This week’s readings were intriguing as we dissected into the structural elements of what makes up our reality today.
One concept I found particularly interesting was the different pathways an online course can be: centralized, decentralized and distributed. I think, for the most part, my courses have been centralized. However, I am currently in one course that I feel is decentralized. There’s only 2 main projects to complete in the course, that are both super open ended. All of us students rely on each other for help when it comes to finding resources, answering questions and creating ideas for the projects. The prof has set up a forum for us to share and discuss, and our participation in them is for marks which is nice in the sense that there are lots of conversations happening. I don’t recall taking a course that was distributed.
It was also interesting to read up on the massively open online courses (MOOC). I had never heard about these until now. I really enjoyed the story Alec Courous shared, about getting the ball rolling on open courses. I think it’s the way higher education should be- free and available to those who want to learn it. It’s almost saddening to think about how many people take courses just for the credit and have no interest in the topic versus people who would love to be in those same courses just because they want to learn more on it. So, giving out the opportunity to the world (without the credit) is super beneficial, not only to those interested, but for the prof as well. As mentioned by Alec, there is a larger mentor to student ratio which is incredibly rare and enriches the course for the students.
I liked what was mentioned by Howard Rheingold, in regards to using social media while teaching online. He mentions the abundance of information social media has, which is true if you think about it. I can search a specific topic on twitter using the hashtag and find hundreds of videos, articles, facts, and up to date news on that specific topic, which instantly enhances my knowledge on that topic in a medium of my choosing. When we think about a course online, we are usually given reliable readings, but it would be cool to have the option to utilize social media in that sense more often. However, there can be a lot of cons to using social media especially when it comes to the validity of the source. I will say though, I agree with Rheingold in that social media has really helped students collaborate and share.
Major, C. H. (2015). Teaching Online – A Guide to Theory, Research, and Practice. Retrieved from http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uvic/detail.action?docID=3318874 (pp. 76-108
Hannah Rochford
August 9, 2021 — 3:34 pm
Hi Kiana,
Great post! I have never had a course other then a centralized one so it is interesting to note that there are courses at UVIC you can take that can be decentralized. I think decentralized courses can really be beneficial for students interested in all sorts of things which can provide further learning.
I think it is awesome you mentioned the benefit to having a non credited course as so many students including myself, have taken a course because they had to for a credit or a pre requisite for a program. With open, non credited platforms, individuals are able to learn about what they are interested in on their own time.
I wrote a bit about social media in my post as well. I wonder if eventually down the line we will be reading “resources” from social media sites.
Thanks,
Hannah
emilytrelford
August 9, 2021 — 5:39 pm
Hi Kiana!
I enjoyed this post, I like how we felt the same way about many of these new terms. I believe that I am also in that same decentralized class you were mentioning. It is nice that we are able to get help and ask for help from our fellow classmates, and then receive participation marks for it at the same time! However I sometimes can feel a bit out of sorts when assignments are very open-ended and up to interpretation. Aside from that, this style of learning is definitely unique, and can be very beneficial to some!
I like how you have also mentioned the abundance of information that is available on social media. We are so easily able to look up whatever we want, right at our fingertips. Rianne mentioned in her post about how she likes to use social media to learn about social justice issues, and this is exactly what I like to do! A quick search of a hashtag can give us a lot of information – we just have to be careful of its credibility!
Thanks Kiana 🙂
Emily
Kayla Krug
August 10, 2021 — 8:59 am
Hi Kiana,
I enjoyed reading your post this week, you brought up a lot of interesting concepts.
I also had never heard of MOOCs until this weeks reading. I love how these courses allow anyone who is interested to complete them and further their education in specific topics. In the past, I have been someone to take certain courses for granted, and I would just go through the motions of the course cause it was required. I never thought about people who would want to be in my situation and be in courses I was in, but they just aren’t able to. This has helped me appreciate and realize how lucky I am to learn at UVIC.
Thanks,
Kayla
rbanow
August 10, 2021 — 9:18 pm
Hi Kiana,
I enjoyed your post. I was struck by your comment “It’s almost saddening to think about how many people take courses just for the credit and have no interest in the topic versus people who would love to be in those same courses just because they want to learn more on it.” As an instructor, it resonates with me as they are absolutely students that are in courses simply for a credit. It would be so empowering to teach a group of learners that all truly want to learn! In a sense, that can be why someone like Dr. Couros opened up his course. He would feed off the energy of the non-credit learners engaging in the course.
On a similar note, I co-taught a MOOC in 2016. It was a really interesting experience. Since it is all optional, learners just pop in and out of topics they are interested in. How do you think that would be as a teacher?
rianneyuen
August 12, 2021 — 8:44 am
Hi Kiana,
Thanks for further explaining massively open online classes (MOOC). I also never heard too much about this. I think that this is a great way for others who want to be more educated, but may not be able to attend post-secondary. Education should not be about credits, but about learning the material and being engaged. That is why MOOC is optional and convenient.
Thanks for sharing!
Rianne