Internet Learning Volume 4, Number 2, Fall 2015 | Page 60

The Tangible and Intangible Benefits of Offering Massive Open Online Courses: Faculty Perspectives
on the benefits of MOOCs, the researchers
transcribed the survey responses into a
readable format with the Atlas Ti qualitative
program. The researchers conducted open
coding to determine what key concepts
faculty members discussed to describe
their MOOCs experience or inexperience.
Next, axial codes were developed to group
primary codes into broader concepts.
Themes emerged based on these axial codes.
The researchers discussed findings and
verified the coding and themes to develop a
working knowledge of the study participants’
experience or inexperience with MOOCs.
Results
Survey participants were asked the
open ended question, “What are the
benefits of offering MOOCs?” The
qualitative data from this section of the
survey was unitized and then coded, thus
revealing five major categories along with
some subcategories on who benefits from
institutions offering MOOCs. In addition
to discussing the benefits, participants also
discussed some of the drawbacks of offering
MOOCs although they were not asked to
provide information on drawbacks. This
was an unexpected finding as participants
were specifically asked about the benefits.
This section of the paper discusses the
student benefits, institution or program
benefits, and the reported drawbacks of
offering MOOCs.
Student Benefits
According to Newman (2013),
individuals may be motivated to enroll in
adult education courses to gain control of
their lives, learn to reason freely, nurture their
consciousness, participate in a civil society,
or learn how to better assert themselves in
their world. While the motive to enroll in
a MOOC is unique to the individual, the
benefits offered by MOOCs are extended to
all students.
Access to education. Among these
benefits are a large number of individuals
having access to education, one participant
stated that by offering MOOCs institutions
provide “accessibility to [educational courses]
to a diverse and wide-ranging student body”.
While another participant noted, MOOCs
provide “accessibility to students who
could benefit from foundational courses
without incurring an additional financial
burden.” One respondent also reported that
traditional education is available to “only
the “elite” or upper middle class or students
willing to “mortgage their future with
financial aid” can afford higher education
with the traditional four years of face-toface
campus attendance”.
Flexibility in education. MOOCs
offer students convenience and flexibility in
attending college courses. One participant
noted students are able to enroll in courses
which are “better fitting in their schedules
because they render time of day for
coursework irrelevant”. Meaning, students
are able to attend classes and complete
course work without feeling the constraints
of working, family obligations, or having to
travel long distances.
Self-paced learning with no grade
pressure. Participants stated students
benefit greatly from the self-paced learning
environment offered by MOOCs. This
environment, as noted by one participant,
offers “bite-sized, self-paced instruction
with experts”. While another participant
stated, MOOCs are “self-paced, capitalize
on developing and sharing knowledge,
skills, and abilities to many [students] by
leveraging the expertise of the few”.
Students are able to learn from the
experts at their own pace without feeling
the pressure to make good grades. One
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