Lessons Learned on Developing PSU-MOOC: a Case of Introduction to Astronomy

Abstract

This study aims to present an example of a learning plan for the Introduction to Astronomy course in massive open online courses (MOOCs), and take the lessons of knowledge, skills, experiences, problems, and opportunities that teachers who produce online teaching materials for PSU-MOOC received from the subject Introduction to Astronomy. There are four steps in the MOOC process, including pre-production, production, post-production, and evaluation and maintenance. We present the process of MOOCs development: guidelines to develop course content, material preparation, video content production, and the course management after production. The outline of the content in the subject Introduction to Astronomy was introduced as an example for teachers who are interested in designing and developing astronomy courses in MOOCs. The conclusions of the study are as follows: 1) a massive open online course on Introduction to Astronomy has been developed, which covers five learning hours and consists of three main chapters, divided into ten lessons. In the course are basic knowledge of astronomy, celestial coordinate systems and stargazing, and astronomical phenomena related to life on Earth. 2) In the step of design and development of MOOCs, we found that curriculum designers, technical specialists, and expert instructors are very important factors to success. A productive team and good preparation are very crucial for the effective design of MOOCs.