Make the most of your MOOCs

MOOCs have never been more popular. During lockdown, many of you may have registered for one of these online courses offering videos and bibliography to tame skills as diverse as remote leadership or managing a sustainable stock market portfolio. But how many of you made it to the end of the cursus?

90% of those enrolled in a MOOC do not complete the course (according to a Class Central study). Worse: 52% never attend a single class. Do you recognize yourself? Put bad habits in the closet: to help you keep your digital commitments and make the most of your Edflex platform, the Life Project team offers you 4 tips to follow a MOOC efficiently:

#1 Make an appointment

Yes, MOOCs are accessible 24 hours a day. An asset as much as a trap: without a fixed schedule, it is easy to postpone watching a lesson from your lunch break to your evening ... then to the next day ... to the weekend... next Monday... and another week is gone without having given yourself 1 hour to follow this course. Make an appointment with yourself: write the MOOC in your agenda, whether it's 1 p.m. Thursday or 10 a.m. Sunday morning, and stick to your schedule. This discipline will soon become a habit that you will carry out without thinking!

#2 Get involved

It's easier to give up on a project when there are no consequences. Free, lonely, often without a diploma at the end, MOOCs do not help much to feel accountable. In case of demotivation, giving up becomes all the easier ... To avoid it, get involved! Financially: choose a paid course rather than a free one, you will have a good reason to continue. Socially: tell your relatives that you intend to follow this course. The more you share your project with others, the more difficult it will be to give it up! And why not take the opportunity to embark co-MOOCers and take this course together?

#3 Participate!

Many MOOCs are accessible in real time, which allows time for exchanges between teachers and students. Be active! Ask questions during webinars, participate in discussion forums, complete recommended "homework" and submit it on time. Your chosen course is pre-recorded? You can try to recreate a community who will follow the MOOC with you (see tip #2). In any case, take notes and share the teachings on your social networks: by becoming an actor in your learning journey, you will feel more involved.

#4 Aim for the long term

In our era of immediacy, a click on "Participate" without thinking too much about it and done, you are registered for a MOOC - without having taken 5 minutes to consider your motivations. Why did you choose this training? On what criteria? What skills do you want to acquire? And above all, for what professional or personal objective? Take the time to ask yourself these questions before going to a MOOC platform. You wouldn't visit a school without a clue of what you're looking for! Making your MOOC part of a longer-term project will be a valuable source of motivation.

Visit Edflex to access a personalized selection of the best MOOCs on the web! If you have any questions about this service, please do not hesitate to contact the Life Project team.