Iff and Other Conditionals

For the past several years, a new form of online learning has emerged, which has captured the popular imagination, and with it, plenty of support from private universities, angel investors, and foundations. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are a scaled-up version of online learning, albeit on open socio-technical platforms, which enable digital content organization, learner interactivity, computer-based assessments, and peer assessments, as well as back-end “big data” data mining of learner behaviors. MOOCs are being discussed as for-credit university courses, supplementary professional development trainings, and informal and nonformal learning opportunities. They are considered not only for adult learners but also for high schoolers and even potentially for younger age groups. For all the hopefulness that many masses around the world will have access to high-level and well designed college courses, the emergence of MOOCs has sparked a range of forecasts. Some predict that MOOCs will socialize learners around the world to a common academic culture and unleash human potential. Some predict that MOOCs are a threat to the existing higher education status quo. Others suggest that MOOCs have been overly hyped and are an unworkable passing fad. To gain a sense of the attitudes towards MOOCs and their feasibility, a modified electronic Delphi (e-Delphi) study was conducted using the Qualtrics™ survey platform (aka K-State Survey). This chapter describes the processes of setting up the modified e-Delphi study. It describes the extensive literature review undertaken for the development of the survey instrument. The writing describes the major findings from this qualitative and mixed-methods research based on both manual and NVivo-based data analysis. There is a focus on issues that may need to be addressed individually and collectively in order to rollout successful MOOCs.