The academic world is in upheaval over MOOCs: massive open online
courses that make university lectures available to tens of thousands of
students at a time. For roughly a year, universities around the world
have been rushing to partner with the major MOOC companies in a move
that many believe could revolutionize higher education.
But for many people working in education, MOOCs do not yet take the revolution far enough. Online lectures by video are fine for conveying facts, formulas and concepts, but by themselves they cannot help anyone learn how to put those ideas into practice. Nor can they give students experience in planning an experiment and analysing data, participating in a team, operating a pipette or microscope, persevering in the face of setbacks or exercising any of the other practical and social skills essential for success in science1. “You only understand something when you know how to do it,” says Chris Dede, who studies simulations for education at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. “And that's not possible to abstract in a lecture.”
Read more at : http://www.nature.com/news/education-online-the-virtual-lab-1.13383
But for many people working in education, MOOCs do not yet take the revolution far enough. Online lectures by video are fine for conveying facts, formulas and concepts, but by themselves they cannot help anyone learn how to put those ideas into practice. Nor can they give students experience in planning an experiment and analysing data, participating in a team, operating a pipette or microscope, persevering in the face of setbacks or exercising any of the other practical and social skills essential for success in science1. “You only understand something when you know how to do it,” says Chris Dede, who studies simulations for education at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. “And that's not possible to abstract in a lecture.”
Read more at : http://www.nature.com/news/education-online-the-virtual-lab-1.13383
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