Stephen Downes pulls few punches as he discusses how the current iteration of the MOOC is far removed from the original ideas behind it.
This has also been a concern of mine – the much touted innovation seems like anything but. While I remain unconvinced of the strengths of the connectivist model – at the very least for my preferred learning style – the original form of the MOOC was very much about embracing a substantially different learning paradigm than we see today.
Among other things, he says “I think they are marvels of marketing and of the naivety of venture capitalists. Looking at the platforms from a technological point of view, I see virtually nothing innovative. These courses [reach] 100,000 or more people, but use video lectures and old-style threaded discussion lists. The idea of Moocs as an experiment in pedagogy and educational organisation has been completely abandoned by the new platforms, to the detriment of Moocs.”
via Delicious (via IFTTT)