EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 1

Assignment III:
Research Paper on an Emerging Trend/Issue in ID, IT and/or DE

by
Kristle Gangadeen

A Paper Presented in Partial Fulfillment

Of the Requirements of
EDID 6506 Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE
Semester I, 2015-2016

Email:
University:
eTutor:
Course Coordinator

kristle.gangadeen@my.open.uwi.edu
University of the West Indies Open Campus
Dr. Camille Dickson-Deane
Dr. Camille Dickson-Deane

EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 2

Introducing the MicroMasters & Inverted Admissions

Introduction
MicroMasters
On October 7th, 2015 the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) announced
a new academic credential for the digital age (Bradt, 2015). Dubbed the MicroMasters,
this credential is earned through MITx, MITs Massive Open Online Course (MOOC)
platform and has immense potential for the fields of instructional design, technology and
distance education.
According to a media release on the MITs website, the MicroMasters academic
credential can be earned by students who pass a comprehensive exam upon the successful
completion of a semesters worth of online courses (Bradt, 2015). The MicroMasters
will have no admissions requirements and will be open to anyone to enroll. Learners earn
the MicroMasters by paying a small fee for verified certificates and successfully passing
the proctored exam (Bradt, 2015).

Inverted Admissions
MIT has also developed an alternative admissions process for its Masters degree
programmes, which it has dubbed inverted admissions because potential students of the
Masters degree programmes would be allowed to pursue Masters level courses via the
MicroMasters without applying and going through application process (MIT, 2015).
Sanjay Sarma, dean of digital learning at MIT called it democratising access a masters
program for learners worldwide (Anderson, 2015). Upon successful attainment of the

EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 3

MicroMasters, a student may apply to complete the Masters programme the following
semester on campus, as the qualification significantly increases an applicants chance of
being accepted into the full Masters programme (MIT, 2015).
MIT will begin pilot testing the MicroMasters in February 2016 with its Supply
Chain Management masters degree programme (MIT, 2015).

Relevance and Usefulness

The MicroMasters may very well be the next big disrupter in higher education.
This emerging trend represents the evolution of learning and higher education,
particularly with regard to MOOCs. A MOOC is an online course that allows
unrestricted, free and open access to anyone with a computer and the Internet (Source,
DATE). MOOCs went mainstream in 2012 (Anderson, 2015) and became increasingly
popular over the years with many top tier universities like MIT, Stanford and Harvard
offering MOOC versions of their standard courses (EdX, 2015).
Despite their popularity and the hope that MOOCs would disrupt higher education
to bridge the education divide between those who could afford expensive higher
education and those who cannot, MOOCs have faced several criticisms (Anderson,
2015). Some of these challenges and criticisms have included:

MOOCs are not substitutes for degree programmes and are not reliable means of

supplying credentials (Basu, 2012).

Some experts estimate the drop-out rate for MOOCs at 90% (Rees, 2013).
MOOCs may complement traditional education but it does not replace it.
Barbara Kahn, Marketing Professor at University of Pennsylvania (Krupnik,
2014).

EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 4

MOOCs exacerbate class differences, where the elite attend campus-based

institutions while others resort to online courses. Prof. Philip Altback, Centre

for International Higher Education at Boston College (Krupnick, 2014).

Weak assessments have also been a criticism of the MOOC as it tends to be
limited to machine corrected multiple choice or peer reviewed assignments (Rees,
2013).

The advent of the MicroMasters can address some of these challenges. Some of the
ways by which the MicroMasters addresses the challenges and criticisms of typical
MOOCs are:

The MicroMasters offers a legitimate academic credential, which MIT

believes will be valued by companies and foster career advancement for its

holders (MIT, 2015).

The academic credential is being awarded by one of the worlds most
prestigious, top-tier universities, and makes higher education possible at low

cost.
The final exam in the MicroMasters is a proctored assessment (MIT, 2015).

Future Prospects Potential Impact on

Education and Industry
As MIT pioneers this new academic credential, it remains to be seen if other
higher education providers will pick up on the trend and offer MicroMasters for any of
their programmes. MIT itself is testing the new blended programme (half MOOC, half
on-campus) with only one of its Masters programmes (Supply Chain Management) but

EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 5

has stated that other departments are interested in offering the MicroMasters (MIT,
2015).
It is assumed that once the pilot is successful the MicroMasters could be
extended to other degree programme offerings. MIT has expressed hope that other
universities will adopt the MicroMasters credential (MIT, 2015). Additionally, the
pioneering school has also stated that it is actively talking to other universities about
considering the MicroMasters to be convertible to credit in their masters programmes
(MIT, 2015).
If the MicroMasters pilot is successful and eventually becomes mainstream, it
has the potential to transform higher education delivery and access. Until now, persons
enrolled in MOOCs could receive verified certificates or even course credit from
accredited universities (EdX, 2015) but not earn an actual academic credential through
any of the MOOCs offered. This is where the MicroMasters changes the game. The
MicroMasters will also make earning a full Masters degree more affordable, thus
making higher education more accessible to more people.
Using the MicroMasters as an admissions criteria (Inverted admissions) is a
method by which students who do not perform well on traditional standardised tests to
prove their merit (Young, 2015). According to Professor Sarma at MIT, it also opens the
admissions pool for applicants from around the world, whose grades and scores from
other institutions are not familiar to admissions officers, thus it lets anyone prove their
merit. Rahul Choudaha of World Education Services believes that the MicroMasters
also allows potential applicants to test drive a course before making a decision to apply
(Young, 2015).

EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 6

In addition, the MicroMasters to Masters route may suit potential students who
may not be able to take an entire year off to attend a resident Masters programme but
could probably take attend for one semester.
Particularly for those industries that face shortages of qualified professionals,
such as supply chain management, the increased access to education through programmes
like the MicroMasters, may reduce the skills gap (Chao, 2015).
The continued evolution of higher education with innovations like the
MicroMasters credentials also challenges instructional designers to develop courses and
tailor instructional material for online use that allow for meaningful learning to overcome
the challenges of massive online classes.

Artifacts
The MicroMasters programme for Supply Chain Management may be accessed
via the following link: http://micromasters.mit.edu/
MIT has also published a Frequently Asked Questions webpage on the
MicroMasters, which may be accessed via this link: http://news.mit.edu/2015/faqs-mitnew-path-masters-degree-micromasters-1007

Conclusion
The introduction of the MicroMasters academic credential is indeed a potential
disrupter to the field of instructional design, technology and distance education. It has
improved upon the MOOC, making it possible for MOOCs to be more valuable and
meaningful by mitigating some of its challenges, including gaining bona fide academic

EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 7

credentials through MOOC courses and better assessment methods. As a MOOC-based
credential, the MicroMasters also makes it much easier for students to afford and access
higher education as they can stop at the MicroMasters or continue to a full Masters
degree at half the price of a traditional Masters programme. The increased access to
credentialed educational opportunities also redounds to the benefit of industry,
particularly for those that have labour shortages. Therefore it is clear that the potential
benefits and impacts of the MicroMasters are many, and it is hoped that the pilot
launched by MIT will be successful and that many other institutions of higher education
will embrace this innovation to make tertiary education more meaningful and accessible.

EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 8

Reflection
When I first read about the MicroMasters back in October, I immediately took
note of it as I had vaguely recalled that one of my assignments for EDID 6506 would be
related to trends in education. Thus, I filed this information away neatly on my phone for
possible further use when the time to complete the assignment rolled around. During this
period, Microsoft also launched the Hololens, so virtual reality and its possibilities for
education tickled my brain and I made a mental note to explore further with respect to
this project when the time came.
As the assignment deadline drew near and I began to prepare for it, I decided to
research trends in education, but was unable to find any that met the criteria of nonexistent before September 2014. So I changed the angle of my research a bit, and instead
searched for innovations and adaptations of technology for use in education on the
crowdsourcing/funding site, Indiegogo. This research angle yielded better results but still,
nothing left me as intrigued as the MicroMasters from MIT and the Microsoft Hololens
had.
I picked the MicroMasters as my choice for the assignment because I believe that
it has the potential to revolutionise online and distance education, in ways that the
MOOC model has not been able to for millions of students around the world.
The research process itself was very illuminating and it showed me that there are
a lot of exciting developments in the field to improve learning and education, from
robotics to virtual reality. I look forward to further exploration and study of these

EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 9

innovations and inventions as I prepare for the next assignment and having the
opportunity to use them in the future.

References
Anderson, N. (2015, October 7). MIT floats a new online credential: The MicroMasters.
The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/gradepoint/wp/2015/10/07/mit-floats-a-new-online-credential-the-micromasters/.
Basu, K. (2012, May 3). MOOCs and the Professoriate. Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved from
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2012/05/23/faculty-groups-consider-howrespond-moocs.
Bradt, S. (2015, October 7). Online courses + time on campus = a new path to an MIT
masters degree. MIT News. Retrieved from https://news.mit.edu/2015/onlinesupply-chain-management-masters-mitx-micromasters-1007.
Chao, L. (2015, October 7). MIT to Add MicroMasters Program for Supply-Chain
Management. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from
http://www.wsj.com/articles/mit-to-add-micro-masters-program-for-supply-chainmanagement-1444245905
EdX. (2013). About Us. Retrieved November 12th, 2015, from https://www.edx.org/aboutus.
Krupnick, N. (2014, June 27). MOOCs in the developing world Pros and cons.
University World News. Retrieved from
http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20140626103112605.

EDID 6506: Issues, Trends, Innovations & Research in ID, IT and DE 10

MITNews.(2015,October7).FAQsonMITsnewpathtoamastersdegree.Retrieved
fromhttp://news.mit.edu/2015/faqsmitnewpathmastersdegreemicromasters
1007.
Rees,J.(2013,July25).TheMOOCRacket.Slate.Retrievedfrom
http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2013/07/moocs_could_be_dis
astrous_for_students_and_professors.html.
Young,J.(2015,October7th).MITMastersProgramtoUseMOOCsasAdmissions
Test.TheChronicleofHigherEducation.Retrievedfrom
http://chronicle.com/article/MITMastersProgramtoUse/233685.