Starting MOOCs in African University: The Experience of Cadi Ayyad University, Process, Review, Recommendations, and Prospects

Abdellah Idrissi Jouicha,Rachid Bendaoud,Khalid Berrada,Daniel Burgos,Said Machwate,Abdellatif Miraoui

doi:10.1109/access.2020.2966762

Abstract

The increasing number of enlistees claiming their right to enroll in the programs of African Universities and the limited number of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) were the prime reasons of students overcrowding in classes. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) showed a potential to help limiting the challenges of massification in open access HEIs. As the literature review of the MOOC situation in Africa is still nascent, we will qualitatively share the experience of Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech, Morocco (UCA) in launching a MOOC for its learners as a case study. Created in 2013, this MOOC was entitled UC@MOOC and appeared to respond to the challenges of massification in open access HEIs and the language difficulties faced by students. We will also present an overview of this project, its achievements and the quantity of knowledge delivery it accomplished. This MOOC experience attracted learners from other countries. And we have found that a shortage of MOOCs in Africa drove learners from other African francophone countries to learn from UC@MOOC. Yet a low-cost MOOC with certain limitations such as the weak ICT infrastructure available to the African public will thrive if operated using a MOOC platform and boosted its financial means.

Highlights

INTRODUCTION & LITERATURE REVIEWThe world’s population is unarguably increasing on a yearly basis
Starting a Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) project in an African university is faced by many challenges
This paper must be seen as a guide to inspire from in launching a MOOC in a university overtaken by massification

Summary

Introduction

The world’s population is unarguably increasing on a yearly basis. In mid-2019, the global population reached 7.7 billion, having added one billion people since 2007 and two billion since 1994. With a certainty of 95%, it is expected to stand between 8.5 and 8.6 billion by 2030, between 9.4 and 10.1 billion by 2050, and between 9.4 and 12.7 billion by 2100 [1]. Albeit the yearly growth rate dropped from 2.1% in the 70s and settled in 1.1% in the last decade. This yearly change is forecast to continuous decreasing in the years to come resulting to world population growth by a slower rate. The world population is not forecast to any potential decrease

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