The Potential Social， Economic and Environmental Benefits of MOOCs： Operational and Historical Comparisons with a Massive “Closed Online” Course

Andy Lane， Sally Caird and Martin Weller

Massive Online Open Courses （MOOCs） have recently become a much discussed development within higher education. Much of this debate focuses on the philosophical and operational similarities and differences between the types of MOOCs that have emerged to date， the learner completion rates and how they can be sustained. In contrast there has been much less discussion about how such courses do， or do not， fit in with existing higher education policy and practice in terms of the social， economic and environmental benefits. This paper begins to address this issue by comparing and contrasting current MOOCs with one large population ICT-enhanced， mostly online Open University UK course presented a decade earlier and how they have both served， or might serve， broader social， economic or environmental objectives. The paper concludes that while MOOCs are forcing a re-conceptualisation of higher education study， much can also be learned from previous and existing large population mainly online courses from open universities.

Keywords： MOOCs； online education； policy and practice； environmental impact； social impact； economic impact

CiteSpace II： Analyzing Lifelong Learning Literature

Zhong Zhou and Han Shuangmiao

Lifelong learning is an important means to develop knowledge economy and construct the learning society. This article uses CiteSpace II to visualize and analyze lifelong learning literature in an attempt to detect hot topics and emerging trends in the field. Findings suggest that important articles in the lifelong learning literature mostly center on learning theories （for example， situated learning） to validate lifelong learning both at the theoretical and practical levels and that certain critical aspects of lifelong learning remain inadequately explored.

Keywords： lifelong learning； lifelong education； bibliometrics； visualization； CiteSpace

Academic Staff in Chinese Open Universities： Classifications and Roles

Liu Yongquan， Wu Lina and Deng Changsheng

Featuring the integration of technology into education， open universities differ from conventional universities in aspects such as teaching management， course development， and instructional model； these differences predetermine the unique composition of their academic staff. Maintaining such a staff is a real challenge. It is posited that open universities need to make informed decisions on what types of teachers are needed and what their respective roles are. This article first analyzes the staff composition of the Open University in the UK and University of Phoenix in the USA. Drawing from the experience of these two universities， it then proposes a framework of staff composition and roles for open universities in China. It is argued that open universities in China should have a tutorial and learning support staff to practice the learner-centered principle and a course development and presentation staff to practice the course-centered principle. Suggested roles for staff are also discussed.

Keywords： open university； academic staff development； staff classification； staff role A Training Course for MOOC Production to Enhance Teachers’ Educational Technology Competence

Wang Shengqin and Feng Xuesong

Drawing on the Learning Ecology Model， this article proposes a Teaching Ecology Model for MOOC. It elaborates on using this model to design a training course for MOOC production so that the training is dynamic， open and adaptive. Feedback from the implementation of this course shows that it can enhance trainees’ competence in MOOC production and educational technology in general.

Keywords： MOOC production training； learning ecology； flipped classroom； blended teaching

Towards a Consortium-based Model for Academic Credit Bank Operation

Guo Fuqiang

The academic credit bank system is a mechanism whereby educational institutions cooperate with each other according to established rules. Therefore， whether the system can operate efficiently is affected by the effectiveness of the cooperative mechanism which impacts on the engagement of educational institutions. It is argued that an effective way of promoting the system is to form a consortium on the principles of voluntary membership， qualification check with withdrawal at the discretion of member institutions， equal consultation， as well as seeking common ground while reserving differences. Such a consortium is believed to be conducive to devising cooperative mechanisms， formulating rules， building consensus， promoting cooperation， sharing resources， selecting member institutions’ courses， and recognizing credits awarded by member institutions. This article also describes the operation model of Shaanxi Credit Bank for Continuing Education.

Keywords： consortium； consultation； rules； consensus； cooperation； operation model

Using Adaptive Gene Expression Programming to Analyze Distance Education Enrolment Data

Zhu Cuiyun， He Yafeng， Cheng Zhongmei and Gong Wenyin

With the development of Internet technology， distance education is increasingly important in contemporary education. Adaptive Gene Expression Programming is adopted in this article to analyze distance education enrolment data. This programming can adjust crossover and mutation probability to reduce the sensitivity of setting parameters manually. Based on analysis of existing enrolment data， it can predict enrolment size in the following years so that educational institutions can make corresponding adjustments. This programming is used to analyze and predict enrolment for the researchers’ institution.

Keywords： distance education； enrolment； Gene Expression Programming； modeling； prediction