Investigating Electromechanical Engineering Lecturers’ Perceptions of MOOCs

Abstract

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) offer a wide range of training opportunities for university students. However, to date, little research has been done to assess the level of awareness and knowledge about MOOCS among Spanish engineering lecturers generally or more specifically among those teaching electromechanical engineering. To address this gap in the literature, a quantitative exploratory survey was performed. A questionnaire was sent to electromechanical engineering lecturers working in Universities across Spain and a total of 102 of these were completed and returned. Results from our corpus suggest that, despite the increased prevalence of online teaching in recent times due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a striking lack of knowledge about MOOCs among lecturers: 61.78 % reported having very little or only moderate knowledge of MOOCs. We also observed a very clear generational gap among lecturers in their perceptions about MOOCs. In particular, the percentage of lecturers confessing to having no opinion about MOOCs was only 6.1% for the age group 31 to 40 years old, whereas it was as high as 37.5% for those over 60. For learning and reviewing purposes, MOOCs were perceived as more appropriate for lifelong learning than as a replacement for one-time training courses traditionally offered by universities (8.0% of participants). Our findings lead us to conclude there is a pressing need for action within Spanish universities to raise awareness about MOOCs and support lecturers in the wider use of this type of course.