UC3M welcomes EMOOCS 2017 International Conference
In the framework of its commitment to educational innovation in the digital world
5/16/17
Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are a milestone in the use of technology for education. Their reach, possibilities and potential are immense. However, they are not limited to global coverage and open education. The same technology can be used to improve teaching on campus and education in companies and institutions. With the slogan “Digital education, out to the world and back to the campus,” Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) is hosting the 5th European MOOCs Stakeholders Summit 2017 (EMOOCS2017) from 22 to 26 May on the Leganés campus.
The design of personalized learning, creation of digital content, motivation strategies, privacy monitoring, gamification, virtual and remote laboratories and mobile technologies are some of the subjects that will be addressed during the five days of the conference. This scientific event is the largest European conference in this field and one of the most important in the world. It will include the participation of distinguished researchers and seven keynote speakers and representatives from leaders in the sector. In addition, on this occasion, the UC3M will also be holding the 2017 OpenedX Conference in the same week. This will help change the Leganés campus into a center of technological experts in the creation and dissemination of online courses.
MOOCs are free courses for any kind of academic or socio-professional profile. Their quality is guaranteed by the institutions that offer them. They can be used as a supplement by residential students, orientation for future students and, of course, to disseminate knowledge openly and globally. MOOCs have revolutionized traditional education systems, as they make it possible not only to offer quality open global education, but also contribute to improving traditional teaching on campuses through SPOCs—Small Private Online Courses.
This trend in online courses, which utilize state-of-the-art technologies from the audiovisual world and the most innovative teaching, has traditionally been led by universities in the USA and Europe, with many of the open courses in English. However, Spanish-speaking countries have in recent years made a strong commitment to reinforcing the presence of Spanish in this field. The recent “State-of-the-art Report on the Adoption of MOOCs in Higher Education in Latin America and Europe,” a result of the MOOC-Maker Project, estimates there were around a thousand MOOCs created by institutions in Spain and Latin America at the beginning of 2005, with more than half of those produced in Spain.
In the context of this initiative to reinforce and expand Spanish in this type of platform, the MOOC sessions will be held in Spanish on the last day, May 26th. It intends to be a forum for meeting and debate in Spanish about the latest advances with regard to research on MOOCs, and for sharing innovative experiences in different contexts and areas of knowledge.
MOOCs are an essential element in the activities outlined in the UC3M Strategic Plan 2016-2022. SInce February 2014, the University has been a member of edX, the non-profit digital education platform that has become an international model. It is promoted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University to offer MOOCs. Moreover, the UC3M has been part of miríadaX since its inception in 2013, when this platform was created. It was initially run by Telefónica Educación Digital and Universia, which has become the standard in Latin America.
Further information about the EMOOCs conference:
Social Media:
Twitter: @emoocssummit #EMOOCs2017
Vídeo EMoocs 2017 Social Media: https://youtu.be/NDP-DQ4g94o
