IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/epplan/v88y2021ics0149718921000409.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Theory of change models deepen online learning evaluation

Author

Listed:
  • Chesniak, Olivia M.
  • Drane, Denise
  • Young, Celine
  • Hokanson, Sarah Chobot
  • Goldberg, Bennett B

Abstract

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have gained traction as resources for professional development. This article presents the method that we used to evaluate a professional development MOOC for postdoctoral trainees that was created by a university consortium in the US. Most approaches to evaluating MOOCs focus on analysis of participation, outcomes from course assignments, self-reported learning outcomes, course completion and user pathways through the online content or clickstream data. Few published evaluations describe in detail how learning happens within online courses and the anticipated medium and longer term cognitive and behavioral outcomes on participants. This work aims to guide those who are designing, implementing and evaluating MOOCs through applying theories of change to focus evaluation on the process of learning. This approach can be used as a complement to traditional approaches for evaluating MOOCs. We described how we worked with the MOOC team building the content to develop a theory of change for each module (or lesson) within the MOOC and used the theory of change to guide evaluation of short and medium term participant cognitive, affective and attitudinal, and behavioral outcomes. Finally, we share lessons learned and suggestions for implementing theories of change in both the design and evaluation phases of MOOC development.

Suggested Citation

  • Chesniak, Olivia M. & Drane, Denise & Young, Celine & Hokanson, Sarah Chobot & Goldberg, Bennett B, 2021. "Theory of change models deepen online learning evaluation," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:epplan:v:88:y:2021:i:c:s0149718921000409
    DOI: 10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2021.101945
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0149718921000409
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2021.101945?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chapman, S.A. & Goodman, S. & Jawitz, J. & Deacon, A., 2016. "A strategy for monitoring and evaluating massive open online courses," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 55-63.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Francisco Gómez Gómez & Pilar Munuera Gómez, 2021. "Use of MOOCs in Health Care Training: A Descriptive-Exploratory Case Study in the Setting of the COVID-19 Pandemic," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-16, September.
    2. Gregori, Pablo & Martínez, Vicente & Moyano-Fernández, Julio José, 2018. "Basic actions to reduce dropout rates in distance learning," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 48-52.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:epplan:v:88:y:2021:i:c:s0149718921000409. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/evalprogplan .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.