Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ The Diffusion and Social Implications of MOOCs

Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community

I was only able to find the the concluding chapter to this book openly accessible online, but it is well worth the read. It essentially offers a comparative analysis of the MOOC phenomenon in Europe as compared to the United States. Nor surprisingly, it highlights the difference in organization: the economic and commercial model that prevails in the U.S. (and to a degree, in the U.K.) and the institutional model in Europe. It notes that Europe, much more so than the U.S., has sought to preserve open access. Most interestingly, there's an analysis of the role MOOCs play for students in the two regions: in the U.S., there was more emphasis on the acquisition of skills as an advantage in the job market, while in Europe it was "social closure and signaling, consistently with the overall institutional framework."

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
stephen@downes.ca

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Last Updated: Apr 26, 2024 12:54 a.m.

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