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Self-Regulated Learning in MOOCs: Do Open Badges and
Certificates of Attendance Motivate Learners to Invest More
Simone Haug, Katrin Wodzicki, Ulrike Cress and Johannes Moskaliuk
activities that may not be interesting but allow them to
feel both autonomous and related to others within the
social world” (Deci & Ryan, 1991, p. 255). Siemens sees
MOOCs as a “large public experiment exploring the impact
of the Internet on education” (Siemens, 2012). It was
the dissemination of web 2.0 tools like weblogs, podcasts,
RSS, wikis and the mobile devices that paved the way for
the breakthrough of MOOCs (Siemens, Tittenberger &
Anderson, 2008). Open access to all learning resources
over the web was key to this new format of distance education.
Different web 2.0 tools are available to support
information transmission and communication, but participants
are free to choose the tools that they use. Downes
recommends that participants “use the tools and just
practice with them” (Downes 2012, p. 497) and only listen
to and read contributions that meet their own individual
interests (Downes, 2012, p. 496). Participants are asked
to create their own personal learning environment by
choosing the tools that seem appropriate for them.
Types of action regarded as essential for learning in
MOOCs are aggregating content, managing and working
on content (remix, relate, repurpose), creating and sharing
content (Downes, 2012; Kop, 2011). Participants in
MOOCs can aggregate the material provided by the organizers,
teachers and other course participants. Material
can be delivered through different platforms such as weblogs,
twitter, e-mail and mailing lists. Participants should
find their own ways to store and manage their collection
of content by using a blog, social bookmarking, twitter or
other tools.
The question arises as to which opportunities and tools
organizers of cMOOCs should provide to enable their
students to connect with other participants. In this paper
we present a case study of Open Course 2012 to investigate
to which degree participants use the technology provided
and how often they use it to connect and exchange
with other participants. We also assess how this affects
their learning activities.
Research Question 1: How does participation develop
over time
Participants working in MOOCs are expected to aggregate
content in relation to their own context and add their
own interpretation. This process of relating or repurposing
content is considered the “hardest part of the process”
in MOOCs (Downes, 2012, p. 496). Learners are then requested
to create their own contributions and share them
with other participants (i.e. through sharing interesting
websites or other resources with other participants). By
sharing their own content, participants start to interact
with the learning community. While they will have to cope
with any negative feedback they receive in response to
what they share, they may also receive support and praise.
In her research about the MOOC PLENK, Kop (2011)
stated that students “mostly felt happy to aggregate, relate
and share resources, but only a minority […] were engaged
in the creation of artifacts, such as blog posts and
videos, and in the distribution of these” (p. 35). So what
does a learner’s involvement actually look like How actively
do participants use the provided tools and exploit
the provided content How did involvement in learning
develop over time To answer this question, we categorized
the learners’ activities into two different forms of
involvement: activities for which participants have no
interaction with other participants (i.e. aggregation and
managing content), or ‘self-centered forms of investment,’
and activities in which people communicate or share content
with others, or ‘interactive forms of investment.’
Research Question 2: Do external motivators support
participation
In traditional courses at universities the main goal for
a student is to pass the final exam, receiving the associated
study credits. This external motivation (Deci & Ryan,
2002) is an important factor that keeps students learning.
In an open course all participation is voluntary and so motivation
may result from different sources: interest in the
content, interest in the course format, getting to know
new people or connecting with the learning community.
Official grades that verify learning are not necessarily
awarded upon completion of MOOCs. However, some
MOOCs offer the option to receive a certificate of attendance
at the end if certain requirements have been completed.
If the participants require such a certificate, they
must provide the study documents they have generated
(e.g. the posts or essays they have written), thereby attaining
their certificate on request without formal assessment.
Open badges are used in some MOOCs as a new
way to acknowledge online activity. Substantial impetus
for applying badging to learning has come from the Mozilla
Foundation, which published a white paper about the
concept in 2010. A software infrastructure was designed
that can support the collecting of badges. An open badge
is primarily an image file that contains information about
who earned the badge, what they had to do to earn it,
when it was issued, and who issued it. They are used as
an alternative to a formal assessment, to recognize, represent
and validate achievement and learning. They can also
foster motivation in learning environments, especially if
they are based on self-regulated learning (cf. Sharples et
al., 2012). The organizers of MOOCs define the performance
requirements, such as written contribution to a
blog, written comments or attending an online session.
Because participants decide on their own if they wish to
attain a badge or certificate of attendance and what actions
they will take to earn the badge, this form of self-directed
external motivation has to be interpreted differently
from that of a formal exam. Nevertheless, award of
an open badge or a certificate of attendance might be an
important motivation factor. In contrast to formal assessments
or grades, open badges and certificates of attendance
do not depend on specific achievements. The idea
is that learner provides published documents, detail how
they participated in the course and request the MOOC
Research Track | 68