"Time Is the Bottleneck": A Qualitative Study Exploring Why Learners Drop out of MOOCs

Autor/inn/en	Eriksson, Thommy; Adawi, Tom; Stöhr, Christian
Titel	"Time Is the Bottleneck": A Qualitative Study Exploring Why Learners Drop out of MOOCs
Quelle	In: Journal of Computing in Higher Education, 29 (2017) 1, S.133-146 (14 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Eriksson, Thommy)
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1042-1726
DOI	10.1007/s12528-016-9127-8
Schlagwörter	Large Group Instruction; Online Courses; Educational Technology; Technology Uses in Education; Academic Persistence; Student Attitudes; Qualitative Research; Case Studies; Dropouts; Course Content; Design; Social Influences; Student Characteristics; Time Management; Foreign Countries; Student Motivation; College Students; Semi Structured Interviews; Sweden; Europe; North America; Asia + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Online course; Online-Kurs; Unterrichtsmedien; Technology enhanced learning; Technology aided learning; Technologieunterstütztes Lernen; Schülerverhalten; Qualitative Forschung; Case study; Fallstudie; Case Study; Drop-out; Drop-outs; Dropout; Early leavers; Schulversagen; Kursprogramm; Sozialer Einfluss; Zeitmanagement; Ausland; Schulische Motivation; Collegestudent; Schweden; Europa; Nordamerika; Asien
Abstract	Why do over 90% of the learners in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) never finish the course? There is a need for further studies focusing on the learners' experiences of participating in MOOCs and factors that influence the decision to complete or drop out of the course. To deepen our understanding of why learners complete or drop out of MOOCs, we report on a qualitative case study based on in-depth interviews with 34 learners with different degrees of course completion for two MOOCs. A qualitative analysis of the interviews led to the identification of four main factors influencing dropout: (1) the learner's perception of the course content, (2) the learner's perception of the course design, (3) the learner's social situation and characteristics, and (4) the learner's ability to find and manage time effectively. How the learners conceptualized a MOOC had a strong impact on how they engaged with the contents. We discuss the implications of our results for MOOC practice in terms of time, openness and accessibility and provide recommendations for future research. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01