Sunday 22 March 2015

FutureLearn and MOOC's

Has anyone else tried MOOC learning? A MOOC is a Massive Open Online Course which anyone can join as the only entry qualification is an interest in the subject.

FutureLearn is a UK based site owned by the Open University which draws on a worldwide range of partner Higher Education Institutions (HEI's). However there are many other mainly US based providers such as Coursera , Edx and Udacity  Some are larger with a wide content range and others are more niche or offer add-ons like a nanodegree! Coursera is the largest and even has some specialist content in Teacher Development which might be of interest to those of you involved in education or who are in professional roles where developing staff is part of your portfolio.

I've only used FutureLearn so far and have enjoyed it as I've found the learning to be engaging and of a high quality. The flexibility is key as it can be done anywhere when you have the time and an internet connection. There's also no need for a sun worshipping feline paperweight snoopervising your studies!
So far I've enjoyed an 'Introduction to Forensic Science', 'Decision Making in a Complex and Uncertain World' and 'What is Character? Virtue Ethics in Education'. So whether you are looking to develop a new interest, further a current one or just to challenge yourself then a MOOC might be worth exploring.

Note: This isn't a sponsored post I'm just sharing something I enjoy with anyone who might enjoy trying a course for interest, online and totally free.

15 comments:

  1. That's certainly very interesting !

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  2. Thanks for reminding me about Futurelearn. My cousin who has recently retired told me about it and says he is doing some of their courses and find9ing them very good too.

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  3. I did a course called Exploring Play last year through Future Learn which was really good, and this year I did one about finance (thought it would be interesting, but I knew a lot of it already as I'm good with such things) and I'm currently doing a really interesting course all about Moons - though I'm a few weeks behind as life has been busy and I've not managed to keep up!

    I think it's brilliant that we can access such a variety of courses free of charge. I missed the Forensic Science one, that would have been right up my street so I will look for that one in future perhaps!

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  4. I'm going to check them out.
    Jane x

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  5. That all sounds very interesting - especially the forensic science course. Perhaps I watch too much telly but it always looks fascinating to me!
    Love your sweet feline paperweight too :-)
    I've been a bit out of the loop with blog reading due to a myriad of reasons, but trying to catch up this week. Hope all's well with you? Love Gilly xx

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  6. Very interesting. I did make a vow to myself that I would never take another test again, pathetic I know! They all sound very interesting.
    Hugs,
    Meredith

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  7. This sounds very interesting - Thanks so much for the heads up.

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  8. Thanks for the information but I think the best thing I learned about this post was that there is such a thing as a "snoopervisor" hehehe! I love that term of yours - clever! How apt. :-)

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  9. This sounds interesting. I will take a look to see if there is anything that interests me. Take care x

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  10. A nanodegree sounds just about my speed.... Do they offer one for Obscure Crochet Joining Techniques?

    I just read your previous post, and my goodness you have been having a time of it. I'm so glad your cat was able to receive such amazing medical care. A speedy recovery to her (and to you - abscesses are no joke). Sit in the sun as much as you can. :)

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  11. Interesting MOOCs you've done. I've done the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 with FutureLearn, which was excellent. A very high academic level, which I enjoyed. I also signed up for another first world war one, 'Trauma and Memory', which I really didn't enjoy as I found it light on content, and the educators weren't nearly as engaged as the Paris 1919 one. I got so annoyed with it that I left it halfway through.

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  12. This sounds good, but is it really free?

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  13. You are so smart to find a way to learn more in this way! I try to learn something new every day. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

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