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In 2008, George Siemens and Stephen Downes developed the first massive open online course (Mooc), Connectivism and Connective Knowledge. attracted more than 2,000 participants worldwide. Three years later, two academics from Stanford University launched a Mooc on the Introduction to Artificial Intelligence, and . Now, more than 1,250 universities around the world offer using platforms such as Coursera, edX, FutureLearn and Udacity.

With more universities offering Moocs, the competition to enrol learners is intense. It is important to consider, then, how each institution can in an increasingly crowded market. In this article, we describe three features, based on our experience developing a business statistics Mooc, that can help to improve competitiveness.

1. Use ‘study buddies’ to help create a virtual community

Due to their “pop in, pop out” nature, Moocs often lack the sense of a cohort. Participants can find it difficult to feel a sense of belonging as they go through the course, which can lead to an experience that is educational but isolating.

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To address this, we added “study buddies” to our course. These were three undergraduate students who appeared together in short videos (four to 10 minutes) at the end of each block of content. Our study buddies starred in short study sessions, in which they reviewed the content with games, activities and quizzes. The study buddies were briefed that the videos were to be warm, friendly and informal. The resulting videos allowed learners to move through the course with a virtual group of study partners and to be entertained while they were learning.

Feedback from learners indicated that the videos increased understanding – particularly, said one student, “when the course got a bit heavy”. Said another learner: “Learning felt less isolating. I could relate to the challenges the study buddies were facing and learned a lot from doing the same questions they did.”

2. Supplement lecturer presence with synthetic media

In our courses, we also experimented with synthetic media (that is, photorealistic avatars generated by software). We developed synthetic tutorial videos that showed students how to perform statistical calculations in Excel.

We wanted to keep the lecturer’s voice as primary in the course, so these synthetic videos supplemented, rather than replaced, the course lecturer. As the technology is relatively new, and we were not aware of any Moocs in which this had been done before, we were unsure how learners would react to a synthetic avatar presenting content. Learners did not seem to mind and rated it 4.85 out of five in an end-of-course survey.

3. Printable review posters can reinforce key points

Online courses, by their very nature, usually focus on digital resources. However, in our Mooc, we heavily promoted the use of hard-copy, highly visual review posters that contained key points about the course’s content. These were designed to be printed out and placed where learners would see them often.

The emphasis on completing an online course with something physical, rather than being 100 per cent digital, is purposeful. Not only do the posters allow learners to gain exposure to course content incidentally, but they also allow learners to see the “highlights” in a much more immediate manner. Posters also expose students to the content after they have finished the course, improving opportunities for retention and reinforcement.

In feedback, learners rated the posters as one of the best elements of the course, equal to the standard studio videos containing the course lecturer (the top-ranked feature).

Overall, the first group of learners who participated in this course consistently rated these features highly. The overall course rating has also been one of the highest in our large catalogue of Moocs.

Two of the three Statistics for Business Analytics courses in this Mooc programme are available on edX, with the third scheduled for release later this year.

Moocs remain popular. For students, they are accessible to anyone who has access to the internet and a computer that satisfies the course’s hardware requirements, and they are often free (with a small fee for a certificate of completion). For universities, Moocs help them to promote their brand and reputation, generate revenue and augment the traditional method of teaching.

It makes sense to do them well.

Temesgen Kifle is a lecturer in the School of Economics and Ben Cossalter is a learning designer in the Institute for Teaching and Learning Innovation, both from the University of Queensland.

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