This project is conducting a conference to explore the use of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and how to more effectively integrate them into STEM teaching. The overall goal is to explore the future of MOOCs and other disruptive educational technologies in higher education. The conference is allowing STEM educators to share and gain knowledge regarding the advantages and limitations of MOOC implementations to help propagate a better understanding of how MOOCs function and where they best fit into the STEM learning community. It is bringing faculty and technology facilitators together to provide an opportunity for open strategic discussions of disruptive learning technologies and creating an environment that enables and encourages open dialog between university faculty/staff/administrators, representatives from MOOC providers, and other constituents interested in online STEM learning. The project is helping to further an understanding of: 1) the role of MOOCs in modern academia in STEM fields, 2) how to best introduce them into a university setting, and 3) how they may supplement traditional and flipped STEM classrooms. The project is generating a publication that summarizes the discussions, findings and follow-on activities that result from the conference workshop.
BROADER SIGNIFICANCE Information garnered throughout the conference is being shared with participants who, in turn, are taking the knowledge back to their institutions and utilizing it to improve teaching and learning in their STEM fields. The project is helping further the understanding of how to best implement MOOCs into traditional academia, in a way that complements institutions, while also providing maximum benefit to students. The knowledge and ability to provide lower cost, high quality STEM education promises not only to produce immediate benefits, but also to help produce more effective, far-reaching, and long-term national STEM results.
The participants are sharing the conference information with others in their particular STEM fields and at their institutions, resulting in widespread propagation of MOOC-oriented discussions and knowledge. All conference results and documents are being published on a conference website, along with a summation of the overall findings. Participants are publishing papers and contributing articles as a result of the conference; producing valuable information regarding MOOCs that is being used nationwide on an anytime/anywhere basis by anyone who is interested in exploring new STEM learning environments.
This grant funded a workshop on June 5 and 6, 2014 to discuss the integration of MOOCs and other technology enhanced learning environments. This conference was an opportunity for SJSU and other nationwide faculty to congregate to learn and discuss effective strategies in adopting MOOCs for degree program or using MOOCs materials for credit bearing courses. The overall goal of the conference was to discuss the future of MOOCS and other disruptive educational technologies in STEM higher education. Our secondary goals were to: understand the role of MOOCs in modern academia in STEM fields, how to best introduce them into a university setting, and how they may supplement traditional and flipped STEM classrooms. This conference was cosponsored by the IEEE Education Society, Santa Clara Valley chapter. 65 people attended the event. There were in-person attendees and presenters and online attendees and presenters through WebEx.There were 13 breakout sessions, three industry sessions, and three sessions with NSF-funded programs. Throughout the course of two days, there were a total of 38 speakers. The intellectual merit of this conference is self evident. Information garnered throughout this conference will be shared with participants, who will then be able to take what was discovered, and what they personally learned back to their individual institution and utilize it in their field. Ultimately, we hope to discover how to best implement MOOCs into traditional academia, in a way that compliments institutions, while providing maximum benefits to students. The Broader impacts of the project tie into many of the above points. After the conference, participants will be able to take the knowledge gleaned at the event with them. They will then be able to share information in their particular fields or at their institutions, resulting in widespread discussion, and we expect, positive change. Furthermore, all conference results and documents are published on a conference website, which will be a summation of the overall findings. Participants will be encouraged to electronically publish papers and/or articles written during the conference. In effect, the conference would produce information regarding MOOCs that can be used nationwide, accessible by anyone who might need it.
