Search

Over the past decade, the emergence of Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) has profoundly transformed the distance learning landscape, capturing the attention of both higher education and professional institutions. This surge of interest has not only spurred the development of innovative teaching and learning methods but has also led to a reevaluation of content production and reuse strategies. In fact, when producing MOOCs, multiple resources and efforts are dedicated to creating a considerable amount of learning material. This is often housed within the learning environment, which serves as a sort of repository and it is accessible by learners throughout the course. However, due to a lack of management support or internal organisational structure, the use of this material sometimes remains limited to the existence of the MOOC, causing it not to be actively employed and exploited after the course has ended. Lately, issues regarding MOOCs' content management have raised critical questions about the long-term sustainability, reusability and management of the created online learning material even after the end of the online course. By using as a case study the three interlinked MOOCs on European History, Law and Governance developed in the framework of the KU Leuven programme in European Studies and the effort invested in both the planning and afterlife of the MOOC, this paper provides an overview of the formulas adopted to enhance learning content reusability. Drawing from KU Leuven's extensive experience in creating humanities-focused MOOCs, this collection of interconnected online courses represents a novel attempt at offering a series of educational courses that are designed to complement each other not only in terms of content but also in terms of content management. Also, by contributing to the discussion on MOOCs' reusability this paper intends to emphasise the importance of establishing clear guidelines to enhance educational content reuse, ultimately contributing to the long-term educational value of MOOCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the Horizon 2020 project inDICEs, a consortium of 14 interdisciplinary partners from research and industry set out to develop an approach on how to understand and measure the impact of digital cultural heritage. Synthesising the results of three years of research, the consortium produced a MOOC on the KULeuvenX edX platform, focused on the development of digital transition strategies for both non-profit business models in heritage institutions as well as broader cultural and creative industries. Built on KU Leuven's experience in developing MOOCs derived from Horizon research, this particular online course is part of a specific segment of the university's MOOC offerings targeting primarily a professional audience. It is the third MOOC in a series intended for current and future professionals in the GLAM sector. In this paper, we discuss the choices behind the development of such a MOOC, and the strategic role such MOOCs play in the business model of the university, particularly with regards to micro-credentials. It also highlights the opportunities that networking with industry stakeholders opens for higher education and research organisations, as a not-for-profit valorisation effort. The MOOC brings insights on data monitoring and trend watching, copyright and digital asset management and development of digital strategies. Most importantly, it positions these topics within the context of new digital value chains for heritage institutions fostered by open access and participatory engagement models. As such, this paper will be of interest both to communities of MOOC developers - to understand how stakeholder communities and professional networks can steer choices, formats and approaches - as well as university MOOC business plan developers. Furthermore, as this MOOC embodies the growing interest of teachers and scholars in digital collections, it will also provide insights into opportunities such formats provided to the education and research sectors. Finally, it will speak to anyone working on MOOCs on the topic of cultural production and heritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]