Where is research on massive open online courses headed? A data analysis of the MOOC research initiative

This paper reports on the results of an analysis of the research proposals submitted to the MOOC Research Initiative (MRI) funded by the Gates Foundation and administered by Athabasca University. The goal of MRI was to mobilize researchers to engage into critical interrogation of MOOCs. The submissions – 266 in Phase 1, out of which 78 was recommended for resubmission in the extended form in Phase 2, and finally, 28 funded – were analyzed by applying conventional and automated content analysis methods as well as citation network analysis methods. The results revealed the main research themes that could form a framework of the future MOOC research: i) student engagement and learning success, ii) MOOC design and curriculum, iii) self-regulated learning and social learning, iv) social network analysis and networked learning, and v) motivation, attitude and success criteria. The theme of social learning received the greatest interest and had the highest success in attracting funding. The submissions that planned on using learning analytics methods were more successful. The use of mixed methods was by far the most popular. Design-based research methods were also suggested commonly, but the questions about their applicability arose regarding the feasibility to perform multiple iterations in the MOOC context and rather a limited focus on technological support for interventions. The submissions were dominated by the researchers from the field of education (75% of the accepted proposals). Not only was this a possible cause of a complete lack of success of the educational technology innovation theme, but it could be a worrying sign of the fragmentation in the research community and the need to increased efforts towards enhancing interdisciplinarity

Ontology Learning to Analyze Research Trends in Learning Analytics Publications

In this paper, we show how ontology learning tools can be used to reveal (i) the central research topics that are tackled in the published literature on learning analytics and educational data mining; and (ii)relationships between these research topics and iii) (dis)similarities between learning analytics and educational data mining. Categories and Subject Descriptor

Externally-facilitated regulation scaffolding and role assignment to develop cognitive presence in asynchronous online discussions

This paper describes a study that looked at the effects of different teaching presence approaches in communities of inquiry, and ways in which student–student online discussions with high levels of cognitive presence can be designed. Specifically, this paper proposes that high-levels of cognitive presence can be facilitated in online courses, based on the community of inquiry model, by building upon existing research in i) self-regulated learning through externally-facilitated regulation scaffolding and ii) computer-supported collaborative learning through role assignment. We conducted a quasi-experimental study in a fully-online course (N=82) using six offerings of the course. After performing a quantitative content analysis of online discussion transcripts, a multilevel linear modeling analysis showed the significant positive effects of both externally-facilitated regulation scaffolding and role assignment on the level of cognitive presence. Specifically, the results showed that externally-facilitated regulation scaffolding had a higher effect on cognitive presence than extrinsically induced motivation through grades. The results showed the effectiveness of role assignment to facilitate a high-level of cognitive presence. More importantly, the results showed a significant effect of the interaction between externally-facilitated regulation scaffolding and role assignment on cognitive presence. The paper concludes with a discussion of practical and theoretical implications.•Externally-facilitated regulated (EFR) learning and role scripts for online discussions•Design-based study conducted in a fully-online master's level course•Multi-level linear modeling showed significant effects of EFR and role scripting.•Motivation needs to be complemented with EFR for high level of cognitive presence.•EFR can offer equitable opportunities for cognitive presence of different roles

Informacioni sistem za analizu uspeha studenata / Students' achievement analysis system

Analiza ispitnog roka i vođenje evidencije o ispitima studenata na Odseku logistike Vojne akademije zahteva mnogo truda i vremena. Postoje pokušaji da se taj proces pojednostavi i automatizuje, ali se oni nisu pokazali dovoljno efikasnim. Ovim projektom omogućeno je da korisnik u mrežnom okruženju ostvari što efikasniji pristup informacijama. / The analysis of students' achievements and the examination results recording at the Military Academy (Department of Logistics) is a demanding and time-consuming task. Some efforts were put forth to make that process easier but they did not prove to be efficient enough. The main objective of this project is to make a system that will provide more efficient access to the information users need in network environment