MASSIVE OPEN ONLINE COURSE DEVELOPMENT: EXPERIENCE OF A REGIONAL UNIVERSITY

Abstract

The article is devoted to the issue of the need to develop and implement a massive open online course for a foreign language teaching. The purpose of the study is to determine the prospects for the use of educational resources, as well as to describe a developed massive open online course. Theoretical foundations for the development and implementation of massive open online courses in domestic and foreign pedagogical practice are analyzed in this research. The article indicates the main features and types of massive open online courses and such approaches as connectivism and constructivism. Prior to the development of a massive open online course, the authors conducted a survey among 89 respondents of 2-3 year students of the educational program “Foreign Language: Two Foreign Languages” of Pavlodar Pedagogical University. The authors of the article carried out diagnostics of students’ interest, aspiration and skills in the use of massive open online courses in the learning process. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was applied to check the reliability and internal consistency of the authors’ questionnaire. The R. Likert scale was used in questionnaire to demonstrate the degree of agreement. SPSS Statistics software was used for statistical data processing. The analysis of the questionnaires illustrated students’ desire to study the learning material using the online course. In the proposed work, the authors considered the following parameters: according to the content, authentic and multimedia materials were used for the development of four types of skills (reading, speaking, listening, writing); on the organization and methods of teaching, gaming technologies, feedback from students and a forum were utilized; tests were used to evaluate the assignments. The study describes the goal, objectives, expected results, sections of the massive open online course “Learning English: Vocabulary & Grammar, Exercises & Tests”, developed on the basis of the university official platform.