Some Thoughts on the MOOC, Part I

Sounds like some sort of bizarre memoir, doesn't it?

A few weeks back, I believe I mentioned that I had signed up for a MOOC (i.e., Massive Open Online Course). The MOOC in this case was called The Power of the Pen: Writing Identities and Social Issues in Fiction and Nonfiction, offered through The University of Iowa's International Writing Program (that's a lot of words to name a program!). Though the course is technically still open until July 4, I'm in the final stretch and thought I'd share some of my impressions about it with you. Of course, time is short for me this morning, and I have pre-written none of this (of course), so this week I'll just give an overview of the course and next week, or the week after, I'll give more of my impressions on the course.

I've never done a MOOC before, so I have nothing to compare it to. Pretty much all of my formal learning has been done in a classroom, so this was a little different, and I liked a lot about how the course was structured. After signing up and getting confirmation, you were directed to a course outline and information page, which in turn was subdivided into sections, with each section being used to summarize how the course worked, how to access discussion groups, and an optional assignment that involved reading several short pieces and participating in discussion groups with course instructors. Also, there was an initial push to get participants to form and join their own discussion groups. After surfing through the (long) list (remember, I started a week and a half late), I chose to join the "Literary Fiction and Creative Nonfiction" group, which has twenty members at the moment.

I should probably re-read my User Agreement before posting this, but...

Each week, new content was posted, based on a specific theme, such as "Establishing and exploring identity and community." Content included usually three video lectures by an author (usually around 20 minutes each); three pieces of required reading, which generally consisted of one fiction, one personal essay or memoir, and one creative nonfiction piece; a menu of optional reads; instructor-led discussion groups related to the week's topic; and a writing assignment. Assignments would be uploaded, critiques given and received--and credit given.

Course credit was received for participation: upload an assignemtn, receive six points. Participate in one of the weekly, instructor led discussion groups, receive two points per comment. Provide feedback to fellow participants on their assignments, two points per comment. The maximum number of points was 100; passing the course required 74. (There are maximums in certain categories, so you can't get more than 32 points for class discussion or providing feedback; this is to push people into participating as broadly as possible, and not allowing them to get by just making a lot of comments) There is also a certificate of completion that can be received. This requires successfully completing the course, plus paying a $50 fee. Perhaps this looks good to agents and editors when establishing credentials; I opted for the cheap option.

So. I signed up, filled out my profile, and went through the course overview. At that point, it was time to play catch up. Next time, I'll share actual impressions of the course. That's all for now!