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  3. American Economic Review
  4. May 2014
  5. (Dis)organization and Success in an Economics MOOC

(Dis)organization and Success in an Economics MOOC

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Abstract

Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) present the potential to deliver high quality education to a large number of students. But they suffer from low completion rates. This paper identifies disorganization as a factor behind failure to complete a MOOC. Students who enroll one day late are 17 percentage points less likely to earn a certificate than students who enroll exactly on time. This reflects selection, but it does seem to be related to demographic characteristics, motivation to complete the course, or ability. This suggests that building in even more structure in the MOOC could be a factor in improving performance.

Citation

Banerjee, Abhijit V., and Esther Duflo. 2014. "(Dis)organization and Success in an Economics MOOC." American Economic Review, 104 (5): 514-18. DOI: 10.1257/aer.104.5.514

Additional Materials

JEL Classification

  • I21 Analysis of Education
  • I23 Higher Education; Research Institutions