Deconstructing disengagement: analyzing learner subpopulations in massive open online courses
| Published | April 2013 |
| Conference | LAK '13: Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Learning Analytics and Knowledge Pages 170-179 |
| Country | United States, North America |
ABSTRACT
As MOOCs grow in popularity, the relatively low completion rates of learners has been a central criticism. This focus on completion rates, however, reflects a monolithic view of disengagement that does not allow MOOC designers to target interventions or develop adaptive course features for particular subpopulations of learners. To address this, we present a simple, scalable, and informative classification method that identifies a small number of longitudinal engagement trajectories in MOOCs. Learners are classified based on their patterns of interaction with video lectures and assessments, the primary features of most MOOCs to date.In an analysis of three computer science MOOCs, the classifier consistently identifies four prototypical trajectories of engagement. The most notable of these is the learners who stay engaged through the course without taking assessments. These trajectories are also a useful framework for the comparison of learner engagement between different course structures or instructional approaches. We compare learners in each trajectory and course across demographics, forum participation, video access, and reports of overall experience. These results inform a discussion of future interventions, research, and design directions for MOOCs. Potential improvements to the classification mechanism are also discussed, including the introduction of more fine-grained analytics.
| Keywords | MOOC · learner engagement · trajectories of engagement |
| Published at | California |
| Language | English |
| Refereed | Yes |
| DOI | 10.1145/2460296.2460330 |
| Export options | BibTex · EndNote · Tagged XML · Google Scholar |
Viewed by 574 distinct readers
CLOUD COMMUNITY REVIEWS
The evaluations below represent the judgements of our readers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Cloud editors.
Click a star to be the first to rate this document
▶ POST A COMMENT
SIMILAR RECORDS
Digging deeper into learners' experiences in MOOCs: Participation in social networks outside of MOOCs, notetaking and contexts surrounding content consumption
Veletsianos, George; Collier, Amy; Schneider, Emily
Researchers describe with increasing confidence what they observe participants doing in massive open online courses (MOOCs). However, our understanding of learner activities in open courses is limited by researchers' ...
Match: Schneider, Emily
MOOCs for professional teacher development
Jobe, William; Östlund, Christian; Svensson, Lars
A MOOC is a trending concept in education that is disrupting traditional methods of
learning consumption. The emergence and use of MOOCs for professional teacher development is still uncommon, but on the verge of ...
Match: MOOC; United States
Trend report: Open Educational Resources 2012
Jacobi, Ria; van der Woert, Nicolai; Arnoldus, Martijn; Bijsterveld, Cora; et al.
This report describes the trends in the Netherlands and elsewhere in the field of Open Educational Resources. It comprises twelve articles by Dutch experts in the field of OER in higher education. It also contains ...
Match: MOOC
The limitations of access alone: moving towards open processes in education technology
Knox, Jeremy
“Openness” has emerged as one of the foremost themes in education, within which an open education movement has enthusiastically embraced digital technologies as the central means of participation and inclusion. Open ...
Match: MOOC
Preparing faculty for teaching a MOOC: Recommendations from research and experience
Richter, Stephanie L.; Krishnamurthi, Murali
Due to the increasing popularity of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) more faculty and institutions are exploring MOOCs. Faculty often seek help from campus units such as Faculty Development centers to handle the ...
Match: MOOC
MOOCS and beyond
Mor, Yishay; Koskinen, Tapio
Editorial
MOOCs and Beyond
In-depth
The Impact and Reach of MOOCs: A Developing Countries’ Perspective
MOOCs and disruptive innovation: Implications for higher education
The Next Game Changer: The Historical ...
Match: MOOC
Massive Open and Online Courses (MOOC) in an international perspective: New global agenda for innovation in higher education
Titlestad, Gard
This report is written based on a note provided by ICDE’s Secretary General Gard Titlestad to the Norwegian Government. It has been slightly modified to adapt it for an international audience and a working ...
Match: MOOC
Socioeconomic status and MOOC enrollment: Enriching demographic information with external datasets
Hansen, John; Reich, Justin
To minimize barriers to entry, massive open online course (MOOC) providers collect minimal demographic information about users. In isolation, this data is insufficient to address important questions about socioeconomic ...
Match: MOOC
E-learning, B-learning, M-learning and the technical and pedagogical aspects on the new platform trends as massive open online courses
da Silva, Viviane; de Souza, Ranniery
This article is based on the doctoral research conducted at the University of Minho in Education with specialization in Educational Technology, the research presents the technical and pedagogical aspects of e-learning, ...
Match: MOOC
Research ethics in emerging forms of online learning: issues arising from a hypothetical study on a MOOC
Esposito, Antonella
This paper is concerned with how research ethics is evolving along with emerging online research methods and settings. In particular, it focuses on ethics issues implied in a hypothetical virtual ethnography study ...
Match: MOOC









