The Role of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) s in Reforming Higher Education

Abstract

In today’s scenario, the practice using of ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) in educational administration has become a challenging task. In spite of the cost involved in acquiring the ICT infrastructure, there are several other factors which is been a barrier in using it. This includes insufficient knowledge in ICT, inadequate training, lack of conceptual skills and so on. The key factor in assessing the students’ knowledge is through tests and examination which is incorporated in all the education institutions. The scores secured by a student will define the knowledge he/she acquired in his/her course of study which also decides the economic growth of the nation. For an institution to generate productive students, the ecosystem of an educational institution should have an appropriate and well-designed infrastructure, providing quality education through experienced and qualified teachers. Today, many schools, colleges and universities have adopted ICT as a tool for evaluating student knowledge across various domains. ICT has transformed the conservative way of teaching, learning and evaluating a student through e-learning practice in a more efficient and effective manner. This paper describes the impact of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) in higher education and how it motivates the students and teachers in participation. It also focuses on various challenges in implementing MOOCs as part of educational ecosystem.