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MarchApril2014

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69 BizEd March/April 2014 Ch r istoph e r FutCh e r /th i n ksto Ck In lIght of the low student completion rates in MOOCs (See "Most Users Still Abandon MOOCs" on previous page), many universities are experimenting with ways to encourage more student engage- ment, increase completion rates, and improve learning outcomes in these deliv- ery formats. One such school is Yale Uni- versity in New Haven, Connecticut, which has launched what it calls its "next genera- tion of free online courses." Among four new courses, offered through Coursera, is "Financial Markets," designed by Nobel Prize winner Robert Shiller, the school's Sterling Professor of Economics. The other three will cover topics in architecture, psy- chology, and law. The four MOOCs will integrate several new elements, such as interactive features, assessment tools, and shorter lecture for- mats—each video will be about ten min- utes long. The platform now also allows instructors to insert quiz questions and participatory activities at any point during the lectures. In another departure from typical MOOC format, students will be required to start the course at the same time and turn in weekly homework assignments by posted deadlines. Although students who success- fully complete the courses cannot earn cred- its at Yale, they pay a fee of US$49 to be in the Verified Certificate track. The track provides verification to prospective employ- ers that students have completed the course with satisfactory performance. Craig Wright, the school's academic director of online education, bills the courses as "opportunities for those around the world to get to know some of Yale's great teachers." It's likely that the industry also will be watching to see if new features such as those that Yale has integrated could lead to better outcomes in MOOC formats. Yale Launches 'Next- Generation' MOOCs Career Planning Gets Gamified It can be a challenge to keep undergraduate business students engaged with their schools' career centers. But Loyola University Maryland's Sellinger School of Business and Management in Balti- more has solved that problem by gamifying the process. The Sellinger School has created Career Navigator, an online program that uses rewards and social media to guide undergraduate students in career development. Career Navigator has attracted more than 1,500 students—a third of Loyola's undergraduate population—since its Septem- ber 2013 launch. Students create Career Navigator accounts online and connect those accounts to their social media profiles. They then earn points for social media activity such as following Loyola's career- related Twitter feeds or checking in on Foursquare at career-development events. Students also can earn points for participating in career-building activities such as networking events, career fairs, résumé workshops, and internship applications. Participants can redeem their points for prizes, such as Loyola-branded hoodies and water bottles, tickets to a Bal- timore Ravens football game, chances to win a plasma- screen television, and lunch with Sellinger School deans. The program was created in response to a challenging job market as a way "to meet students where they are," says Karyl B. Leggio, dean of the Sellinger School. Using gamification in the career development process, she adds, "makes career develop- ment highly visible, fun, and effective." Learn more about Career Navigator at www.sellinger nav.com.

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