FAQS
Who takes MOOCs?
Anyone, regardless of whether they have studied before, can register for MOOCs. You can also turn a MOOC into a SPOC for on-campus students.
How many learners are there?
Massive online open courses see exponential growth during COVID-19 pandemic. They have reached 220 million learners worldwide by 2021, excluding China1. As of April 2022, UTokyo Coursera and edX have respectively more than 130 million and 490 million registered learners.
1Dhawal Shah (2021), The Report by class central, https://www.classcentral.com/report/mooc-stats-2021/. Retrieved on June, 17 2022.
How is MOOC different from UTokyo OCW?
UTokyo OCW (Open Course Ware) delivers regular classes online. All videos are unedited and the video length is no different from regular classes held in classroom.
In contrast, MOOCs are developed specifically for online learning. Video length is optimized to mostly 10-minute-long to help students stay focused, and various assessment tools are embedded to monitor learning progress. Student interaction and collaboration is one key component of MOOC courses. Discussion and peer assessment are often included to foster effective learning. Upon completion, one might pay for a MOOC certificate if he/she meets the passing requirements of the course.
How is MOOC different from "gacco"?
MOOC is global, whereas “gacco” is domestic. To reach worldwide learners, the medium of instruction of UTokyo MOOCs is basically English. A few courses are in Japanese with English subtitles.
How would you help if I were not confident in delivering classes in English?
Our Center covers a certain amount for language proofreading and editing services. We also offer departmental-level consultation on speech communication in English. Please send us your English lecture scripts or reach out for further assistance. Prompter is available to use, which allows you to read a script whilst maintaining direct eye contact with the audience.