Best Practice Guide for Designing and Delivering EPICUR courses
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Massive Open Online Course (MOOC)
Massive Open Online Course (MOOC)
Why MOOCs?
A Massive Open Online Course, is an online educational program designed for large-scale participation and open access through the internet. These courses usually provide a variety of learning materials, including video lectures, readings, quizzes, and assignments, all hosted on a digital platform. Typically MOOCs cover a broad spectrum of subjects. They enable learners worldwide to join, engage with instructors and fellow students, and complete coursework at their own convenience.
A distinction of formats can be drawn between xMOOCs* and cMOOCs. While xMOOCs are defined by instructor-guided lessons cMOOCs are characterized by participants contributions (cf. Sillak-Riesinger).
5 key points about MOOCs
- MOOCs can reach a broad audience worldwide and are often available for free, making high-quality education accessible to individuals regardless of their geographical location or financial situation.
- Learners can access course materials and complete assignments at their own pace and on their own schedule, making it easier to balance education with work, family, and other commitments.
- MOOCs allow students to explore different fields of interest, enhance their skills, and gain knowledge in areas that may not be available at their home institutions.
- For universities and educational institutions, MOOCs serve as a platform to reach a broader audience, enhance their reputation, and attract potential students to their traditional programs.
- MOOCs provide opportunities for instructors to experiment with new teaching methods, technologies, and course designs, contributing to their professional development and enhancing the quality of education they provide.
MOOCs in practice
The Open Courses portal contains selected online courses from KIT. All offered courses are free of charge and have no prerequisites:
https://opencourses.kit.edu/ilias.php?baseClass=ilrepositorygui&reloadpublic=1&cmd=&ref_id=1
Links to resources for MOOCs
References
- Aparicio, M., Oliveira, T., Bacao, F., & Painho, M. (2019). Gamification: A key determinant of massive open online course (MOOC) success. Information & Management, 56(1), 39–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2018.06.003
- Calise, M., Delgado Kloos, C., Reich, J., Ruiperez-Valiente, J. A., & Wirsing, M. (Hrsg.). (2019). Digital Education: At the MOOC Crossroads Where the Interests of Academia and Business Converge: 6th European MOOCs Stakeholders Summit, EMOOCs 2019, Naples, Italy, May 20–22, 2019, Proceedings (Bd. 11475). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19875-6
- Cvetković, D. (Hrsg.). (2022). MOOC (Massive Open Online Courses). IntechOpen.
- Sillak-Riesinger, B. (2017). The Potential of Massive Open Online Courses in the Context of Corporate Training and Development. Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-16649-6
Inclusive Course Design and Modes of Delivery
Author(s)
This resource sheet has been co-written or written by
- Judith Borel (KIT)
Related Resource Sheets
Next steps
If you need further support with developing your course, please contact your local teaching support unit.
If you need further information on offering your course for EPICUR, please contact your EPICUR institutional coordinator.
Local teaching support units
EPICUR Institutional Coordinators
Adam Mickiewicz University
Karolina Choczaj
karmench@amu.edu.pl
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Nikos Kouloussis
nikoul@agro.auth.gr
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
Michael Zacherle
zacherle@kit.edu
University of Amsterdam
Tiffany Boersma
t.a.boersma@uva.nl
Universität Freiburg
Charlotte Langowski
charlotte.langowski@zv.uni-freiburg.de
Université de Haute-Alsace
Léa Ziri
lea.ziri@uha.fr
Universität für Bodenkultur Wien
Nicolas Fries
nicolas.fries@boku.ac.at
University of Southern Denmark
Ida Thøstesen
ilt@sdu.dk
University of Strasbourg
Pascale Nachez
pnachez@unistra.fr
Further use as OER explicitly permitted:
This Resource Sheet within the Best Practice Guide for Designing and Delivering EPICUR Courses was created by Judith Borel, Karlsruhe Institute for Technology.
Please attribute according to TASLL rule as follows: Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) (Best Practice Guide for Designing and Delivering EPICUR Courses), by Judith Borel, Karlsruhe Institute for Technology. Any icons included are protected by copyright, © The Noun Project, used with permission.
License: This work and its contents are – unless otherwise stated – licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 .
Last edited: 23. Jun 2025, 09:05, Hutz-Nierhoff, Dorthe [dh1076@rz.uni-freiburg.de]