The global political landscape over the last
year or two has been nothing if not eventful.
As a result, schools want to educate students
on quickly evolving current events,
in ways that get them involved and expose
them to a wide range of perspectives on
hot-button issues.
The approach at the University of Michigan
in Ann Arbor was to design a series of
MOOCs called “teach-outs”—a revival of
the “teach-ins” that its faculty held in the
1960s to express concern about the U.S.
government’s role in the Vietnam War.
The first teach-out, “Democratic to
Authoritarian Rule,” was delivered over
three modules by six history and political
science academics. Offered on March 31 via
MichiganX, UM’s presence on the edX MOOC
platform, the event delved into the changing
political landscape in areas such as India,
the Middle East, and Eastern Europe.
The university offered three more teach-outs
over the six weeks that followed. “Fake
News, Facts, and Alternative Facts” was
delivered by three communication studies
professors. “Reach Out and RELATE: Communicating
and Understanding Scientific
Research” was delivered by an engineer,
a professor of health behavior, and two
neuroscience scholars. “The Future of Obamacare” was delivered by a professor
of health management and public policy. All
three courses attracted nearly 6,000 participants
from more than 130 countries.
Unlike the teach-ins of the 1960s,
teach-outs are delivered as MOOCs,
which allows them to reach a much larger
audience, explains Arun Agrawal. Agrawal,
a professor of political science in UM’s
School of Natural Resources and Environment,
taught part of the “Democratic to
Authoritarian Rule” teach-out. “University
professors and university researchers, this
is what they do,” Agrawal says. “They work
with students in the effort to educate, provide
information, engage, and inspire.”
UM faculty decided to develop the
teach-outs in late January, announced
them in mid-March, and launched the first
on March 31. This initial experiment shows
that teach-outs can be “an agile model for
the creation of these unique, just-in-time
teaching and learning opportunities,” says
James DeVaney, the university’s associate
vice provost for academic innovation.
DeVaney adds that faculty from the
Ross School of Business have expressed
interest in this initiative, which could inspire
future teach-outs on business topics.
Many students often learn about current
events primarily through fragmented
information delivered over social media,
says Agrawal. “What we’re offering instead
in the teach-out is a story, a narrative,” he
adds. “It’s a way of thinking about and connecting
different facts so that they make
sense. And I think there are many people
who are hungry for this kind of engagement
and thoughtful conversation.”