Journal of Advances in Education and Philosophy (JAEP)
Volume-2 | Issue-02 | 54-64
Original Research Article
Proposing a Blended MOOC Framework for Iraqi Higher Education (Current Status, Needs, Challenges, and Opportunities)
Qusay Abboodi Ali, Norshuhada Shiratuddin
Published : March 30, 2018
Abstract
There are many challenges and difficulties faced by the Iraqi learners in
their studies inside the traditional classroom. These are attributed to a number of
reasons such as the limitation of time, the difficulty of understanding the course
material, the limited interaction among the learners and between them and the
lecturers, and the delay in providing feedback, and so on. The emergence of Massive
Open Online Courses (MOOCs) had an impact on the learning process for the past
few years. Yet, there are still a number of questions about how to meet the learners’
needs of through distance learning via MOOC particularly for the Iraqi learners, as
evidenced by the very high drop-out rates in the current MOOC courses. The
researchers also do not understand deeply the learners’ needs, the different learners’
cultures and experiences in MOOCs. To help build such a concept, the researchers of
this study conducted an in-depth investigation on the motivated learners and their
perceptions and experiences of learning by a qualitative survey (interviews) at
Baghdad & Tikrit Universities. The aim of this study is to examine whether Iraqi
Higher Education Institutions need blended MOOC to support the traditional
learning in Iraq. The results display that the majority of the participants need the
blended learning to reduce the obstacles and challenges in the traditional learning
and current MOOCs models. The findings also disclose that the students prefer
learning through blended learning based on their environment (language and culture)
rather than the current MOOCs courses.