Relevance of MOOCs for training of public sector employees

Abstract

A massive open online course (MOOC) is a type of online course that can be taken for a huge number of participants. Originally, MOOCs scope was to provide introductory university level courses to students worldwide. Currently, the MOOC model is expanding is scope to training in both private and public sectors. There are more than 30 million of public sector employees only in Latin American and Caribbean Region. Given the huge number of public employees that need to be continuously trained at regional, national, and local range, using MOOCs for training in public sector is not only a valid option but also a necessity. Among the government topics that public employees need training are public service culture, national political constitution, government structure and policies, national development plans, institutional strategy, macroeconomics, monetary and fiscal policy, sovereign debt, regulatory and legal frameworks, and tools for public administration such as management for results. Also, in recent years, government and private organizations have recognized the importance of training their employees on space technologies that manage geographic information for the primary purpose of increase development through getting knowledge of the territory and its behavior. This paper presents four cases of use of MOOCs for public sector training. It also presents strategies to address three major challenges: enrollment, completion and web accessibility. Finally, it states some conclusion and future research.