RESOURCE: Coursera forced to call off a MOOC amid complaints about the course
Maybe it was inevitable that one of the new massive open online courses would crash. After all, MOOCs are being launched with considerable speed, not to mention hype. But MOOC advocates might have preferred the collapse of a course other than the one that was suspended this weekend, one week into instruction: “Fundamentals of Online Education: Planning and Application.”Technology and design problems are largely to blame for the courses problems. And many students are angry that a course about online education — let alone one offered by the Georgia Institute of Technology — wouldnt have figured out the tech issues in advance, or been able to respond quickly once they became evident. Many of the problems related to the courses use of Google Docs to sign up for group discussions.
via Coursera forced to call off a MOOC amid complaints about the course | Inside Higher Ed.
Written by Brian S McGowan, PhD
Brian is a research scientist and educational technologist. He helped transform Pfizer’s Medical Education Group and previously served in educational leadership roles at HealthAnswers, Inc.; Acumentis, LLC.; Cephalon; and Wyeth. He taught graduate medical education programs at Arcadia University for 10 years. Dr. McGowan recently authored the book "#socialQI: Simple Solutions for Improving Your Healthcare" and has been invited to speak internationally on the subject of information flow, technology, and learning in healthcare.
