By Amy
Kohmetscher, Instructional Development Specialist, Ohio State University,
Agricultural Technical Institute.
This autumn, CenUSA Bioenergy will be launching its first MOOC, or massive open online course, available to anyone with an internet connection. The course, “Introduction to Perennial Grasses for Biofuels” will supplement CenUSA’s library of educational materials, videos, research articles and lessons already created to educate students and the interested public. Dr. Deana Namuth-Covert, Director of Online Education and Outreach at Ohio State, has been assisting the CenUSA education and extension team to organize and release the new MOOC.
“In many
ways, I feel like MOOCs are doing what we’ve been doing in extension programs
all along in the land grant system - providing information to help people improve
their businesses, grow their careers, manage their household finances, learn
new parenting skills, etc. MOOCs harness electronic tools to package curriculum
and make it available to literally anyone in the world, as long as they have
access to the internet,” said Namuth-Covert,
The course is designed for individuals aged 14 and up. Content is available in assorted forms and varies in depth which will appeal to learners of diverse backgrounds. Topics covered in the course will include an introduction to perennial grasses as a feedstock, perennial grass growth and development, establishment of perennial grass stands, stand management, and biochar as a co-product. Learners will discover these topics in a self-paced, self-directed manner through the use of videos, extension articles, lessons, and quizzes. The course will not have a specific timeline or formal instructor.
The MOOC
will enable learners who are new to the topic to progress through "packaged"
curriculum content and achieve mastery of the topic. As Boy Scout and Girl
Scouts have used physical badges to recognize achievement, participants in the
CenUSA MOOC will be able to earn “digital badges” for completing each of the topic
modules and for the entire course. These earned badges may be helpful for those
seeking professional development or training.
“What is fascinating about coupling the CenUSA curriculum with a learning object repository, something like eXtension, is that the stand alone materials can also be used by someone interested in just a single piece... In this way, having both the stand alone materials, as well as a packaged MOOC will provide for a greater impact of the taxpayer's investment,” said Namuth-Covert.
In addition
to the curriculum learning packages, the MOOC will provide a venue for open
discussion of bioenergy topics, and allow for assessment of learning. Leveraging
the advantages of a packaged curriculum will advance the mission of both the
CenUSA education and extension teams to provide science-based knowledge through
shared bioenergy curriculum and informal outreach programs.
Sign up for the MOOC by clicking the following link, and selecting “create new account”.
Amy Kohmetscher, CenUSA collaborator and Instructional Development Specialist for Ohio State – ATI, will act as the course coordinator, directing content questions to experts, and assisting participants with any technical issues that arise during the course. For more information regarding the MOOC please contact Dr. Deana Namuth-Covert at namuth-covert.1@osu.edu
