SXSWorld
Issue link: https://sxsw.uberflip.com/i/211359
On the content front, Juan Garcia, who specializes in educational transmedia programming, is trailblazing the way in which MOOCs are presented. The producer of PBS's Energy at the Movies used his background in traditional television production to create "Energy 101," a course offered at the University of Texas at Austin by Dr. Michael Webber through EdX. "We set out to ensure that Energy 101 didn't feel pre- packaged or canned," he elaborates. "We really "They haven't innovated except by calling attention to the potential for global-scale learning," Morris asserts. But, he adds, "[MOOCs] offer a glimpse at new learning styles, and they open up questions about credentialing our learning, and the disconnected relationship between technological PLAN YOUR OFFICIAL SXSW PARTY FOR 2014! High Beam, the Official Party Planner of SXSW, has been producing innovative networking events and parties at SXSW since 2005. Call us today at 512-419-9401 or email info@highbeamevents.com to find out how we can put our creativity and experience to work for you! innovation and pedagogy." wanted students to have an authentic online learning experience created for the MOOC environment." Garcia adds that Energy 101 was delivered with a heavy emphasis on polished video that would entertain, educate and engage students through interactive games developed especially for the course. Morris explains that this and other models are based on the cMOOC approach, in which courses are centered on what is known as connectivist learning theory. As opposed to xMOOC offerings, which take place in the bubble of a learning management system, sealed off from the rest of the Internet, cMOOCs are more studentcentric. They take place all over the web, on blogs and social media, with participants largely carving out their own learning paths, often based on the connections they make within the course. Almost everyone involved in the MOOC revolution agrees that massive learning online is just the latest chapter in a new age of education based on technology. "Learning has changed," Morris says. "Today, when students are sitting in class, they are also always already online. During class, they may post about the lecture just as easily as people in my generation passed notes. To think that students wait until class begins to don their learning hats is naive." Despite their emerging popularity, the general consensus about MOOCs is that they will never replace the unique dynamics of a college experience, where the value of live interactions cannot be duplicated. Instead, the success of MOOCs seems to depend on how well they supplement traditional education rather than detract from it. n HIGH BEAM EVENTS 1406 Hether Street | Austin TX 78704 highbeamevents.com| 512-419-9401 SXSWORLD / NOVEMBER 2013 25