MOOCs

By Cath McLellan

Back to school

I’ve always been interested in why we do the things we do， so last year I decided I’d like to study psychology. Most courses I found， however， were either too expensive， too long or were impossible to combine with work. I was about to give up when a friend suggested that I try a MOOC.

What is a MOOC？

At first， I had no idea what they were talking about， but they explained that a MOOC is a Massive Open Online Course—a new type of course offered completely online to thousands of people， which is designed so that anyone can follow it， regardless of age， location or education—all you need is an internet connection. You can search for hundreds of different subjects， and can usually watch a short introduction video to get an idea of what the course is about.

Starting out

I chose a six-week Social Psychology course. At first， I had no idea what to expect or how much time I might spend studying. Each week there were video lectures to watch and readings to do， as well as some short assignments. The lectures were really interesting and easy to follow， and it was great to be able to watch them again or pause them to go and do something else. Most MOOCs have online forums too， where students can discuss what they are learning. Although these are often really fascinating （because there are so many different opinions）， they are very time-consuming. If you read everything on the forums， you won’t have time to finish the lectures！

Motivation and organisation

In fact， that seems to be one of the problems of this new way of studying. Research shows that ninety per cent of students who start a MOOC do not finish it， and I can see why. Although you do interact with other students online， you are basically studying alone， and that takes a lot of motivation and organisation. But the advantages of MOOCs for busy people today are obvious.

There is a huge range of courses on offer in hundreds of subjects， and you have the opportunity to learn new things and be in contact with many different types of people， all from the comfort of your own home. Why not check out a MOOC and start learning something new today？

Activity 1

Before you read， match the word or phrase to a definition.

1. assignment 2. comfort 3. fascinating 4. interact

5. on offer 6. regardless 7. time-consuming 7. time-consuming

a task you have to do as part of your studies/work

available to use， do or buy

communicate with and react to someone

very interesting

paying no attention to; without being affected by

taking a lot of time

the state of being relaxed; feeling pleasant

Activity 2

Now complete the sentences using words from the text.

1. Cleaning the house is very （______）—it took me three hours this morning！

2. I’m going to the beach tomorrow （______） of the weather—I don’t care if it rains！

3. John can’t come to the cinema tonight because he has an （______） to give to his teacher tomorrow.

4. Sheila found the exhibition on dinosaurs absolutely （______）—she learnt so much new information.

5. The （______） of the guests was a priority for the hotel manager.

6. The professor liked to （______） with the students in the class， and always asked them to participate and ask questions.

7. There are hundreds of courses （______） at this university—I don’t know which one to do.

Activity 3

Decide if the following statements are true or false， according to the text. Can you correct the false ones？

1. It was hard for the writer to find a course that would help her to get a job.

2. MOOC means ‘Massive Open Online Community’.

3. You need to have experience studying online to join a MOOC.

4. The writer didn’t enjoy reading the forums.

5. Most students who start a MOOC do not complete the course.

Activity 4

Match the compound adjectives in the column on the left with the nouns in the column on the right， and then use them to complete the sentences. The first one is done for you in the example.

Example： I took a （six-week course） in psychology on the Internet.

1. I am so full！ I’ve just eaten a （______）， which was absolutely delicious.

2. John loves reading— finished that （______） in just a week.

3. My neighbour is an （______）， but she still loves dancing.

4. Penny can’t wait for August—she has just booked a （______） to the South of France.

5. We spent a week in the Caribbean in a beautiful （______）， in a room with a fantastic view of the sea.

Activity 5

Is there any subject that you would like to study？ Do you think you would enjoy studying online or would you prefer to go to a real-life class？

Answers

Activity 1

1. a; 2. g; 3. d; 4. c; 5. b; 6. e; 7. f

Activity 2

1. time-consuming; 2. regardless; 3. assignment; 4. fascinating; 5. comfort; 6. interact; 7. on offer

Activity 3

1. False （F）—It was difficult to find a course to combine with work; 2. F—MOOC means Massive Open Online Course; 3. F—The courses are open to anyone; 4. F—They were fascinating， but took a lot of time; 5. True

Activity 4

1. three-course meal; 2. five-hundred-page book; 3. eighty-year-old woman; 4. two-week holiday; 5. five-star hotel