Learner satisfaction with massive open online courses.

This study investigates factors that influence learners’ satisfaction with massive open online courses (MOOCs). Framed by the theory of independent learning and teaching, the three types of interaction model, and the technology acceptance model, this study analyzed data collected from 1,786 learners enrolled in four MOOCs. Results show that the learner perceived usefulness, teaching and learning aspects of the MOOC, and learner-content interaction as important satisfaction factors. Learner-learner interaction and learner-instructor interaction had no effect on the sample’s learner satisfaction with the MOOC. These findings improve our understanding of MOOC learners’ preferences and contribute to the process of designing and developing new MOOCs. Future directions in MOOCs’ development are also discussed

The politics of political communication: Competing news discourses of the 2011 Egyptian protests.

The world witnessed the Egyptian community building political protests toward fundamental government change in early 2011. This research explores how news discourse across Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and the U.S. constructed these political protests, and how media figure in their narratives. Digital media became central characters in the U.S. version, which often referred to events in Egypt as a ‘facebook revolution’. We question whether this emphasis was shared across other news sources outside of the U.S. in the Arab region. This study builds on research conducted on news discourse of political protests, how U.S. media cover the Middle East, and how comparative research informs our knowledge of political communication