MOOCs can be a great way to supplement and enhance K12 students' curriculum. These courses can work very well for blended and individualized learning –because they can be a solution for students who need extra time to succeed. MOOCs can help students accomplish their personal goals, such as learning new languages, or studying specific disciplines. In this type of learning environment, MOOCs would be similar to attending after-school activities, field trips, visiting museums or researching topics of interest. Some revealing samples we have extracted from this article: Andover (Mass.) Public Schools' students get high school credit for the course but no grade upon completing the courses. The University of Miami’s Global Academy, which is a virtual high school, developed its first MOOC specifically for high school students last year. The three-week course focused on preparing students –mostly juniors– to take the SAT II test in biology. Also, the high school has provided a MOOC to prepare students to take the Advanced Placement calculus exam. The math, biology, and physical sciences' teachers from Brown University Continuing Education from both middle and high schools are using the MOOC as a mini-unit in their classes, or as an after-school project. Enterasys launched a MOOC initiative to provide students who are interested in learning more about IT. The free technical education classes provide technical skills achievement in fundamental areas around IP data networking, wireless technologies and security concepts—all key areas of recognized growth within the IT space. Unlike traditional MOOCs, the Enterasys MOOC is self-paced and students can attend the weekly scheduled module when it is best for them. Reynoldsburg (Ohio) City Schools’ eSTEM Academy combines MOOCs with live classroom instruction for grades 9 through 12. Teachers use the online content along with the problem-based learning work that is part of the academy’s goal. Additional readings: MOOCs go to K12: Higher ed trend expands to high schools Tips on using MOOCs successfully in K12
Blended learning is a new educational model with great potential. It personalizes education for students and improves outcomes. Coursera, the leading MOOC platform with over 5 million enrolled students and $85 million raised, offers a MOOC on blended learning. It includes best practices from real schools using these models.
This is what a professor of the University of Massachusetts has done –and "so far, the results have been extremely positive," he says. "Students are using the online materials, participating actively in the class and their exam scores are significantly higher than when the course was taught in conventional lecture format." He chronicles the process and findings from his blended learning experiment here. The difference between a "MOOC unit" (one week) an a "SPOC unit" (one day) is shown in the figure below:
The France Université Numérique FUN's online MOOCs courses will begin in January 2014. There will be various disciplines: mathematics, history, philosophy, biology, law, etc. Two MOOCs in mathematics have been created by Cédric Villani, winner of the Fields Medals (the equivalent of the Nobel Prize for mathematicians). École Centrale Paris has designed a course on sustainable development, while Panthéon Assas-Paris II University has created one on justice. The France Digital University project, built through Open EdX's software [disclosure: our company integrates this platform commercially], was launched in October 2013; along with Chinese universities' project, this is one of the most important MOOC initiative in the world.
This multi-year and multi-million dollar partnership will bring MOOCs into the homes of lower-income learners –and help fulfill one of the promises of MOOCs – to broaden access to education.
