Title: Instructions and guidance
Course: Digivisio DEMO: Planning and creating a MOOC > Section: Pedagogical planning of a MOOC

Good instructions and guidance support the progress and completion of the course by the participants and can consequently reduce the drop-out rate. This is why it is important to prepare the instructions and guidance for participants carefully.

You will now learn a bit more about the role of instructions and guidance in MOOCs using the material below.

In practice, giving instructions in MOOCs (both xMOOCs and cMOOCs) means that the course workspace contains clear instructions on what learners should do in order to pass the course. Instructions and guidance must be provided at different stages of the course, rather than only in connection with assignments and tests. In this sense, instructions can also be referred to as cohesion, as they help the participant to understand the whole better, anticipate what comes next, and recall topics and content dealt with earlier. Cohesion also anchors the topics to be learned together and puts each one in proportion to the rest, giving the learner a clear picture of how the different themes are linked to each other and how content areas that have already been studied can be linked and applied to each other.

Learner:
The learner’s task is to read the course instructions and follow them. It is also important that the learner asks for guidance when they need it.

Teacher:

The teacher's task is to guide and instruct learners throughout the course. Well-prepared, systematic instructions support the learners’ learning process in MOOCs, and especially in xMOOCs, where the teacher does not provide guidance during the course. The communication methods and practices used in the course and between different actors must also be clearly stated. In practice, this means that the learners know whom to contact if they have questions about completing the course or in case of a technical problem.

Examples of text that guides the learner and advances them on the course:

Acknowledging the performances the learner has already completed and encouraging them to continue, for example, ‘Well done, you passed the test! Now continue with the xxx...’

Summing up what has been learned, for example: ‘In this module/on this page, you have learned about x...’

Motivating the learner for the following step by explaining what comes next, for example: ‘Now that you have successfully completed this module, you can continue on to the next module on x...’

In addition to instruction text, virtual guidance methods can also be used both in xMOOCs and cMOOCs, such as short guidance videos produced by the teacher featuring the teacher themselves or an avatar they have created with AI, text, and audio-based videos, or audio files only. Simple animated images, including GIFs, can also be used to support the coherence of the MOOC.

TIP

Did you know you can make GIFs in PowerPoint? This means you don’t necessarily need a special drawing program as GIFs can be quite successfully created in PowerPoint! See below for an example of a GIF created in PowerPoint. You can select suitable images or elements and texts yourself and adapt them to the style of your MOOC.

For more information: Using PowerPoint’s Animated GIF Function | CreativePro Network

Fill in the instructions and guidance of the MOOC in your pedagogical manuscript. Pay attention to at least the following:

- Instructions on what learners need to do to pass the course.
- Are the assessment criteria and the pass score clearly stated?
- Does each assignment come with instructions for its completion and assessment?
- Are the instructions clear and understandable?
- Have instructions been provided for communication and interaction?

References

Pekkarinen, V., Uusi-Mäkelä, M., Valsta, S., & Tolonen, T. (2023). Retention in MOOC courses – what can we learn? - Theseus. Laurea University of Applied Sciences.