tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11679714.post2227885393671239415..comments2024-03-28T11:36:22.391-04:00Comments on Half an Hour: The 'Course' in MOOCStephen Downeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06140591903467372209noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11679714.post-33214030107017181172013-01-14T14:32:07.069-05:002013-01-14T14:32:07.069-05:00I wrote a response to this back in October, but it...I wrote a response to this back in October, but it wasted away in my drafts folder until now: http://mathdancing.wordpress.com/2013/01/13/education-vs-learning-vs-courses/<br /><br />I started out writing a comment, but it quickly became clear that it was a little unwieldy for a comment.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11679714.post-76811219283009710062012-11-05T04:05:52.367-05:002012-11-05T04:05:52.367-05:00MOOCs have been around for a few years as collabor...MOOCs have been around for a few years as collaborative techie learning events, but this is the year everyone wants in. Elite universities are partnering with Coursera at a furious pace. It now offers courses from 33 of the biggest names in postsecondary education, including Princeton, Brown, Columbia and Duke. CISI diplomahttp://www.intelivisto.com/main/CISIDiploma.donoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11679714.post-41317893222346623682012-10-04T16:55:37.564-04:002012-10-04T16:55:37.564-04:00I think the disagreement is in the significance of...I think the disagreement is in the significance of John's historical precedent. The appearance of these recent definitions don't preclude that a "course" and an "education" can be much bigger than the narrow definitions he tries to rope them into. Even in dealing with constructs, changing the denotation or meaning of the words in this context creates an expansion of what we can connotate or associate with the significance of getting an education.<br /><br />The new system is artificial, as are all systems, and choosing a system which provides the widest access to the experience of the "essence" of learning is the goal of expanding the definition. His last point about the extra-curriculars are just there to point out that the value of the "traditional" education system which John is defending is not necessarily in the "traditional" course, but in the connection that takes place on and around the campus, which dovetails nicely with the methodology of the cMOOC.James DiGioiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02030442810920566469noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11679714.post-88836488230868731092012-09-30T12:42:12.945-04:002012-09-30T12:42:12.945-04:00While I don't disagree that the term "cou...While I don't disagree that the term "course" is a construct, I think we have to recognize that all such terms can be viewed as constructs and fabrications. What is the "real thing" except what members of certain communities of discourse agree to call it? John's argument from historical precedent does not entail artificiality in any unusual sense(indeed, what does that mean if we agree that language is a mechanism for humans to share constructs, all of which must be invented at some point?) I think your argument that we could extend the meaning of the word course to include experiences had in MOOCs, but the onus to define courses this ways might actually be on your proposed extension to this new form, which does not comply fully with previous word meaning. In other words, I could argue that a dog is a cat and that others who have called a cat a cat are engaged in artificial invention of the cat construct and have always been doing that. But I think it would be legitimate for user of the previous cat meaning to call me out on my new use. Again, I'm not here to say that the current system is the right system, that's for all to decide. But it doesn't help to say that the current system is "artificial" when compared to the newly invented system. In fact, if the authentic experience of traditional education is extra-curricular (as your post suggests) then MOOCs don't provide it (where is the MOOC pub, or MOOC school newspaper, or MOOC sports field?) PeterShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03855955620744468215noreply@blogger.com