My First Massive Open Online Course(MOOC) Talk

On Wednesday, September 4, 2013, I had the opportunity to attend my first Massive Open Online Course(MOOC) talk organized by Professor Tom Mackey and Professor Trudi Jacobson in the Standish Room of the Science Library at the University at Albany. As it was my first time participating in a MOOC, I did not know what exactly to expect aside from the fact that I knew I would have the chance to interact with participants from all over because of the participatory nature of the course. It took a little while for the organizers to figure out how to successfully set up the equipment to make the talk a smooth exercise. But the exercise eventually began and a variety of topics and concepts were touched upon. 

The topics discussed ranged from the very nature of the subject of metaliteracy, reflecting about the research process(thinking thoroughly about one's way of thinking), what makes the concept of metaliteracy unique(how it differs from other disciplines related to literacy), the metaliterate learner, metacognition, the media involved including social media as well as the various types of participants in the field. It was an engaging forum however, there were a few concerns raised on how to make subsequent MOOC talks a smoother experience for the participants due to the technical difficulties experienced at the beginning. I had the singular honor of being the only student in the midst of learned professionals so I had the opportunity of learning a not of new ideas. I also had the chance to make a meaningful contribution and it is my hope that I will be instrumental in making the subsequent talks a smoother exercise as I intend to volunteer to help the organizers set up for the next MOOC exercise. Overall it was a very good experience for me and I am really excited to be a part of this!