Would Linked MOOC Courseware Enhance Information Search?

The revolution of online learning brings great opportunities to millions of learners. However, the size of the learner population and the heterogeneity of the learners' backgrounds make conventional one-size-fits-all pedagogies inappropriate. We propose a conceptual model -- educational resource linking with the goal of satisfying various learning needs by building a rich platform integrating abundant and open online resources. With this model, resources could be organized around a shared curriculum, and materials on the same topic are cross-linked for recommendation. This idea may improve the efficiency in utilizing and digesting scattered knowledge. As a first step, we conducted a case study using crowd-sourcing techniques, and found that learners, especially novices, can search learning materials faster without sacrificing accuracy, when using an interface with linked learning resources, as compared to a traditional, monolithic one.