Learners of an introductory programming MOOC: background variables, engagement patterns and performance
Date
2022-11-25
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Abstract
Üks võimalus personaalseks ja professionaalseks arenguks on osalemine vaba juurdepääsuga e-kursustel (ingl massive open online courses, MOOCs). MOOCide osalejatel on suurem autonoomia võrreldes traditsiooniliste klassiruumides toimuvate tundidega. Samuti arvestades suurt osalejate hulka ja nende erinevat tausta, on kõikide õppijate kaasatus (ingl engagement) õppeprotsessis MOOCide korraldajatele väljakutseks. Osalejate taustamuutujate (ingl background variables) mõju kaasatusele, mis omakorda võib mõjutada õpisooritust (ingl performance), on jätkuvalt alauuritud valdkond.
Doktoritöö eesmärk oli uurida MOOCide osalejate taustamuutujaid ja nende mõju kursusele registreerumisele ning lõpetamise tõenäosusele, tuvastada lõpetajate seas käitumuslikke (ingl behavioural engagement) ja kognitiivseid (ingl cognitive engagement) kaasatuse rühmasid ning uurida neid taustamuutujate ja õpisoorituse osas. Uurimuse fookuses oli MOOC “Programmeerimisest maalähedaselt”. Selle MOOCi osalejate ja lõpetajate taustamuutujad võrreldi MOOCidega „Programmeerimise alused I“ ja „Programmeerimise alused II“. MOOCil “Programmeerimisest maalähedaselt” oli rohkem naisi ja neid, kelle haridustase oli madalam. Lõpetajate osas selgus, et põhifookuses olnud MOOCil, ei olnud statistiliselt olulist erinevust nais- ja meeslõpetajate osakaalu ning erinevate tööhõive staatuste vahel. Suurem lõpetajate osakaal oli magistrikraadiga lõpetajate hulgas. Väiksem lõpetajate osakaal oli nende õppijate puhul, kes ei ole varem programmeerimist õppinud. Samad tulemused lõpetajate kohta olid ka MOOCil “Programmeerimise alused I“.
Uurides MOOCi “Programmeerimisest maalähedaselt” lõpetajate ja mittelõpetajate õpisooritust, selgus, et nad vajasid testi sooritamiseks keskmiselt sama palju katseid. Mittelõpetajatel oli programmeerimisülesannete lahenduste esitamiskordade arv suurem ja neil oli testipunktid madalamad.
Lõpetajate käitumusliku ja kognitiivse kaasatuse analüüs näitas, et lõpetajad ei ole homogeenne rühm. Käitumusliku kaasatuse puhul eristati lähtudes tegevuste hulgast 4 rühma. Uurimuse tulemused näitasid, et MOOCil võivad olla lõpetajad, kes teevad kõiki tegevusi, aga ka need, kes teevad vaid mõnda tegevust. Kognitiivse kaasatuse korral eristus 5 rühma, mille puhul kasutati abiallikaid erineva sagedusega. Tulemused näitasid, et lõpetajate erinevat sagedust erinevate abiallikate kasutamisel võib pidada märgiks püsivast soovist MOOC edukalt läbida. Samuti selgus, et abiallikate kasutamise võib võtta aluseks kognitiivse kaasatuse tuvastamiseks ja mõõtmiseks MOOCidel. Lõpetajate taustamuutujad ja õpisooritused varieerusid eristatud rühmade vahel.
Doktoritöös esitatud tulemused aitavad uurijatel paremini aru saada MOOCi fenomenist ja kursuste korraldajatel pakkuda tulevikus kulutõhusamaid MOOCe. Uurimistulemustest võib järeldada, et MOOCide korraldajad peavad pakkuma erinevaid tegevusi ja abiallikaid, mis oleksid suunatud konkreetsetele sihtrühmadele. See võib hõlbustada personaliseeritud õppimist ja õppijate tõhusat kaasatust õppeprotsessis.
One opportunity to facilitate personal and professional development is to participate in massive open online courses (MOOCs). MOOCs participants have greater autonomy compared to traditional physical classes. In addition, considering the huge number of participants and diversity of their backgrounds, it is a challenge for MOOCs instructors to engage them all in learning. The impact of background variables on engagement, which in turn may influence performance, remains understudied. The doctoral thesis aimed to study MOOCs participants’ background variables and their impact on course enrolment and completion probability, and explore different behavioural and cognitive engagement clusters among completers in terms of background variables and performance. The thesis focused on a MOOC “About Programming”. The MOOC participants’ and completers’ background variables were examined in comparison to MOOCs “Introduction to Programming I” and “Introduction to Programming II”. Females and those with a lower education level dominated in the MOOC “About Programming”. In this course, among completers there was no difference by gender and employment statuses. Master’s degree holders were more likely to complete the MOOC, while inexperienced in programming were less likely to complete it. The same results about completers were found in the MOOC “Introduction to Programming I”. With regard to performance, no difference between the MOOC “About programming” completers and non-completers in the average number of attempts per quiz was found. But non-completers made on average more attempts per programming task and received lower scores per quiz. The analysis of behavioural and cognitive engagement solely among completers indicated that they cannot be considered a homogeneous group. In terms of behavioural engagement, there were identified 4 groups based on the amount of activities a completer engaged with during the MOOC. The study results indicated that in a MOOC there can be completers who engage with all activities, as well as those who engage with only a few activities. In terms of cognitive engagement, there were identified 5 groups that were engaged with help sources at different frequency. The results indicated that the different frequency, with which completers use different help sources, can be considered as a sign of persistent desire to successfully complete the MOOC. In addition, it was revealed that the use of help sources can be applied as a basis for identifying and measuring cognitive engagement in the MOOC context. The background variables and performance of completers from different identified groups varied. The results of the thesis can prove quite beneficial to the scientific literature to understand the phenomenon of MOOC. This comprehension in terms of a variety of background variables, engagement patterns and performance can be helpful for course instructors to develop cost-effective MOOCs and provide personalised learning where different course activities and help sources can be targeted at specific groups.
One opportunity to facilitate personal and professional development is to participate in massive open online courses (MOOCs). MOOCs participants have greater autonomy compared to traditional physical classes. In addition, considering the huge number of participants and diversity of their backgrounds, it is a challenge for MOOCs instructors to engage them all in learning. The impact of background variables on engagement, which in turn may influence performance, remains understudied. The doctoral thesis aimed to study MOOCs participants’ background variables and their impact on course enrolment and completion probability, and explore different behavioural and cognitive engagement clusters among completers in terms of background variables and performance. The thesis focused on a MOOC “About Programming”. The MOOC participants’ and completers’ background variables were examined in comparison to MOOCs “Introduction to Programming I” and “Introduction to Programming II”. Females and those with a lower education level dominated in the MOOC “About Programming”. In this course, among completers there was no difference by gender and employment statuses. Master’s degree holders were more likely to complete the MOOC, while inexperienced in programming were less likely to complete it. The same results about completers were found in the MOOC “Introduction to Programming I”. With regard to performance, no difference between the MOOC “About programming” completers and non-completers in the average number of attempts per quiz was found. But non-completers made on average more attempts per programming task and received lower scores per quiz. The analysis of behavioural and cognitive engagement solely among completers indicated that they cannot be considered a homogeneous group. In terms of behavioural engagement, there were identified 4 groups based on the amount of activities a completer engaged with during the MOOC. The study results indicated that in a MOOC there can be completers who engage with all activities, as well as those who engage with only a few activities. In terms of cognitive engagement, there were identified 5 groups that were engaged with help sources at different frequency. The results indicated that the different frequency, with which completers use different help sources, can be considered as a sign of persistent desire to successfully complete the MOOC. In addition, it was revealed that the use of help sources can be applied as a basis for identifying and measuring cognitive engagement in the MOOC context. The background variables and performance of completers from different identified groups varied. The results of the thesis can prove quite beneficial to the scientific literature to understand the phenomenon of MOOC. This comprehension in terms of a variety of background variables, engagement patterns and performance can be helpful for course instructors to develop cost-effective MOOCs and provide personalised learning where different course activities and help sources can be targeted at specific groups.
Description
Väitekirja elektrooniline versioon ei sisalda publikatsioone
Keywords
didactics, informatics, e-learning, MOOCs