TopicsREPORT OF PREVIOUS EVENT

Campus-wide Workshop "The Cutting Edge of Education: What Are MOOCs? From Basic Introduction to Discussion of Their Use and Relevant Practical Expertise"

Published online: April 25, 2018　

On October 17, 2016, a workshop entitled "The Cutting Edge of Education: What are MOOCs? From Basic Introduction to Discussion of Their Use and Relevant Practical Expertise" was held for Kyoto University faculty and staff members (organized by the Committee for the Promotion of Educational Content Utilization, Center for the Promotion of Excellence in Higher Education, Kyoto University). The workshop covered various aspects of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)－a current hot topic in education－from a basic introduction to what they are, to the actual process of producing them, and explanations and impressions from faculty members with experience of providing such courses online. The workshop was well attended, with 30 people participating and actively taking part in the question and answer sessions.

PROGRAM

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Click here to download the workshop leaflet.

Held on October 17, 2016. At Yoshida-South Campus Bldg. No 1 (Room 201)

Moderator: Mana Taguchi (Associate Professor, Center for the Promotion of Excellence in Higher Education)

Part 1

12:00～12:15 Explanation of MOOCs and KyotoUx
Hiroyuki Sakai (Associate Professor, Center for the Promotion of Excellence in Higher Education)

Part 2

12:15-12:45 Explanations and impressions from faculty members with experience of providing MOOCs, with time for questions and answers
1. Tetsushi Ito (Associate Professor, Graduate School of Science)
2. Satoshi Kodama (Associate Professor, Graduate School of Letters)

Part 3

12:45～13:00 Discussion

Part 1

In Part 1, Associate Professor Hiroyuki Sakai provided a basic introduction to MOOCs, as well as introducing each of the courses that have been offered by Kyoto University on KyotoUx, explaining the process from producing the courses to running them online, and touching on data analysis and feedback. He also introduced new initiatives using MOOCs.

Assoc. Prof. Sakai explains the concept of MOOCs. A number of faculty members and staff from various departments participated that day.

Click here to access the handouts distributed that day (Only for university members).

Part 2

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Assoc. Prof. Ito reports on his MOOC. He noted that he regretted not having the opportunity to use the cards marked with prime numbers (or what is referred to as "Sosuu Torampu" in Japanese) he had prepared as part of the teaching materials.

Associate Professor Tetsushi Ito from the Graduate School of Science started the second part of the workshop by talking about his MOOC "Fun with Prime Numbers: The Mysterious World of Mathematics," which was run over a total of two sessions, in January and April 2016.
He noted the challenges of producing and running the MOOC, given that such courses differ from normal lectures in terms of the content covered, how assignments are set, and how the classes are taught. At the same time, he explained that he felt it was an excellent means of promoting the university's teaching and research as many learners from around the world registered for the course, and that the format allowed for approaches that are not possible in normal lectures. He also provided a specific example of the use of MOOCs in university education, by describing a trial run carried out in summer 2016, in which first and second year students of the Faculty of Science were offered the option of substituting successful completion of this MOOC for a written assignment.

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Assoc. Prof. Kodama reports on his MOOC. He talked about his experiences, with trailer footage actually used in the course as a backdrop.

Next, Associate Professor Satoshi Kodama from the Graduate School of Letters described his experience offering the MOOC "Ethics in Life Sciences and Healthcare: Exploring Bioethics through Manga" in March 2016.
He spoke about how the production began far sooner than he was expecting, and the difficulties that he had with aspects such as preparing the script in English. On the other hand, he also noted that as the course tackled the field of bioethics, an area strongly dictated by culture, the homework and post-course questionnaires gave him a unique experience to hear diverse opinions from learners in various countries and regions with whom he would not normally have had the chance to interact.

Part 3

In the discussion session held in the third part of the workshop, various questions were raised on topics such as methods of setting assignments and exchanges with learners on the course discussion forum. Associate Professor Ito and Associate Professor Kodama responded to the questions by drawing on their actual experiences running MOOCs. There were also questions on incentives for the faculty members in charge and the methods of evaluating learning outcomes. Workshop participants showed both their expectations regarding the potential of MOOCs and their interest in how such courses differ from typical courses and in what ways.

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The discussion session. With occasional laughter, a relaxed and friendly atmosphere filled the workshop.

During the discussion, participants also shared their candid opinions on key points involved in pursuing the provision of MOOCs at a university-wide level, including suggestions on methods of publicizing the courses in the future, ending the 60-minute workshop on a relaxed and friendly note.

Latest related information
The course by Associate Professor Kodama, one of the faculty members who presented at this workshop, is currently available online again for self-paced learning. Please take a look!

Published online: May 15, 2017 (Original article)
April 25, 2018 (English article)