Learner-Centric MOOC for Teachers on Effective ICT Integration: Perceptions and Experiences

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) are lately being explored to meet bigger needs in the field of education. However, despite the global presence and scale, some critical challenges still persist in MOOCs. Some of these reported challenges include lack of learner engagement, limited interactivity and feeling of isolation, all of which in turn contributes to low completion rates. These issues could be addressed through innovative teaching and learning strategies, based on the existing body of work on learner-centric approaches and active learning in online modes. In this paper, we report the design, implementation and evaluation of a learner-centric MOOC for teachers on the effective integration of ICT in schools. The present study focuses on the evaluation of teachers' perceptions of usefulness of the learner-centric approach employed in the MOOC, their learning and application of the MOOC content, and the effectiveness of the course in terms of participants' perseverance in the course. Quantitative and qualitative data analyses were performed for two offerings of the course. From the quantitative analysis of a survey questionnaire, the average usefulness of the learner-centric course elements, over both course offerings, was found to be 89.5%. Qualitative analysis showed that 23% (T1) and 21% (T2) of the participants, who completed the course, explicitly mentioned LCM elements as a factor to persevere in the MOOC. The positive perception of the participants towards the course was related to their understanding of concepts, LCM structure, learner-centric activities and strategies employed during the course, and their desire to implement these strategies in the classroom utilizing ICT tools.