Cows Go MOOC

What are MOOCs and who started them?

They might sound like some type of Girl Scout cookie at first, but MOOC actually stands for Massive Open Online Course. They’re open college courses offered for free on the web. MOOCs are “massively open” because the classes are available to a wide variety of people- anyone with an internet connection in fact. They’ve been around for several years, but have recently been gaining popularity. For example, David Stavens started a company called Udacity, in which more than 150,000 students signed up for an Artificial Inteligence class last fall (Pappano). Other prestigious schools have also come together to form more major MOOC companies. EdX is a nonprofit start-up from Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with 370,000 students enrolled in first official courses. Princeton, Brown, and Columbia Universities started Coursera, which has 1.7 million participants (Papano). Scott E. Page, a University of Michigan professor who taught Coursera's model thinking course, said that he had 200 years’ worth of students in one class (Tamar). MOOCs are becoming so popular that they can no longer be ignored.

Why should I care?

One of the reasons MOOCs have grown so much is because of the many benefits they provide. First, MOOCs help spread educational opportunities to many more people than traditional universities in the past. This is possible because there is no application process that determines acceptance based on past grades, ACT scores, and other factors. Additionally, there are no set limits of seats to fill so anyone can enroll; hundreds of thousands of students can sign up. This is significantly different from brick and mortar universities. In 2010, BYU had an acceptance rate of 63% (Brigham Young University Admissions). That means that almost half of the applicants were turned away. With MOOCs, a rejection letter is not something to worry about. You’re not in or out; you’re more than a shoe in. All that needs to be done is signing up, so it eliminates the stress of writing essays about why you should be accepted, including letters of recommendation, and listing your extracurricular activities.

But MOOCs have also made education more affordable. In the past, higher-learning classes were offered only by universities, which commonly charged high tuition fees before credit was awarded, not to mention how many semesters it requires to get a degree. Tuition at BYU costs $4,850 over four years for an LDS student and almost twice as much for a non-LDS student (Brigham Young University Admissions). Imagine if a student could gain the same knowledge for free online. Classes are still taught by professors, similar assignments are given, and same information is shared, free via the internet. It can save around $20,000 in four years for a bachelor’s degree. Say goodbye to poor college students, and hello to free education for everyone!

Finally, MOOCs are beneficial because they encourage students to be self-motivated. As Justin Pope, a MOOC participant, explains in the article “One Man’s Experience at the Computer Screen,” that “when a class is free and doesn’t generally produce credentials it takes real self-discipline… to make yourself keep up. These MOOCs simulate a full course at a top-tier university, which means a minimum of 2-3 hours per week of lectures, plus quizzes, homework and reading.” It’s a way for students to learn on their own without being pressured by others, but rather, themselves. MOOCs are a commitment of time rather than money. It requires self-discipline and a thirst for knowledge. If someone where in it for the social partying life of college, they wouldn’t even have that option with MOOCs. Students who take learning seriously are the ones who finish the courses. The motivation isn’t to get an A or to check of off another degree requirement; the motivation is purely a desire to learn.

The Issue: Educational Opportunities in Rural Areas

As great as MOOCs are, we are still underutilizing them in one key area: rural communities. We need to invest in MOOCs to improve the access to knowledge that these small, distant, and under-developed regions have. Often, the main problem with rural communities is that they are not as modernized as their municipal counterparts. White Mountain Community College in New Hampshire provides an example of how behind some of these communities are. There, people have to commute from 75 to 100 miles away just for internet access! Katharine A Enguess, president of White Mountain, says that until recently nearly half of the country residents didn’t have anything but dial-up (Grossman). Roy Silver is a professor of sociology at Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College, a rural institution in an impoverished region. Because people in the area don't have broadband at home, Mr. Silver says many of his students are behind when it comes to internet basics, such as knowing how to perform online searches (Grossman). This makes it harder for those in rural communities to access knowledge because, according to International Journal of Distance Education Technologies, as computers and network technologies advance “digital contents have become the major resources for humans to obtain knowledge” (Page 1). Rural communities are therefore separated from modern cities by both physical distance and access to learning. This creates a problem if they want to learn. Barriers such as the lack of technology in rural communities should not get in the way of learning. Moreover, people have to travel too far from their homes for an education in these areas.

Connectivity and MOOCs.

The lag in educational opportunities that rural communities face is shown by the lack of connectivity with others around the countryside. Research shows that something is being done about the lack of internet in these areas. In Massachusetts, for example, a $71.6-million state-federal effort called MassBroad-band 123 is bringing high-speed internet access to more than 120 communities in several areas of the state, many of them rural (Grossman). This shows that the federal government does indeed care about the resources and education of those in rural areas. The strategy is to invest in these areas, and hopefully it will pay off in the long run. 

It may be helpful for programs such as MassBroadband 123 to bring internet to the community, but what will be additionally be helpful is investing in MOOC companies specifically to bring them to the rural areas. This way, students will be able to stay on the farm and get the education they need via the web instead of commuting 40 miles to college campuses. Emphasis should be placed on investing in MOOCs in particular, because they will be the most beneficial. MOOCs can connect those interested in agriculture around the world, allowing them to form new ideas and techniques, sharing what has worked best for them in the past and learning from others in the future.

Investing in MOOCs will improve rural communities because it will allow rural populations to become more connected. According to the article “Massive, Open, Online Appraisals,” “35 per cent of adult Americans, usually in low-income households with no post- secondary education, do not have broadband connections at home” (Page 1). This addresses the problem most rural communities have with being disconnected. The author also claims that “MOOCs have increased the cost of the digital divide in terms of lost opportunities for the unconnected. This is not an argument against them but for better communications policy and lower connectivity tariffs.” MOOCs encourage people to take advantage of opportunities to connect with other students, even if they are far away.

MOOCs try to connect people around the world by encouraging study groups and virtual “hubs” to form. An example of this is shown when Coursera “announced on Thursday a partnership with the United States government to create ‘learning hubs’ around the world where students can go to get Internet access to free courses supplemented by weekly in-person class discussions with local teachers or facilitators” (Lewin). This not solves the problem of contact with people in MOOCs, but also those in rural areas to encourage them to get out and go see the world. It prevents digital cooning and social sheltering. That way people connect with others and MOOCs solve the problem of rural areas lacking connectivity between people. One skilled farmer in Alabama can teach another across the world. It’s like the Indians who taught the Pilgrims to put fish in the ground to grow crops better. If it weren’t for Columbus and sailing across the sea, we would have learned from these corporate communities. When talking to people across the world, people living in rural areas can see what it’s like in the other places and become more open-minded.

Money and MOOCs

MOOCs can also improve the economic development of rural areas by increasing their connectivity. In an article called “Taking Your Farm Online,” author Megan Oster writes about Agrimarketing and how it can improve the connection and awareness of farmers around the world through blogs, tradeshows, and conferences. It makes a point that farmers can “no longer ignore the internet.” Another way to take your farm online is through AgMap, a Penn State based company that allows users to market products to consumers online (Sparks). MOOCs can allow bloggers, marketers, and business people to work together and teach others how to improve in money making. Instead of only connecting the farms to other agricultural farmers, MOOCs can connect young farmers to entrepreneurs, marketers, sales men, landscapers, and more. 

Investing in MOOCs will allow farmers living in rural populations to make more money. Salah Sukkarieh, a robotics researcher at the Australian Centre for Field Robotics in Sydney, ventures "If I had the money for agricultural robots that I have from mining and defense projects, I'd solve it. But there's just not enough money in farming. We have to learn from other industries, it's a trickle-down effect" (Crow). The industry we can learn from is the one of secondary education, especially MOOCs. Once the skilled farmers use this resource to their benefit, they’ll start making the big bucks. MOOCs are a great investment for farms and agriculture because the results will pay off once the farmers learn what will best help their farm. They can increase sales in marketing by reaching a wider audience, and make some extra money by teaching.

Minorities and MOOCs

MOOCs should specifically be invested in for these underdeveloped areas because of the large number of minorities that are present there. Many underdeveloped communities also often serve as a haven for minorities or illegal immigrants, populations often granted less education opportunities than others. Of the 591 U.S. counties having more minority than majority children, 356 (60%) are rural. Census data suggest that without Hispanic migration, more than 200 nonmetropolitan counties would have experienced a population decline during this period. (Citation) These statistics show how an increasing number of minorities are living in rural areas. An issue that arises is whether or not brick and mortar schools will accept them into their programs.

In an attempt to fix the issue of discrimination, some universities have set aside a number of reserved seats for these minorities, making it difficult for everyone that wants to get the education he or she desires. The Supreme Court case California v. Bakke dealt with affirmative action, and rule whether or not specific quotas of seats should be set aside for minorities. Much controversy arose when it was discovered that Bakke had twice been rejected by the medical school, even though he had a higher grade point average than a number of minority candidates who were admitted. The school had a 16% minority quota which was ruled against. (University of California v. Bakke) While the attempt to solve this problem of acceptance rates in universities by maintaining certain quota was a wholehearted attempt at equality, it ultimately failed by creating reverse discrimination. MOOCs would solve the problem of discrimination, because anyone could sign up.

MOOCs can eliminate the issue of racial profiling or segregation by allowing anyone to take the course. This will make getting an education readily available regardless of religion, color, etc. MOOCs do not require an application for admittance, nor do they have a limited amount of spots to fill. They will have equal opportunity in receiving an education. MOOCs will also only allow disciplined students to receive a degree because it’s based on the student’s timely efforts. MOOCs are the perfect solution to school acceptance because they allow anyone to participate with internet access, regardless of what they look like, sound like, or even smell like. There isn’t human error in determining what’s fair and what’s not. It’s either the course is completed, or it’s not. It’s all up to the student. This is especially helpful to agricultural areas because of the number of minorities living there.

Counter: Nobody Cares Anyways

Agriculture is an interesting field to go into, but not very many people are introduced to the idea unless they are born into a family who is used to the agricultural community. Eldert van Henten, a robotics researcher at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, says "While the population is growing and needs to be fed, a rapidly shrinking number of people are willing to work in agriculture." (Crow) Linda Calvin, an economist at the US Department of Agriculture, predicts how U.S. Farm Labor might shrink in future years. The claim is that nobody is even interested in Agriculture, so MOOCs will not help in these areas. This could have a major impact on our country if something is not done to increase this interest.

An idea for a solution to increase interest in farm life and agriculture is through a virtual farm application. Another article called “Teaching Farming to Elementary Ed” discusses this virtual application and how it enhances the user’s interest in agriculture. (Tarng) The content is designed to be easily accessible, understandable, and motivating. This will increase interest in farm life, which is especially needed during this day in age. However, this doesn’t address the problem that students in rural communities are not getting the opportunities to learn about agriculture.

College courses need to be offered, and that’s why MOOCs should be invested in to be incorporated into farming communities, especially since there is a lack of interest. MOOCs are a great way to spark interest in agriculture and teach basic farming skills early on, when it is needed most in these communities. That way, the interest can be enraged at the crucial age of 18-22, where people are trying to figure out what they want to do with their lives. Not only that, but if they’re living on the farm, they will get the experience they need in order to teach others. Maybe MOOCs can even offer the opportunities for people to stay on a farm in order to learn what it’s really like by connecting students around the world.

Conclusion: Invest In MOOCs!
 

Farmers are falling increasingly further behind technology, and MOOCs are a great chance to change that. By investing in MOOCs and making them available to those who live in the areas, they can become more developed. MOOCs have gained popularity throughout recent years, and therefore should be carefully considered. There many benefits, some of which include accessibility, affordability, and attracting desire to learn. These benefits can especially have an effect in rural areas that are undersized. Some of the positive results of incorporating MOOCs into these communities include connecting agricultural groups around the world, enabling farmers to make more money, and providing education to minorities. Although MOOCs in agriculture is not a widely discussed topic, it is something that needs to be researched more. May seem unimportant because there aren’t very many people interested anyways, but investing in MOOCs can increase this interest. Instead of taking the people out of the rural areas to learn, let’s bring education to them. It can make a huge difference to the people in these rural areas.

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