1. Seírbhísí TF UCD
UCD IT Services
Teams, Time & Tools – A Case Study of the
Design & Implementation of Two MOOCs
Niall Watts
Media Services, UCD IT Services
EdTech 2014, UCD

2. What is a MOOC?
• Massive
• Open
• Online
• Course
By Mathieu Plourde {(Mathplourde on Flickr) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

3. MOOC Case Studies
Learning Design
• Systematic Approach to Improving Learning
• Connectivist Philosophy
• Discussion & Peer Feedback
• Team Projects

4. MOOC Profile - OLDS
“Learning Design Enquiry”
“Incubator for Great Ideas”

5. Massive?
• 18,000 registrations
• Connectivist Philosophy
• Discussion & Peer Feedback
DNLE OLDS
Participants Registered (approx.) 18,000 2,420
Intended to participate actively N/a 1,169
Approx. Participated actively
(mid-course)
1,800 30
Host country USA UK
% approx. From host country 10% 50%
Age Spread (majority) Adults 45-54
Gender (majority) N/a Female

6. Participant Goals
• OLDS
– Learn about
• MOOCs
• Learning Design
• Participant Interaction
• DNLE
– Learn about
• MOOCs
• Learning Environments
• Participant Interaction

7. Open?
DNLE OLDS
Registration Free Free
Prerequisites None None
% working in education 14% Nearly all
Data sharing Some Yes
Duration (weeks) 10 9

8. Online - Tools
• DNLE
– Own platform
– Asynchronous
• Largely self-contained
• Project tools
• OLDS
– Course website
– Asychronous
• OU Cloudworks
• Google Plus
• Google Groups
• Twitter
• Own choice
• Project tools
– Synchronous
• Google Hangouts
• Project tools

9. Course - Activities
• x DNLE OLDS
Video Lectures Course Leader Guests
Webinars No Yes
Discussion Forum Yes Yes
Resources Some Many
Individual activities Yes Yes
Team activities Yes Yes
Course Team Small Large

10. My own teams

11. Teams
• xx
DNLE OLDS
Members Self-selecting Yes Yes
Team Project Major Significant
Integrated No Yes
Topic team-selected Yes Yes
Duration … from Middle Start
Project Teams Formed 5,300 102
Projects Submitted 864 (16%) 8 (8%)
Evaluation by Peers Course Team
Voting Badges

12. Comparing MOOCs – Teams, Times & Tools
DNLE OLDS
Recommended hours per week 1-3 Worked for me 3-10 Too many
Daily schedule None Worked for me Yes Too restrictive
Webinars and synchronous activities None Not essential Yes Added engagement
Choice of communication platforms No Worked for me Yes Too many.
Peer feedback Expected Often none Expected Generally Good
Tech Support in Forums Excellent Excellent
Peer evaluation Expected Needs guidelines No Worked for me
Badges awarded by Course Team No Yes Worked for me
Project timescale Separate at
end
Easier to manage Integrated
throughout
MOOC
Authentic design –
difficult to keep
pace
Table 3: Comparison

13. Successful Teams - Why Small Numbers?
• Team Formation
– Large Numbers
– Expectations
– Match interests
– Form or join?
– Topic expertise

14. Successful Teams - Why Small Numbers?
• Team Maintenance
– Product & Processes
– Roles & Responsibilities
– Peers - Ability and commitment
– Schedules & deadlines
– Learning Preferences
– Tools & Group Work

15. Potential team solutions
Solutions
• Trial team activities
• Matching member tools
• Training in feedback & evaluation
• Flexible schedule
• Learning about MOOCs?

16. Disruption
• Different experience
• Peers & Accreditation
• Still experimenting
• Value of data & projects
• Cost of staying open
“Incubator for
Great Ideas”