2
During the BizMOOC project, surveys were conducted with a range of citizens across Europe including students, non-formal/lifelong learners, the unemployed and employees in a range of industries. 1,193 surveys were completed in 10 different languages. The survey combined qualitative and quantitative factors.
With increased global awareness of the MOOC movement over the past 5 years, we expected to see a high level of understanding of MOOCs from survey participants. However, in fact only 40% of the BizMOOC survey sample currently use MOOCs and about 55% have not used a MOOC. This can be contrasted with 84% of participants who use the Internet for developing their skills and/or to learn something new. In spite of this, 85% of the sample are planning to use MOOCs in the future. While 84% of respondents currently use the web for developing their skills and/or to learn something new, almost 40% are using MOOCs already and about 85% are planning to do so in the future. But after more than half a decade of MOOCs trending, most citizens across Europe still do not view MOOCs as mainstream provision for their learning. The reasons for this are varied: universities employ different methodologies, generational differences and a tendency toward more traditional training and personal development methods by some business communities and employers.
According to the respondents, the potential of MOOCs of improving personal development and the development of skills for a potential new job seem to be of high relevance when choosing this kind of informal education tool. The fact that MOOCs are massive (open to a large number of participants) appears to be irrelevant.
Despite the drift towards modernising training and teaching/learning methods via the use of ICT, face-to-face courses were still preferred by survey participants. Yet, learners generally preferred a blended user setting of both face-to-face and online courses for professional skills development. Only in instances of independent or non-formal learning was there a small preference for online learning. Participants identified video platforms and online courses as the preferred formats for self-directed learning content with the most used resources being: YouTube videos, specific tutorials and open training/open content, scientific blogs and academic articles, Moodle platforms with specific content, licensed materials, Google Scholar, MOOCs and Social Media content.
Although our sample valued MOOC offering low-cost or free opportunities for learning and acquiring up-to-date information on a specific subject, more than 55% have not yet used MOOCs. However, 85% of participants indicated that they were likely to use MOOCs regularly or occasionally, in future.
Regarding the main reasons for participating in MOOCs, improving skills and enhancing knowledge on a particular topic(s) were underlined – independently whether the respondents had previous experience in using MOOCs or not. Respondents with no previous MOOC experience highlighted curiosity as one of the main reasons for participating in MOOCs.
While 84% of respondents currently use the web for developing their skills and/or to learn something new, almost 40% are using MOOCs already and about 85% are planning to do so in the future. But after more than half a decade of MOOCs trending, most citizens across Europe still do not view MOOCs as mainstream provision for their learning. The reasons for this are varied: universities employ different methodologies, generational differences and a tendency toward more traditional training and personal development methods by some business communities and employers.
The first important sample observation was – particularly when referenced to existing research on the educational attainment of those who use MOOCs (Sharples et al., 2013; UNESCO, 2013; Ho et al., 2015; Online Course Report; 2016; etc.) – that employees and students between 18 and 55 years old with at least an undergraduate degree represent the majority of those surveyed.
Despite the drift towards modernising training and teaching/learning methods via the use of ICT, face-to-face courses were still preferred by survey participants. Yet, learners generally preferred a blended user setting of both face-to-face and online courses for professional skills development. Only in instances of independent or non-formal learning was there a small preference for online learning. Participants identified video platforms and online courses as the preferred formats for self-directed learning content with the most used resources being: YouTube videos, specific tutorials and open training/open content, scientific blogs and academic articles, Moodle platforms with specific content, licensed materials, Google Scholar, MOOCs and Social Media content.
Although our sample valued MOOC offering low-cost or free opportunities for learning and acquiring up-to-date information on a specific subject, more than 55% have not yet used MOOCs. However, 85% of participants indicated that they were likely to use MOOCs regularly or occasionally, in future.
Regarding the main reasons for participating in MOOCs, improving skills and enhancing knowledge on a particular topic(s) were underlined – independently whether the respondents had previous experience in using MOOCs or not. Respondents with no previous MOOC experience highlighted curiosity as one of the main reasons for participating in MOOCs.
According to the respondents, the potential of MOOCs of improving personal development and the development of skills for a potential new job seem to be of high relevance when choosing this kind of informal education tool. The fact that MOOCs are massive (open to a large number of participants) appears to be irrelevant.
Among the three MOOCs to be developed and offered by the BizMOOC project ‘innovation, creativity and idea creation’ was considered of interest to 70% of survey respondents. The other two MOOCs, ‘learning to learn’ and ‘sense of initiative (entrepreneurship & intrapreneurship)’, where considered of interest by 51% and 42% of the BizMOOC sample, respectively.
You can read more a more detailed account of the survey results at http://mooc-book.eu/index/learn-more/analysis/society-survey-on-moocs/. We have also provided copies of the survey instruments for your own use. These can be found in Chapter 22 with other resources.