“MOOC” has become a hot term these days and, like most phenom on it has come to take on several shades of meaning, but let’s try to briefly answer the question ”What is a MOOC?” in a few sentences.
First, MOOC standards for
Massive — they are accessible to all members of the whole word wide web!
Open - they are open because anyone can take them
Online – they are ‘online’ and generally include
Course – and, I think we all know that a MOOC is a ‘course’
Here’s a great video on that answers the question “What is a MOOC?” from the perspective of the earliest meaning of the phrases. This video was made by the main who helped coin the word MOOC and the phrase has come to take on some other meanings; however, the original meaning of MOOC is explained below
Although MOOC’s are, by definition, ‘open’ and at least at this time, free, the MOOC providers (at least Coursera and Udemy) are looking at ways to monetize. Coursera, for instance, charges money to get certificates of completion, an optional addition that students can choose to pursue, if they want a way to show verification that they took a particular course.
How has the meaning changed since the filming of that video?
A few ways, some of the biggest MOOC providers