MOOC Learners' Use of Discussion Forums to Seek and Receive Help

• In Event: 51.066 - Supporting Online Student Success for All

Abstract

We analyzed the contents of 441 discussion forum posts of three Coursera MOOCs to examine learners’ help-seeking experience. We coded each post for the type of help sought: instrumental, technical, or executive; the type of help received: guidance vs. direct answer; and, the source of help. In all three MOOCs we observed: help-seekers had a higher completion rate compared to all active learners; at least 89% of help-seeking questions were instrumental; type of help received corresponded with type of help sought; and the majority of help-seekers successfully completed the respective assessment. With the instructors or mentors addressing at least 81% of the help-seeking questions, we propose further investigation into how instructional presence level relate to the level of peer interactions.

Authors

• Hedieh Najafi, University of Michigan

• Carol N. Rolheiser, OISE/University of Toronto

• Laurie Harrison, University of Toronto

• William Heikoop