New MOOC for educators highlights 30 Days of TED
[1]With all the MOOCs available today, including the number of platforms and higher-ed institutions offering courses, it’s sometimes difficult to navigate the most credible—and most interesting—MOOCs that can cater to your institution.
In the interest of saving you time, the editors of eCampus News have aggregated 5 new, free (and often generating a lot of buzz) MOOCs that apply to campus faculty and staff looking to enhance their professional development or apply new methodology to their teaching.
For example, this list includes MOOCs, all available in May, that range from “30 Days of TED,” which helps attendees learn how to Flip their courses using TED resources (and much more), to “Understand Media by Understanding Google,” which reveals how to adopt strategies that put attendees on an even footing with large media entities in achieving their own communications goals. Look for other courses on building career skills, applying data to social strategies, and more.
The best part? All of the courses are free and from vetted platforms, institutions and instructors. This story is part of a monthly roundup that will bring you up-to-date on the MOOC courses you can’t afford to miss.
Know of any MOOCs coming up? Any favorite MOOCs still available that you’d like to recommend to your peers? Be sure to leave your comments in the section provided below the story, email me at mstansbury@ecampusnews.com [2], or find me @eSN_Meris [3] on Twitter.
(Next page: Best May MOOCs)
[Listed in alphabetical order]
1.
MOOC: 30 Days of TED
From: Canyons School District
Host: Canvas
When: Available now
What: TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, & Design—three broad subject areas that are, collectively, shaping our future. This course is designed to introduce participants to the wide variety of resources available on the TED website and how to use them in the classroom. During this session, participants will:
- Create a TED.Ed flipped lesson in order to enhance classroom learning and instruction. Participants will use the TED.Ed platform to choose video resources and then add discussion prompts, short answers, quiz questions, and further research links to create an interactive flipped lesson.
- Curate curriculum content from TED playlists to provide real-world examples. Using TED talks, participants will find real-world examples that add meaning to required core curriculum.
- Explore mobile app alternatives to incorporate digital tools to promote student learning.Participants will investigate a variety of TED mobile apps that can be utilized on a wide range of devices.
More information: https://www.canvas.net/courses/learning-with-ted-talks [4]
2.
MOOC: Big Data and Social Physics
From: MIT
Host: edX
When: Available now
What: Social physics is a big data science that models how networks of people behave and uses these network models to create actionable intelligence. It is a quantitative science that can accurately predict patterns of human behavior and guide how to influence those patterns to (for instance) increase decision making accuracy or productivity within an organization. Included in this course is a survey of methods for increasing communication quality within an organization, approaches to providing greater protection for personal privacy, and general strategies for increasing resistance to cyber attack.
More information: https://www.edx.org/course/mitx/mitx-mas-s69x-big-data-social-physics-1737#.U3IdHIFdWSo [5]
3.
MOOC: Digital Literacies II
From: San Diego County Office of Education
Host: Canvas
When: Available now
What: The goal of the Digital Literacy 2 course is to provide practicing and pre-service educators as well as others with the tools and knowledge necessary to enhance and enrich the educational experiences of students’ through digital technologies. Learners will explore:
- Digital citizenship and Internet safety
- Copyright law and ‘Fair Use’ clause
- The use of Creative Commons license
- The use of Web 2.0 tools
- Ways to apply Google Applications for EDU
- Using mobile technologies for teaching and learning
- Techniques for developing non-linear presentations
- Methods for using Quick Response (QR) codes in teaching and learning
- The use of digital cameras
- Developing blogs and websites
- Producing podcasts
More information: https://www.canvas.net/courses/digital-literacies-ii-1 [6]
4.
MOOC: Enhance Your Career and Employability Skills
From: University of London and The Careers Group
Host: Coursera
When: May 27th
What: Learn how to make effective decisions about your future career and how to take control your professional development by honing your critical thinking and employability skills. Suitable for anyone undertaking some form of study, regardless of academic discipline, interests or employment background.
More information: https://www.coursera.org/course/career [7]
5.
MOOC: Understanding Media by Understanding Google
From: Northwestern University
Host: Coursera
When: May 26th
What: Enrollees in this course learn how to understand the tactics that modern media companies, journalists, marketers, politicians, technologists, and social networks are using to reach them and affect their behavior. They learn how to adopt strategies that put them on an even footing with these entities in achieving their own communications goals.
More information: https://www.coursera.org/course/googlemedia [8]