STUDENTS KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ABOUT MASSIVE OPEN ONLINE COURSES (MOOCS) OPEN LEARNING: CASE STUDY OF A PUBLICUNIVERSITY IN MALAYSIA

Due to the emerging popularity and significance of online learning through Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) nowadays, it is worth to study the familiarity and perceived values of MOOCs OpenLearning from the students‘ perspective. This study was conducted to identify the university students‘ prior knowledge and experience as well as their perceptions about MOOCs Open Learning. By using the mixed survey method, online questionnaire was disseminated via email to students undertaking various undergraduate programmes in a public university in Malaysia, i.e. Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM). The study findings indicated that there was a moderate level of prior knowledge and experience in using MOOC OpenLearning among the respondents. The frequency of usage of MOOC OpenLearning applications also appears to be quite low among the students. Further qualitative analysis revealed that MOOC is perceived positively by many as convenient and easy to use, thus helps to improve their learning skills. Despite this, Internet accessibility appears to be the most highlighted issue among the respondents. As implication, the study provided the basis about how effective implementation of MOOCs OpenLearning can take place to address the undergraduate students‘ varying needs and learning preferences.