Meina Zhu
Wayne State University, Learning Design & Technology, Faculty Member
- Educatoredit
Research Interests:
Peer assessment has long been used as an alternative to instructor assessment of students’ learning. Yet, its receivers are often skeptical about the effectiveness and validity of the evaluation (e.g. Strijbos, Narciss & Dünnebier, 2010;... more
Peer assessment has long been used as an alternative to instructor assessment of students’ learning. Yet, its receivers are often skeptical about the effectiveness and validity of the evaluation (e.g. Strijbos, Narciss & Dünnebier, 2010; Kolowich, 2013; Formanek et al., 2017; Meek, Blakemore & Marks, 2017). Still, other studies (e.g. Cho & Schunn, 2007; Gielen et al., 2010; Ashton & Davies, 2015) have found peer grading to be reliable and valid when accompanied by proper guidance, and that when used appropriately, it may benefit both the learners who receive the feedback and those who provide it (Dochy, Segers & Sluijsmans, 1999; Barak & Rafaeli, 2004).
Nowadays peer assessment remains an element vital to the existence of massive open online courses (MOOCs), and is widely recognized by the research community as a topic which needs to be investigated in detail and improved in the future. Massive open online courses whose primary focus is second language learning (LMOOCs) are organized by various institutions around the world. Nevertheless, publications addressing issues related to this type of course are fairly scarce (cf. Bárcena & Martín-Monje, 2015).
Pronunciation routinely accounts for a major share of communication breakdowns in non-native speaker interactions as well as communication between native and non-native speakers (cf, e,g, Paradowski, 2013; Pawlas & Paradowski, under review). Yet, in many language classrooms its teaching is brushed off in favor of imparting other skills. Luckily this shortage is increasingly being addressed with the ready availability of CALL. We present a small case study of peer assessment reliability in the context of a Japanese pronunciation MOOC offered by one of the popular online providers.
A phonetic analysis of the first author’s speech recordings has been carried out using Praat software (Boersma & Weenink, 2017) in order to assess the accuracy of feedback obtained from course participants. On its basis, an evaluation of the pronunciation has been made and then compared with assessment provided by peers, a TA involved in the course, and an independent Japanese native speaker teacher.
Although the peers’ comments conveyed a general idea about progress, their feedback was not sufficiently detailed. More reliable was the assessment by the TA. Still, an evaluation completed by an independent Japanese native speaker showed that a person not involved in any way in the MOOC was easily able to make even more observations. Thus, assessment appeared objective and reliable only after triangulating all the sources of feedback.
The study revealed that peer assessment may not produce reliable results if the process of evaluation is not sufficiently facilitated; namely, when there are no explicit guidelines and preparatory training exercises provided for the participants. The peer evaluation was difficult to perform in a helpful manner since the assignments lacked clearly constructed rubrics. Thus, future language courses, particularly those that concentrate on productive skills such as speaking, ought to implement clear rubrics together with a grading tutorial.
Nowadays peer assessment remains an element vital to the existence of massive open online courses (MOOCs), and is widely recognized by the research community as a topic which needs to be investigated in detail and improved in the future. Massive open online courses whose primary focus is second language learning (LMOOCs) are organized by various institutions around the world. Nevertheless, publications addressing issues related to this type of course are fairly scarce (cf. Bárcena & Martín-Monje, 2015).
Pronunciation routinely accounts for a major share of communication breakdowns in non-native speaker interactions as well as communication between native and non-native speakers (cf, e,g, Paradowski, 2013; Pawlas & Paradowski, under review). Yet, in many language classrooms its teaching is brushed off in favor of imparting other skills. Luckily this shortage is increasingly being addressed with the ready availability of CALL. We present a small case study of peer assessment reliability in the context of a Japanese pronunciation MOOC offered by one of the popular online providers.
A phonetic analysis of the first author’s speech recordings has been carried out using Praat software (Boersma & Weenink, 2017) in order to assess the accuracy of feedback obtained from course participants. On its basis, an evaluation of the pronunciation has been made and then compared with assessment provided by peers, a TA involved in the course, and an independent Japanese native speaker teacher.
Although the peers’ comments conveyed a general idea about progress, their feedback was not sufficiently detailed. More reliable was the assessment by the TA. Still, an evaluation completed by an independent Japanese native speaker showed that a person not involved in any way in the MOOC was easily able to make even more observations. Thus, assessment appeared objective and reliable only after triangulating all the sources of feedback.
The study revealed that peer assessment may not produce reliable results if the process of evaluation is not sufficiently facilitated; namely, when there are no explicit guidelines and preparatory training exercises provided for the participants. The peer evaluation was difficult to perform in a helpful manner since the assignments lacked clearly constructed rubrics. Thus, future language courses, particularly those that concentrate on productive skills such as speaking, ought to implement clear rubrics together with a grading tutorial.
Research Interests: Computer Assisted Language Learning, Peer Assessment, Japanese Language And Culture, Japanese, Computer Assisted Language Learning/Teaching, and 26 moreTeaching Japanese As A Second Language, Teaching Japanese as a Foreign Language, Phonetics and Pronunciation, prosody, acoustic phonetics, pronunciation and prosody training in L2, Computer-Assisted Language Learning, Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL), Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL), Pronunciation Teaching, Pronunciation, Validity and reliability of assessments of English language proficiency, Praat, Peer Assessment Vs Self Assessment in Language Proficiency, Peer Feedback, Self and Peer Assessment, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), Peer Evaluation, Assessment for Learning, Peer Assessment, Online Peer Assessment, Student Learning, MOOC, MOOCs, Assessment Rubrics Standards Estándares Evaluación, Teaching Pronunciation, Mooc Teaching Methodology, Learning Japanese As a Foreign Language, Automatic Instructional Design Moocs Instruction Design, MOOCs for Language Learning, and LMOOC
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Online instructional design and how to engage students cognitively in online asynchronous courses have been an ongoing question. This case study presents an intentional design of an asynchronous online graduate course to foster cognitive... more
Online instructional design and how to engage students cognitively in online asynchronous courses have been an ongoing question. This case study presents an intentional design of an asynchronous online graduate course to foster cognitive presence. The research questions investigate students’ cognitive presence (CP) captured by two measures: Community of Inquiry (CoI) survey (for self-report) and Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) software (for actual behaviors) in this online course. Additionally, it also addresses how cognitive presence is related to other presences and how the online course design elements were perceived by students. Results showed that students perceived high levels of cognitive presence and they showed high cognitive presence in their discussion board acts. There was a relationship between three presences; and findings showed that teacher and social presence were strong predictors of perceived cognitive presence. Although students in the study rated themse...
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PM<sub>2.5</sub> are inhalable particles with aerodynamic diameters of 2.5 micrometers or smaller. PM<sub>2.5</sub> concentrations require close monitoring as they impose negative effects on both human health and... more
PM<sub>2.5</sub> are inhalable particles with aerodynamic diameters of 2.5 micrometers or smaller. PM<sub>2.5</sub> concentrations require close monitoring as they impose negative effects on both human health and air quality. Monitoring PM<sub>2.5</sub> concentrations in the metropolitan Detroit Area is increasingly important as its residents are being disproportionately exposed to harmful air pollution due to health inequities through economic divestment, limited educational and employment opportunities. The relations between PM<sub>2.5</sub> and meteorological factors can be critical in understanding how particulate matter affects humans and the environment. This study utilizes PurpleAir sensors to measure PM<sub>2.5</sub> along with some methodological factors such as humidity and applies temporal analysis of the impact of meteorological factors on PM<sub>2.5</sub> concentrations and spatiotemporal analysis of PM<sub>2.5</sub> distributions at different locations over the Greater Detroit Area via Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) neural networks and Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) algorithms, respectively. Our findings show that although LSTMs with exogenous variables (i.e., the current values of PM<sub>2.5</sub> concentration, meteorological features, and weather conditions) can accurately (i.e., average RMSE of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$3.2~ {\mu }\text{g}/\text{m}^{3}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>) predict levels of PM<sub>2.5</sub>, but there is no significant relation between the mentioned meteorological factors and PM<sub>2.5</sub> concentrations over the Greater Detroit Area. Furthermore, DTW analysis portraits the similarity of PM<sub>2.5</sub> behavioral patterns over the Greater Detroit Area.
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There is a pressing need to better understand the instructional design and delivery methods of instructors of massive open online courses (MOOCs). In response, this mixed method study focused on how MOOC instructors encourage online... more
There is a pressing need to better understand the instructional design and delivery methods of instructors of massive open online courses (MOOCs). In response, this mixed method study focused on how MOOC instructors encourage online interaction. The data sources were an online survey delivered to over 1,400 MOOC instructors, of which 143 valid responses were received. In addition, there were interviews with 12 instructors and course reviews of their MOOCs. To encourage online learner interaction, these instructors utilized asynchronous discussion forums, pairbased assignments or peer reviews, and social media to encourage peer interaction. At the same time, learnerinstructor interaction was encouraged through online discussion forum, platform messages, and social media connections. In terms of learner-content interaction, MOOC instructors primarily relied on discussion forums, video lectures and tutorials in the MOOC, readings, and practice quizzes and exams. Implications and future...
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As massive open online courses (MOOCs) increase, the large scale and heterogeneity of MOOC participants bring myriad significant design challenges. This exploratory mixed methods study explores 143 MOOC instructors’ considerations and... more
As massive open online courses (MOOCs) increase, the large scale and heterogeneity of MOOC participants bring myriad significant design challenges. This exploratory mixed methods study explores 143 MOOC instructors’ considerations and challenges in designing MOOCs, 12 of whom were interviewed and had their courses analyzed. The survey, interview, and course review data revealed a variety of considerations and challenges in MOOC design in terms of pedagogy, resources, and logistics. Pedagogical considerations included learning objectives, assessment methods, course length, course content, flexibility, and collaborative learning support. Resource considerations included the affordance of MOOC platforms, support from the host institution and the platform, and the available intellectual and hardware resources. Logistical considerations included the amount of time instructors spent designing the MOOC. The obstacles included pedagogical challenges (e.g., engaging learners, increasing lear...
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This mixed-methods study examines the design and delivery of MOOCs to facilitate student self-monitoring for self-directed learning (SDL). The data collection methods included an online survey (n = 198), semi-structured interviews of MOOC... more
This mixed-methods study examines the design and delivery of MOOCs to facilitate student self-monitoring for self-directed learning (SDL). The data collection methods included an online survey (n = 198), semi-structured interviews of MOOC instructors (n = 22), and document analysis of MOOCs (n = 22). This study found that MOOC instructors viewed self-monitoring skills vital for SDL. MOOC instructors reported that they facilitated students’ self-monitoring with both internal and external feedback. Students’ internal feedback is related to cognitive and metacognitive processes. Among the methods used to facilitate cognitive processes were quizzes, tutorials, learning strategies, learning aids, and progress bars. To foster metacognition, MOOC instructors provided reflection questions and attempted to create learning communities. In addition, MOOC instructors, teaching assistants, and peers provided external feedback for students’ self-monitoring. Among the other strategies, synchronous...
Research Interests: Distance Education, Self Monitoring, Online Learning, Distance Learning, Teaching Online, and 9 moreInstructional Design for Online Learning, Open and Distance Education, Online Teaching and Learning, Elearning and Distance Learning Eductaion, Open and Distance Learning, MOOCs, Open Distance Learning, Learning for Development, and Elearning
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This mixed-methods study investigates the design and instructional practices of massive open online courses (MOOCs) instructors within the learning environment to address the cultural diversity and learner personalization needs.... more
This mixed-methods study investigates the design and instructional practices of massive open online courses (MOOCs) instructors within the learning environment to address the cultural diversity and learner personalization needs. Leveraging a grounded theory approach, the researchers analyzed two rounds of email interviews (n1= 25; n2=19) with MOOC and open education leaders about cultural sensitivity and personalization in MOOCs. Those interviews led to the formation of a 30-item online questionnaire completed by 152 MOOC instructors. While many of the MOOC instructors within the sample did not fully grasp the complex issues of cultural diversity, most made attempts to modify their instructional practices to accommodate cultural variances. To address cultural and linguistic differences, instructors added subtitles to video content and offered transcripts for video or audio content. Additionally, instructors were careful with language use and hand gestures, used simplified language, ...
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Many universities in the U.S. shifted from in-person teaching to online teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instructors’ acceptance of online teaching plays a crucial role, as the acceptance level can impact instructors’ online... more
Many universities in the U.S. shifted from in-person teaching to online teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instructors’ acceptance of online teaching plays a crucial role, as the acceptance level can impact instructors’ online teaching behaviors. This qualitative study examined medicine and public health instructors’ perceptions of online teaching using the Technology Acceptance Model 2 (TAM2) model. Through semi-structured interviews with ten instructors in a Midwest university in the U.S., this study found that instructors had a high level of acceptance of online teaching. Instructors perceived the usefulness of online teaching in terms of learning objectives, assessment, instructional methods, and learning experience. Online teaching was perceived as useful overall, although challenges existed, such as online interaction, assessment, and hands-on practices. Regarding ease of use in online teaching, instructors perceived technology was easy to use; yet some pedagogical challen...
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In massive open online learning courses (MOOCs) with a low instructor-student ratio, students are expected to have self-directed learning abilities. This study investigated the relationship among motivation, self-monitoring,... more
In massive open online learning courses (MOOCs) with a low instructor-student ratio, students are expected to have self-directed learning abilities. This study investigated the relationship among motivation, self-monitoring, self-management, and MOOC learners’ use of learning strategies. An online survey was embedded at the end of three MOOCs with large enrollments asking for learners’ voluntary participation in the study. The survey results from 470 participants indicated that motivation positively influenced self-monitoring, self-management, and learning strategies. In addition, self-monitoring and self-management did not affect the utilization of learning strategies. This underscores learners’ motivation and the need to encourage them to adopt appropriate learning strategies for successful learning. The results also revealed that self-monitoring positively affected self-management. The findings highlight the critical need to enhance self-monitoring skills to further promote self-...
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This case study explored effective instructional strategies and technology use in blended learning (BL) in a graduate course in the USA. Varied forms of data were collected, including (1) semi-structured interviews with students, (2)... more
This case study explored effective instructional strategies and technology use in blended learning (BL) in a graduate course in the USA. Varied forms of data were collected, including (1) semi-structured interviews with students, (2) mid-term and final course evaluations, (3) two rounds of online debates, (4) four weeks of online reflection journals, and (5) the instructor’s reflections. Thematical analysis and descriptive statistics were conducted to analyze qualitative and quantitative data respectively. Multiple methods were employed to establish trustworthiness of the study. Effective and ineffective instructional strategies and technology uses were identified in BL. The findings indicated that students valued real-time interactions with peers and the instructor. However, inappropriate asynchronous discussions were considered less effective in BL. In addition, immediate feedback from peers and the instructor motivated learners and improved the quality of their work. Learning tec...
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Research Interests: Sociology and TechTrends
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) OpenCourseWare (OCW) was launched in 2001. It is one of the earliest Open Educational Resources (OER). MIT OCW has published more than 2,400 courses which are available at no cost, the... more
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) OpenCourseWare (OCW) was launched in 2001. It is one of the earliest Open Educational Resources (OER). MIT OCW has published more than 2,400 courses which are available at no cost, the majority of which are STEM related. The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the pedagogical strategies through reviewing instructor insights of 15 MIT OCW STEM courses using thematic analysis. The most effective pedagogical strategies used found by instructors were active learning, personalizing instruction, engaging learners, providing feedback, building learning community, and clarifying learning objective. Instructors used in-class formative assessment, such as quizzes and oral exams, for just-in-time teaching and online automatic assessment environments for students’ self-assessment. The primary summative assessments were final exams and projects. Instructors encountered challenges such as assessing students’ learning and changing pedago...
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Given the rapid rise of open educational resources (OER) for informal learning pursuits impacting countless millions of people each day around the world, this study investigated the impact of the i...
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ABSTRACT Pre- and in-service teachers’ professional development is critical in the lifelong learning era. This case study explores 27 pre- and in-service teachers’ reasons for selecting a MOOC, their learning experiences, and their... more
ABSTRACT Pre- and in-service teachers’ professional development is critical in the lifelong learning era. This case study explores 27 pre- and in-service teachers’ reasons for selecting a MOOC, their learning experiences, and their perceptions of the value for their professional development. Data sources in this study included: 1) MOOC reviews written and submitted by the participants 2) extended versions of MOOC reviews into research papers, 3) descriptions of MOOCs taken by the participants. Findings of this study indicated that MOOCs served as tremendous resources for multiple learning purposes, evidenced by the voices of these 27 participants. In addition, the multiple pedagogical approaches found in the MOOCs offered great experiential learning spaces for these K-12 pre- and in-service teachers who drew instructional lessons to apply to their current and future professional endeavors.
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This study explored instructors’ perceptions, interest, self-efficacy, perceived barriers, and support needs regarding gamification in MOOCs. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected from an online survey and follow-up... more
This study explored instructors’ perceptions, interest, self-efficacy, perceived barriers, and support needs regarding gamification in MOOCs. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected from an online survey and follow-up interviews. Most participants showed interest in gamification and indicated that they would consider utilizing gaming elements in their future MOOCs. Interestingly, they wanted to gamify their MOOCs mostly to increase social interactions and student retention. Significant differences in self-efficacy and perceptions of gamification were found between younger participants and older participants. The results also revealed significant differences in interest and self-efficacy between participants with prior experience with gamification and those without prior experience. The major barriers to gamifying MOOCs included lack of time, limited knowledge, lack of funding, lack of fit between gamification and the course content, concerns about students’ perceptions of gamification, and concerns regarding the negative effects of gamification. Participants reported that they would need time and funding, guidance from gamification experts, examples of gamified MOOCs, more flexible MOOC platforms in order to successfully gamify their MOOCs.
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This study examines the research methods, topics, and trends of empirical MOOC research to gain a comprehensive understanding of the MOOC phenomenon through reviewing 541 empirical MOOCs research published from 2009 to 2019. The results... more
This study examines the research methods, topics, and trends of empirical MOOC research to gain a comprehensive understanding of the MOOC phenomenon through reviewing 541 empirical MOOCs research published from 2009 to 2019. The results indicate that: (1) the majority of studies adopted quantitative research methods followed by mixed research methods and qualitative research methods, (2) the most frequently adopted data collection method was survey, followed by platform database and interviews, (3) almost half of the studies used at least two data collection methods such as survey and interview, (4) the majority of researchers adopted descriptive statistics for data analysis, followed by inferential statistics and content analysis, (5) the research topics primarily focused on students, followed by design-focused, context and impact-focused, and instructor-focused. Among these student-focused topics, learner retention, learning experience, social learning, and engagement were the most mentioned, and (6) the affiliations of the first authors of the MOOC studies were mainly from the U.S. followed by China and Spain. Implications and future research were discussed.
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Given that massive open online learning courses (MOOCs) are considerably different from traditional classrooms in terms of roles and responsibilities of instructors and learners, successful learners are required to be self-directed in... more
Given that massive open online learning courses (MOOCs) are considerably different from traditional classrooms in terms of roles and responsibilities of instructors and learners, successful learners are required to be self-directed in MOOC learning environments. One of the most popular self-directed learning (SDL) models proposed by Garrison (Adult Education Quarterly 48(1):18–33, https://doi.org/10.1177/074171369704800103 , 1997 ) includes three components: motivation, self-monitoring, and self-management. This model was originally discussed from traditional online and face-to-face learning environment. Thus, the present study investigated the relationship among motivation, self-monitoring, and self-management in MOOCs by surveying 322 MOOC learners. Using structural equation modeling, this study found that motivation directly affected self-monitoring and indirectly influenced self-management through self-monitoring. In addition, self-monitoring positively influenced self-management. Therefore, promoting student self-monitoring skills and motivating students is critical. Additional research is needed on the ways to facilitate and support self-monitoring of MOOC learners. Future research could examine the influence of the three elements of SDL on learning achievement and engagement. In addition, further exploration of learner behaviors in MOOCs could provide insights on facilitating learners’ SDL.
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ABSTRACT As massive open online courses (MOOCs) proliferate, a better understanding of MOOC instructors is essential. This study examined the motivation as well as the career and professional development of 142 MOOC instructors using a... more
ABSTRACT As massive open online courses (MOOCs) proliferate, a better understanding of MOOC instructors is essential. This study examined the motivation as well as the career and professional development of 142 MOOC instructors using a mixed-methods approach entailing an online survey combined with six MOOC instructor interviews. The research findings indicated that instructors’ motivation to teach MOOCs primarily related to intrinsic motivation. Importantly, this study classified the motivational factors of MOOC instructors into seven categories. While the frustrations of MOOC instructors included time for creating MOOCs and a lack of interaction in MOOCs caused, in part, by heavy reliance on asynchronous communication, many perceived that MOOC teaching positively influenced their professional development. Most MOOC instructors learned how to teach MOOCs informally and individually. Nevertheless, they tried to help other MOOC instructors. This study points to the strong need for professional development of MOOC instructors in developing and effectively MOOCs.
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This study investigates the design and delivery of MOOCs to facilitate student self-monitoring for self-directed learning (SDL) using mixed methods. The data sources of this study include an online survey with 198 complete respondents,... more
This study investigates the design and delivery of MOOCs to facilitate student self-monitoring for self-directed learning (SDL) using mixed methods. The data sources of this study include an online survey with 198 complete respondents, semi-structured interviews with 22 MOOC instructors, and document analysis of 22 MOOCs. Study results indicated that MOOC instructors considered self-monitoring skills critical for SDL. To foster students’ self-monitoring, MOOC instructors reported that they facilitated students’ self-monitoring by helping students with internal feedback and providing external feedback. Students’ internal feedback includes cognitive and metacognitive processes. To facilitate cognitive processes, MOOC instructors provided quizzes, tutorials, learning strategies, learning aids, and progress bars. For metacognition, these instructors provided reflection questions and attempted to create learning communities. In addition, MOOC instructors, teaching assistants, and peers p...
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Many of the characteristics and nature of teaching massive open online courses (MOOCs) are different from face-to-face teaching, which can directly affect instructors? work engagement and ultimately the success of MOOCs. As such, this... more
Many of the characteristics and nature of teaching massive open online courses (MOOCs) are different from face-to-face teaching, which can directly affect instructors? work engagement and ultimately the success of MOOCs. As such, this study investigated the effects of openness, altruism and instructional self-efficacy on MOOC instructors? work engagement. A total of 209 MOOC instructors participated in an online survey, and their responses were analyzed. The research findings indicated that openness to experience influenced MOOC instructors? instructional self-efficacy and work engagement. Altruism did not directly influence work engagement of MOOC instructors; however, it indirectly affected work engagement through instructional self-efficacy. Instructional self-efficacy also affected MOOC instructors? work engagement and fully mediated the relationship between altruism and work engagement. The variables examined in this study, openness, altruism and instructional self-efficacy, were found to significantly influence work engagement of MOOC instructors. As the number of MOOCs and MOOC students increase, the importance of MOOC instructors and their work engagement will be crucial for the success of these courses. Thus, additional research is needed on the ways to enhance MOOC instructors? work engagement. Practitioner Notes What is already known about this topic The number of MOOCs and institutions offering MOOCs has grown rapidly since 2008 to more than 11 400 MOOCs at over 900 universities in 2018. MOOC instructors play a major role in the success of MOOCs. Work engagement has a significant impact on performance and attitudes, including job satisfaction, organizational commitment and turnover intention. What this paper adds Openness to experience, altruism and instructional self-efficacy significantly influenced work engagement of MOOC instructors. Openness to experience influenced MOOC instructors? instructional self-efficacy and work engagement. Altruism did not directly influence work engagement of MOOC instructors; however, it indirectly affected work engagement through instructional self-efficacy. Instructional self-efficacy also affected MOOC instructors? work engagement and fully mediated the relationship between altruism and work engagement. Implications for practice and/or policy It is important to arouse MOOC instructors? intellectual curiosity and creativity. To enhance MOOC instructors? work engagement, it is necessary to enhance their instructional self-efficacy as a prerequisite for successful MOOC teaching. There is a need to provide MOOC instructors with the necessary information and opportunities to sharpen the skills required for teaching MOOCs effectively through MOOC instructor seminars or workshops. Providing opportunities to teach a small online class first can improve MOOC instructors? instructional self-efficacy for MOOC teaching.
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The purpose of this study was to explore Indonesian and Malaysian instructors’ perceptions of massive open online course (MOOC) design and how they deal with the design challenges. Surveys, email interviews, and course reviews are the... more
The purpose of this study was to explore Indonesian and Malaysian instructors’ perceptions of massive open online course (MOOC) design and how they deal with the design challenges. Surveys, email interviews, and course reviews are the main data-collection methods employed in this sequential mixed methods study. Forty-six instructors participated in the survey, and nine of them voluntarily participated in an email interview. The findings revealed that half of the courses were delivered using a hybrid/blended type of MOOC. Personal motives, institutional encouragement, and altruism were among the main reasons for instructors to offer MOOCs. Preparation, attraction, participation, and assessment were the categories used to explain the design strategies used by these instructors in designing their courses. The survey also revealed that collaboration encouragement, participant engagement, video development, and time constraints were the primary design challenges that the instructors experienced during the design process. Furthermore, most instructors sought advice from other MOOC instructors, MOOC providers, their institutions, video tutorials, and open educational resources (OERs) to surmount their design challenges.
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How can teachers be inspired to integrate technology properly into their teaching? As technology has been playing a more crucial role in classrooms, it is highly necessary to investigate how teachers perceive the benefit of technology and... more
How can teachers be inspired to integrate technology properly into their teaching? As technology has been playing a more crucial role in classrooms, it is highly necessary to investigate how teachers perceive the benefit of technology and feel confident to use it. The present study focused on teachers’ self-efficacy and belief regarding mobile computing devices. To investigate the relationship among self-efficacy, belief and technology integration, we administrated a survey to teachers (N = 57) in middle schools adopting one-to-one technology initiatives. Results showed that teachers’ self-efficacy toward mobile technology predicted the integration of the technology. Teachers’ belief had a positive relationship with, but did not predict, technology integration. Factors related to teachers’ self-efficacy and belief were discussed.
Research Interests: Psychology and TechTrends
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Instructional design and training skills have become a key competency that is expected of public health professionals. However, the research on educating public health students as instructional designers (ID) is lacking. The purpose of... more
Instructional design and training skills have become a key competency that is expected of public health professionals. However, the research on educating public health students as instructional designers (ID) is lacking. The purpose of this study is to better understand how novice IDs design trainings using their design judgment in an authentic instructional design project in order to provide them with effective educational supports. The data sources of this case study include 11 training lesson plans generated by 37 students through a semester and six semi-structured interviews. The findings reveal that: (1) online games, (2) instructional videos, (3) handouts, (4) PowerPoint presentation slides, and (5) infographics were designed and used by novice IDs. In the midst of the various challenges that were encountered, framing judgment, core judgment, instrumental judgment, navigational judgment, and appearance judgment were manifested in the design process of novice IDs. Based on the ...
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This mixed methods study explores instructor motivations for offering massive open online courses (MOOCs) as well as the instructional innovations used to enhance the MOOC design. The researchers surveyed 143 MOOC instructors worldwide... more
This mixed methods study explores instructor motivations for offering massive open online courses (MOOCs) as well as the instructional innovations used to enhance the MOOC design. The researchers surveyed 143 MOOC instructors worldwide and then interviewed 12 of these instructors via Zoom. They also extensively reviewed the MOOCs of the interviewees. The primary motivations for offering MOOCs included “growth” needs such as curiosity about MOOCs and the exploration of new ways of teaching. In addition, “relatedness” needs of instructors included reaching more people, showcasing research and teaching, marketing their university, integrating interactive technology, and obtaining peer reviews. The perceived instructional innovations of these MOOC instructors included using problem-based learning, service learning in MOOCs, and shortening the length of videos. Overall, these MOOC instructors were satisfied with their MOOC designs.Cette étude faisant appel à des méthodes mixtes explore l...
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Bonk, C. J., Zhu, M., Kim, M., Xu, S., Sabir, N., & Sari, A. (2018). Pushing toward a more personalized MOOC: Exploring instructor selected activities, resources, and technology for MOOC design & implementation. IRRODL, 19(4), 92-115. http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/3439/4726more
This study explores the activities, tools, and resources that instructors of massive open online courses (MOOCs) use to improve the personalization of their MOOCs. Following email interviews with 25 MOOC and open education leaders... more
This study explores the activities, tools, and resources that instructors of massive open online courses (MOOCs) use to improve the personalization of their MOOCs. Following email interviews with 25 MOOC and open education leaders regarding MOOC personalization, a questionnaire was developed. This questionnaire was then completed by 152 MOOC instructors from around the world. While more than 8 in 10 respondents claimed heavy involvement in designing their MOOCs, only one-third placed extensive effort on meeting unique learner needs during course design, and even fewer respondents were concerned with personalization during course delivery. An array of instructional practices, technology tools, and content resources were leveraged by instructors to personalize MOOC-based learning environments. Aligning with previous research, the chief resources and tools employed in their MOOCs were discussion forums, video lectures, supplemental readings, and practice quizzes. In addition, self-monitoring and peer-based methods of learner feedback were more common than instructor monitoring and feedback. Some respondents mentioned the use of flexible deadlines, proposed alternatives to course assignments, and introduced multimedia elements, mobile applications, and guest speakers among the ways in which they attempted to personalize their massive courses. A majority of the respondents reported modest or high interest in learning new techniques to personalize their next MOOC offering.
Keyword: massive open online courses (MOOCs), personalization, instructional design, MOOC instructors
Keyword: massive open online courses (MOOCs), personalization, instructional design, MOOC instructors
Research Interests: Informal Learning, E-learning, Distance Education, Open Access, Online Instruction, and 10 morePersonalization, Online Learning, Online and Distance Education, Learning And Teaching In Higher Education, Distance Learning, Global education, Online Media, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), MOOCs, and Open Distance Learning
Zhu, M., Bonk, C. J., & Sari, A. (2018, December). Instructor experiences designing MOOCs in higher education: Pedagogical, resource, and logistical considerations and challenges. Online Learning, 22(4), 203-241. Available: https://olj.onlinelearningconsortium.org/index.php/olj/article/view/14
As massive open online courses (MOOCs) increase, the large scale and heterogeneity of MOOC participants bring myriad significant design challenges. This exploratory mixed methods study explores 143 MOOC instructors’ considerations and... more
As massive open online courses (MOOCs) increase, the large scale and heterogeneity of MOOC participants bring myriad significant design challenges. This exploratory mixed methods study explores 143 MOOC instructors’ considerations and challenges in designing MOOCs; 12 of whom were interviewed and had their courses analyzed. The survey, interview, and course review data revealed a variety of considerations and challenges in MOOC design in terms of pedagogy, resources, and logistics. Pedagogical considerations included learning objectives, assessment methods, course length, course content, flexibility, and collaborative learning support. Resource considerations included the affordance of MOOC platforms, support from the host institution and the platform, and the available intellectual and hardware resources. Logistical considerations included the amount of time instructors spent designing the MOOC. The obstacles included pedagogical challenges (e.g., engaging learners, increasing learner interaction, and limited assessment methods), resource challenges (e.g., limitations associated with the affordances of the platform), and logistical challenges (e.g., time limitations for designing and developing MOOCs). To address these challenges, the instructors often relied on reviewing other MOOCs. They also sought help from colleagues, their universities, and support personnel of the adopted platforms.
Keywords: massive open online courses (MOOCs), instructional design, design considerations, design challenges, MOOC instructors
Keywords: massive open online courses (MOOCs), instructional design, design considerations, design challenges, MOOC instructors