The Norwegian MOOC Commission
A government commission in ICDE's host country, Norway, is currently working to chart the opportunities and challenges for higher education that accompany the development of Massive Open and Online Courses (MOOCs) and other online educational offerings. Interim findings have already been published in English, and the commission's final report is due in June.
Meanwhile, in Sweden, the government has announced the formation of a similar commission, which will assess whether universities' and university colleges' educational offerings are well balanced with respect to quality, student demand and labour market needs.
The Norwegian MOOC Commission
The Commission is chaired by Berit Kjeldstad, Deputy Rector for Education at ICDE member institution the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). The interim report describes the status for the development of MOOCs, both internationally and nationally. The Commission also presents its first assessments of the opportunities and challenges arising from MOOCs for Norwegian higher education and skills development in the community, including in employment and business. It expresses a wish for Norway to exploit the potential inherent in MOOCs to supplement or to be a part of Norwegian higher education.
These initial findings form the basis for a final report to be published in summer 2014, including proposals on how Norway should respond to these developments with reference to:
Educational grants and loans
Financing of study programmes
Accreditation and quality assurance
Quality in higher education and research-based education
Strategic use of MOOCs
Cooperation, division of labour and concentration
Image-building
International cooperation
Universal design
Download the Norwegian MOOC Commission sub-report (English version)
Sweden to review opportunities for national higher education system
The Swedish Government announced last month the appointment of a commission to review the courses offered by universities and university colleges, and how well they meet the needs of society. Higher Education institutions in Sweden are responsible for selecting the courses they will offer and determining how they should be structured. However, the government feels the need for a review of educational opportunities at the national level in order to gain a coherent picture. The investigation should also consider whether changes in educational provision are required to better meet future needs.