As you enter edX on your mobile phone, you are prompted with “looking for a new challenge?” This rhetorical question allows millions a quick swipe and scroll through a plethora of course options that are as easily accessible as popular social media apps. The accessibility of edX and easily browsing people are browsing edX course options as we speak with over 1600 free online courses and 12 million members with connections to some of the most sought-after universities. Edx is a non-profit platform of MOOCs that is attempting to reach all learners, those who need a community and those who can self-pace; those who are seeking credentialing and those who are learning for interest.
Modality / Instance:
My team, AwesomeSauce, has chosen the modality of educational apps, explicitly looking at edX and its platform. In my interest, working in a high school, the use of educational apps is plentiful, and the mobile phone is as worthy of a learning device as is the students MacBooks.
Perspective / Interest:
As mentioned, high school classrooms use many educational apps. A common and popular is Khan Academy, designed for a school-aged audience, edX is pushing me in my thinking. Is there a place of edX in the classroom just as there is Khan Academy? The challenge of edX and its accessibility intrigued me, and through a more in-depth dive with Dr. Devries, I am intrigued by the ability to edX resources and courses in the classroom.
Critical Questions / Explorations:
I am exploring the idea of what might be the difference in the semantics of the world free versus open in the online learning, particularly through the access of the more recent launch of the mobile app. Thus far, I am intrigued by the terms of service and privacy policy of edX, in comparison to other platforms. I am currently enrolled in a “Blended Learning” course (ironic) and have noticed that MIT has been the exploration of sharing the edX course content with high schools as a pilot for a blended program (May 2017).
In my critical inquiry, I wonder (many things at the moment but will try to narrow it down):
- What are the barriers to the participation of the course?
- How do policy and legalities create barriers to more common use of resources?
- Do pedagogy and language shift as edX ventures into a bigger arena of accessibility?
- Does having a mobile app provide same or better access to learning?
These questions are guiding my critical process–for now. I suspect there will be other paths I may wander but I am intrigued if this is a new means to support students for university prep, admission testing, AP exams and other content.