MOOCs for College Credit

As MOOCs evolve and fit into the higher education environment, we should not forget the difficulty all students face when they seek to discover how any prior learning would articulate before they enroll – especially at selective schools.  There are several issues worth noting about recent blogs and press releases talking about MOOCs and their potential disruptive effect on the higher education eco-system:

1^st, selective and elite schools are generally not advocating transfer-friendly policies, negatively impacting a high volume of students.  Selective schools may just segregate MOOCs as they have with continuing education credits - to afford the popular marketing of prior learning.  If MOOCs begin to shift institutional priorities to emphasize adult or part-time student markets, this is welcome behavior.  However, we have a way to go before that happens.  How many schools will accept MOOCs for core major requirements?  Let’s not forget, most transfer credits apply as electives, which result in more elective credits being taken than needed to graduate for most students today.

2^nd, now that ACE is beginning to evaluate MOOCs for course credit recommendations, we need to correct the false perspective that ACE is publishing course equivalencies.  ACE will publish recommendations, and institutions must volunteer to map their own course equivalencies based upon these recommendations.   Some do this on a per-student basis as transcripts are received.  Some will perform the analysis proactively.  The challenge is to keep up with the equivalency implications coming from an increasing number of sources when there is no form of standard mapping or general alignment with regional feeders. 

3^rd, most institutions are reluctant to proactively disclose transfer equivalencies online, let alone how prior learning addresses core program requirements.  Students seldom are given the tools to assess “will my credits transfer.”  So, MOOC students seeking credit may learn their MOOC courses do not accelerate their degree completion contrary to what is inferred by the MOOC venues.  AcademyOne’s CollegeTransfer.Net will include MOOC equivalencies much like AP, CLEP, IB and other forms of course exam assessments, but it will take time for institutions to assess and promote their acceptance and tagging of MOOCs against their own course offerings.  When a course does not match those offerings, an institution may offer elective credit or none at all.

4th, I believe MOOCs will have the same difficulty mapping to core degree requirements that AP, CLEP, IB, UCEL, Learning Counts and other prior learning credits face today.  There is major resistance from institutions about how they award credit for prior learning regardless of the source of learning.  Course currency is not uniform, unless it fits within the general education common core of courses being developed across some states. 

5^th, MOOCs will be an alternative course platform for community colleges who are seeking to offer students a wider choice of courses for non-credit and possible credit.  How MOOCs fit into two-year degree plans is yet to be seen.  Transcripts including MOOC courses have not been tested for how they will enable student portability of credits from a two-year school to a four-year school. 

The anticipated huge volume of MOOC students over the next few years most likely will not realize the benefit and recognition of their learning achievement beyond elective courses toward the goals of lowering their degree costs or lessening their time to a degree.  This will remain true unless there are standards developed with governance that would create predicable outcomes.   Across the various sectors of higher education, this will be hard to achieve even on a voluntary basis. 

One prediction I may make is that MOOC students may be good targets for less selective schools, which may mean we will see the continued development of networks aligning recognition and brands similar to transfer agreements or stackable certificates.   I am sure one or more institution will pursue this avenue, but that still begs the question of how transferable and mobile these credits will be across boundaries, institutions, departments and their majors.