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MOOCs for teachers: they’re learners, too

Rarely a day goes by when MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) are not in the news. There is no hotter topic of conversation in education technology today, Forbes reports. Journalists are asking “has the future of college moved online?” While many think that MOOCs are the future of higher education in America and are excited by the enticing business opportunities they offer others are expressing concerns. What is certain is that the evolution of MOOCs is still in the experimental stage and I’m excited that New Teacher Center (NTC) is now part of that experiment. NTC is partnering with Coursera to offer high-quality online professional learning for K-12 teachers via MOOC. Honestly, it’s exhilarating. Here’s why. My email has been buzzing everyday with inquiries from press, friends, strangers, partners, and funders wanting to talk about our involvement with Coursera. I tell them I’m excited NTC is on the forefront of this burgeoning technology with the potential to improve how teachers teach and students learn. NTC believes teachers are learners too and we must pounce on this opportunity to directly reach a greater number of new teachers to put them on the path to teacher leadership and excellence. Affordability and access to learning are driving the MOOC movement forward, and these are both relevant to the K-12 sector. Like Cathy Davidson, I too regret the polarizing of the debate about MOOCs and agree that it’s important to look at how we can make necessary, important, invaluable learning available to the widest number of people for the lowest cost. That must apply to teachers, too.

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