Cultural Sensitivity and Design Implications of MOOCs from Korean Learners’ Perspectives: Case Studies on edX and Coursera

Abstract

Culture is a crucial concept that forms the thinking and behaviors of a group of people, and it influences interactions in learning. Thus, it is also essential to consider cultural sensitivity in online learning technologies and instructional design as education is a set of learning actions based on values and perceptions. MOOCs, the latest online learning platform, are global online learning platforms that provide global learners with free and various learning resources including courses from different world-class institutions. Despite globalization having brought learners closer to sharing similar learning resources, the actual experiences with the resource are expected to vary according to cultures, mainly because learning behavior is a set of outcomes based on cultural differences. Taking this into consideration, this study aims to examine MOOCs from a cultural perspective in order to facilitate global learners, especially Korean learners, to utilize MOOCs with user-friendly services and contents. To achieve this objective, the study first identified and developed an evaluation criteria to examine the cultural sensitivity of MOOCs and conducted case studies on courses from major MOOC providers including edX and Coursera. From the findings, design recommendations of contents and courses on MOOCs were suggested to provide Korean learners with optimal learning experiences.