The University may be proud of the “How Things Work” Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) I’m teaching, but my workload in producing that MOOC is my own doing. When I volunteered to teach the MOOC, I was committing to doing the best job I could do. In what promises to be a highly competitive online educational landscape, only the best courses will endure. I have been investing in that future.
If there’s a problem, it lies in my underestimation of the work required. Despite years of science television experience, I was way, way off. Producing television is very time-consuming and a good MOOC is to a classroom lecture as television or a movie is to a play. Moreover, I’m a perfectionist and my course is very hands-on, so I’m almost always doing something on camera. Lastly, nearly all of my MOOCs editing and graphical design work require a deep understanding of the science content — an issue I’ve encountered frequently, often painfully, in science television. It was my own choice, not the University’s, to produce the MOOC myself and I believe it was the right choice.
I may be an extreme case, but I think that good teaching requires hard work, serious thought and often long hours. If it doesn’t, technology will soon replace it. Education is changing, like it or not, and part of its future lies online in a world market with vast competition. There are a million apps for your cellphone, but only a few that get any attention. The same will be true for MOOCs or whatever they evolve into — only the best will have lasting impact.
U.Va. made the decision early on to produce only the best MOOCs. I think I speak for all the MOOC-makers here at U.Va. in saying that producing a best MOOC is demanding work. Our hours may vary, but we’re all highly committed teachers who are trying to convey our knowledge, our understanding and our enthusiasm to a diverse and worldwide audience. No one should undertake that task lightly.
Lou Bloomfield is a physics professor at the University. This column is a response to the Managing Board’s April 3 lead editorial “Digital learning, digital labor.”
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