The Friday Institute MOOCs for Educators Initiative Glenn Kleiman Friday Institute for Educational Innovation NC State University College of Education

Why MOOCs for Educators? So many changes Curriculum standards, student assessments, digital literacies, data system, teacher evaluation systems, technologies, fiscal constraints… Large education workforce 3.8+ million teachers, 250,000+ administrators, teaching almost 50 million students. Changing workforce 16% teacher turnover per year (about half changing schools, half leaving teaching) Drives a need for large-scale, widely accessible, cost-effective PD GK

Principles of Effective PD Deepens subject matter knowledge, understanding of learning, and appreciation of students’ needs. Centers around critical professional activities Builds on problems of practice that lead to reflection and professional discourse Provides educators with opportunities to learn in the ways they will be expected to teach Is personalized to meet individual needs Cultivates a culture of collegiality Is ongoing, intensive and woven into professional work.

The Big Question Can MOOC-like approaches be adapted to: address educators’ professional development (PD) needs, follow the research-based principles of effective PD and provide scalable, accessible and effective PD?

MOOC-Ed Topics Digital Learning Transition in K-12 Schools Coaching Digital Learning Fractions Foundations Disciplinary Literacy Learning Differences Statistics through Data Investigations Teaching Mathematics with Technology Computational Thinking (in progress) More information on https://place.fi.ncsu.edu/

MOOC-Ed Design Questions How do we translate the principles of effective PD into the MOOC-Ed online environment? How are MOOC-Eds different from other MOOCs? How are MOOC-Eds different from other forms of online PD? How does MOOC-Ed design vary for different goals, content and audiences?

Design Principle 1 “Experts” Researchers Teachers Administrators Students Course participants

Design Principle 2 Core resources through different media Dig deeper optional resources Alternative pathways Project options Varied discussion topics Connected educator links

Design Principle 3 Discussion Forums Crowd-sourcing Twitter Chats Project feedback

Design Principle 4 Case studies Expect panels Action planning Participant projects “Try it with your students” activities

Implementation Principle Blended wrap-around graduate courses Local teams PLC Guides Try with your students activities

Example #1: Fractions-What Would You Do Next? Teacher working with a student 2-4 minutes Ends at a student misconception Participants discuss “what they would do next” with the student Principles addressed: Job Connected Peer Supported Multiple Voices Links to Blended Learning Let’s take a look! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQ0L3yE1F4o

MOOC-Ed Data Sources Pre-registration survey: demographics, roles, goals. Overall web analytics: visitors, visits, visit duration, pages viewed. Detailed “click logs” of each user’s access to each unit Discussion forum views, discussions started and comments Discussion content for various forms of discourse analyses Projects submitted and peer reviews Vimeo site analytics: total views and average times by video Crowdsourcing of resources Course surveys Open-ended responses from participants

All the Design Elements are Beneficial MOOC-Ed Component Beneficial Didn’t Use Introductory Video Presentations 85% 3% Video Resources 91% 1% Text Resources 95% 2% Group Discussion 4% Expert Panel Videos Goals & Challenges Project 86% 11% Feedback from Other Participants 80% 13% Crowd-sourced Resources 81% 15% Twitter Chats 28% 62% Participants choose to focus their time and attention in different ways, on different topics, and in different parts of the MOOC-Ed.

Patterns of User Participation 249/389=64% Level of Participation 23/95=24% 17/82=21% 32/177=18% 7/152=5% Week: Learning Differences MOOC-Ed 2. N=895

Knowledge Construction in Discussions We applied a highest phase of knowledge construction analysis to the postings under each discussion topic. This analysis classifies each discussion into one of the following five categories according to the highest phase reached in the postings under that discussion: Sharing and comparing: Further the discussion by providing observations, opinions or examples that support or extend prior statements. Dissonance and inconsistency: Identify areas of disagreement or potential disagreement. Negotiation and co-construction: Explore common ground, clarify intent, seek agreement or integrate ideas. Testing and modification: Test ideas against prior information, research and/or data and proposed synthesis of ideas. Summary, application and metacognition: Summarize agreements, describe applications of knowledge or acknowledge changes in understanding.

Participation with a local group was beneficial “This course helped members of our DLT team see the possibilities and open their minds beyond the traditional 45-minute class periods” “The most beneficial aspect of this course was actually the F2F conversations informed and occasioned by the MOOC with the other members of my school team.” 55% of participants planned to participate with colleagues: 35% with a school or district planning team 20% with other colleagues in their school or organization We continue to adapt based on feedback like this: Example- In DLT2, we encouraged participants to work with local colleagues who were also interested in the course. “[The most valuable part was] meeting as a team at my school weekly to create our self-assessment and the discussions we have had around our goals and what we are learning in the MOOC-Ed.” “I am happy that we took part as a school team, which in turn was part of a greater District team. It is these group conversations that I found to be most helpful”

Questions about peer-supported learning In what ways, and to what extent, do educators engage in peer-interactions in the discussion forum? How do educator characteristics, such as roles, goals for taking the course, levels of experience, and comfort with online learning, influence their interactions? What is the content and quality of peer-interactions and to what extent do they support learning?

Questions about self-directed learning: Do participants stated goals for participating in the MOOC-Ed or their occupational roles lead individuals to take different paths through the course? Are there patterns in the use and ratings of resources that differ across participants with different goals and/or roles? Did the perceived usefulness of various course design elements differ by stated goals or occupational roles in a MOOC?

Questions about impact of the MOOC-Ed on participants’ knowledge and practices Does participation in a MOOC-Ed lead to changes in participants’ professional knowledge? Does participation in a MOOC-Ed lead to changes in participants’ professional practices? Does participation in a MOOC-Ed lead to increase performance by students, teachers or schools (depending upon the focus of the MOOC-Ed. See Hewlett Project evaluation report for further info: https://fi-courses.s3.amazonaws.com/place/research-reports/hewlett-evaluation-final.pdf

Conclusions MOOC-Eds can provide personalized, accessible, effective, scalable PD for motivated professionals Our design principles provide a solid foundation for MOOC-Eds The important question is not Do MOOC-Eds work? but rather: How can we optimize the value of MOOC-Eds? What professional development needs do they best serve? How are they effectively blended with other PD approaches? Notes: Bullet 1: To help prepare educators for the rapid changes in what, how, when, where and why their students learn. Most effective when blended with other forms of PD Bullet 2: our work, and research on other types of MOOCs, supports this view Bullet 3: These are just a foundation - there are many complex design decisions involved in making an individual course of value to a large and diverse audience of educators. Bullet 4: They can provide valuable learning opportunities They do not replace local professional learning teams, coaching, peer collaborations or face-to-face programs.

Reports and Chapters

https://place.fi.ncsu.edu/ For More Information https://place.fi.ncsu.edu/