MOOCS: Trends and challenges

Page: 111-113

Sona Raghuvanshi (Amity Global Business School, Mumbai, Maharashtra)

Like any other aspect of life, education is going through the process of transformation and the role of MOOCs is extremely significant in this regard. In this paper we will discuss MOOC, its evolution, trends and challenges faced by it. The advent of MOOCs has accelerated the transformation of education by making quality education accessible to all through courses that are either free or are available at a nominal rate. It is massive and open as it can be accessed by all on a virtual platform without having any entry qualification. MOOCs involve course material, video lessons and automated quizzes to keep the learners interested. Started in 2008 and made popular in 2012, MOOCs are a big step towards democratizing education by making courses prepared by greatest universities accessible to all who are keen. By offering quality education at no or reasonable cost it has become favorite tool for skilling, reskilling and up skilling. Lack of infrastructure and high attrition rate of learners have been identified as the main challenges, whereas the emphasis on more flexible and paid courses for shorter duration are discussed as the trend. Another trend is the organizational support to online learning for learning and development of the employees.