concerned with personalization during the delivery of it. An array of instructional practices, technology tools, and content resources were leveraged by instructors to personalize MOOC-based learning environments. Aligning with previous research, the chief resources and tools employed in their MOOCs were discussion forums, video lectures, supplemental readings, and practice quizzes. Additionally, self-monitoring and peer-based methods of learner feedback were more common than instructor monitoring and/or feedback. Some respondents mentioned the use of flexible deadlines, proposed alternatives to course assignments, and introduced multimedia elements, mobile applications, and guest speakers among the ways in which they personalized their massive courses. A majority of the respondents reported modest or high interest in learning new techniques to personalize their next MOOC offering.

Keywords: massive open online courses (MOOCs), personalization, instructional design, open course, instructors

Interested in learning more? Check out the forthcoming publication.

Bonk, C. J., Zhu, M., Kim, M., Xu, S., Sabir, N., & Sari, A. (in press). Pushing toward a more personalized MOOC: Exploring instructor selected activities, resources, and technologies for MOOC design and implementation. The International Review of Research on Open and Distributed Learning (IRRODL).

Abstract adapted from article

 

Issues with Online Data Collection

In recent years the use of online data sources has lead to new developments including the standardization of resources and widening of scope; despite not all critical info is visible researcher.  However, online conversations are constantly evolving and perceptions online are always in flux.  Seymour (2001) claims that the internet releases the interview stage from “from its imprisonment in time and place” (p.158).

There are issues that cross over between virtual spaces and traditional data collection methods that stem mainly from the effects of media on the data gathering step.  Traditionally, in qualitative research documents/artifacts, interviews and observations are collected. In traditional data gathering humans are responsive and adaptive, whereas in electronic media data is often constructed via computer assistance. Now there are electronic forms of all these sources, where illustrations, programs and networks are artifacts.  Data collection differs with the nature of the medium; computer mediated communication has a unique effect on information construction.

There are some ethical considerations that need to be considered.  Merriam (2009) discusses four main ethical concerns with online issues: obtaining informed consent; ensuring confidentiality and security; determining what is public and what is private; and the last issue revolves around debriefing participants.  Many of these issues were brought up during the class, the most prominent being the issue of privacy and publicity, gaining informed consent, and issues of “reality.”

For the issue of public and private information, the discussion was centered on expectations for participants. For instance, if the researcher is reflecting on a public space about the participants than it might endanger the identity of the participants. Additionally, while participants often agree to having their information published as part of the study they might be less comfortable with having their information blogged upon.  Personally, I think this is a super important issue for in-service teachers who wish to engage in action research, self-reflection is a critical piece of the action research process (Carr & Kemmis, 2003).

 

References

Carr, W., & Kemmis, S. (2003). Becoming critical: education knowledge and action research. London, UK: Routledge.

Merriam, S. B. (2009). Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation.. (pp. 156-163). San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons.

Seymour, W. S. (2001). In the flesh or online? Exploring qualitative research methodologies. Qualitative Research, 1(2), 147-168.