#MCN2013 Presentation – MOOCs and Museums

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I presented the theory and modeling behind my practical learning model the MOOCseum to an energetic and excited group of museum practitioners at the Museum Computer Network in Montreal on November 23, 2013.  Despite three separate issues with linking my computer to the projector (somewhat cursed these past two presentations), I kept on-point with the presentation, and feedback was not only well-received but unique to practical issues, important for me as both a scholar as well as a practitioner.

I recorded the audio of the session; apologies for the first 30 seconds of slide issues, but the audio is a serviceable compendium to the slides.

Download: moocseum.m4a


My audience was diverse in knowledge, ranging from MOOC neophytes to the team behind the MoMA MOOC, and this presented a real unique opportunity for me to present the research and practice with depth as well as engagement (the crowd included museum directors, curators, digital asset managers, technology directors, administrators for university museums, a librarian, a Ph.D candidate in Urban Education studying MOOCs, and the team behind the MoMA MOOC offered via Coursera).  I believe I succeeded, and look forward to continuing the conversation with these museum and education stakeholders.
 
There was two requests that have kept me thinking since leaving the conference.  The first was an invitation to propose an education-based panel at next year’s MCN, looking at examples from past, present and future of how museums are using cutting-edge EdTech theory and pedagogy, with examples of success and failures.  I love the idea and hope I can count on my new friends from MCN to help shape it when it comes time.  The second has to do with directly bringing MOOCs to museums:

When the Weisman Museum declined to move forward with the MOOCseum project as tied into Pepperdine’s Boundless Horizons opportunity, I decided to make this presentation a DIY about bringing MOOCs to small and moderate-sized museums, which would have been a rather formal and technical discussion about platforms and instructional design.  Upon engaging the museums of MCN at the conference, I saw an excitement about MOOCs that lacked the characteristics (and cynicism) in the education sector.  I also saw interest from all museum shapes, sorts and sizes.  I think the shift was important for the conference, but I now also see the need for a primer on MOOCs for museums:  what are MOOCs, why are they a good fit for museums, how can a museum build one of their own, and what are the obstacles and opportunities that will come in the development.  I told Mairin and several others who retweeted the request that I would work on a leaflet, but I think to do this right it needs to be slightly more substantial, a research-grounded pamphlet.  

So I will get to work.  Museum folks, what do you want to know about MOOCs, whether you should offer one, and how you would go about doing it?  Education people, what can we not forget to add?