The OER Knowledge Cloud makes use of cookies. By continuing, you consent to this use. More information.
Deconstructing disengagement: analyzing learner subpopulations in massive open online courses
Kizilcec, René F. · Piech, Chris · Schneider, Emily

PublishedApril 2013
ConferenceLAK '13: Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Learning Analytics and Knowledge
Pages 170-179
CountryUnited 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 atCalifornia
LanguageEnglish
RefereedYes
DOI10.1145/2460296.2460330
Export optionsBibTex · EndNote · Tagged XML · Google Scholar


Viewed by 554 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

Learning in a small, task–oriented, connectivist MOOC: Pedagogical issues and implications for higher education
Lovegrove, Elizabeth; Roberts, George; Waite, Marion; Mackness, Jenny; et al.
Despite the increase in massive open online courses (MOOCs), evidence about the pedagogy of learning in MOOCs remains limited. This paper reports on an investigation into the pedagogy in one MOOC - Oxford Brookes ...
Match: MOOC

MOOC, OER e l’approccio “flipped classroom”: due case study di transizione in ambito scolastico e aziendale
Sancassani, Susanna; Casiraghi, Daniela; Corti, Paola; Trentinaglia, Nicoletta
La portata innovativa dei MOOC non esaurisce la sua rilevanza nell’ambito dei processi di apprendimento che si svolgono in rete. Uno dei principali obiettivi che ha mosso grandi università quali Stanford o MIT ad ...
Match: MOOC

Multi-faceted support for MOOC in programming
Vihavainen, Arto; Luukkainen, Matti; Kurhila, Jaakko
Many massive open online courses (MOOC) have been tremendously popular, causing a stir in academic institutions. The most successful courses have reached tens of thousands of participants. In our MOOC on introductory ...
Match: MOOC

MOOCs - A review of the state-of-the-art
Yousef, Ahmed Mohamed Fahmy; Chatti, Mohamed Amine; Schroeder, Ulrik; Wosnitza, Marold; Jakobs, Harald
Massive open online courses (MOOCs) have drastically changed the way we learn as well as how we teach. The main aim of MOOCs is to provide new opportunities to a massive number of learners to attend free online courses ...
Match: MOOC

MOOC instructor designs and challenges: what can be learned from existing MOOCs in Indonesia and Malaysia?
Sari, Annisa R.; Bonk, Curtis J.; Zhu, Meina
The purpose of this study was to explore Indonesian and Malaysian instructors’ perceptions of massive open online course (MOOC) design and how they deal with the design challenges. Surveys, email interviews, and ...
Match: MOOC

MOOCs for Norway: New digital learning methods in higher education
Kjeldstad, Berit; Alvestrand, Harald; Elvestad, Endre Olsvik; Ingebretsen, Trond; et al.
The report is divided into the following chapters: Chap. 1: Introduction Chap. 2: The Commission’s definition of MOOCs Chap. 3: The Commission’s recommendations Chap. 4: MOOCs in a social perspective Chap. 5: ...
Match: MOOC

La performativité du MOOC sur les représentations de l’apprenant : le cas du parcours MOOCLead
Cascioli, Fiammetta
Les MOOC constituent des outils d’apprentissage innovants (Christensen, 2013). Ils ont une portée amplificatrice (Christensen, 2013) et comptent parmiles technologies d’apprentissage à distance ayant recueilli de ...
Match: MOOC

Democratising higher education through open education resources: From Commitment to Action
Kanwar, Asha
I will first look at the context of higher education and some of the initiatives that have been taken to democratise education. I will then bring you some examples of how OER are being harnessed to increase access, ...
Match: MOOC