A Viral MOOC for Myanmar: Creativity in Context
Tracks
Learning Spaces and Places
| Thursday, May 30, 2019 |
| 1:45 PM - 2:15 PM |
| HUM 1043 |
Speaker
John Cabra
Professor
Buffalo State
A Viral MOOC for Myanmar: Creativity in Context
1:45 PM - 2:15 PMFull Abstract
SUNY is known for honoring inclusiveness and diversity while preparing students to intelligently and meaningfully impact a global society. Aligning with this inclusive global mission, Buffalo State’s International Center for Studies in Creativity (ICSC) has the vision to inspire and ignite applied creativity worldwide. It offers instruction through its open online learning program: “Ignite Your Everyday Creativity” MOOC; and since that time, it has had 41,000 participants enroll from 185 countries.
In order to plant the seed for an even greater SUNY global impact, the ICSC has adapted its MOOC to dramatically expand access to applied creativity education across the country of Myanmar. Although a Global Civic Engagement Service-Learning course in Myanmar was successfully completed in the summer of 2018 and a return trip with a new cohort is scheduled for 2019, this study abroad program’s reach to promote creative thinking only goes so far. An adapted MOOC, therefore, has the potential to have a significantly wider reach.
In his forward of Myanmar’s National Education Strategic Plan, the Minister of Education stated that it is critical to reforming the way in which Myanmar's children are taught. He emphasized the need to nurture basic sustainable learning objectives such as learning how to make decisions, recognizing the option of taking responsibility and accountability for one’s own life, encouraging self-reflection, and using rationality to justify one's own beliefs and behaviors. These needs also extend to the wider population. To that end, a partially adapted Burmese language MOOC would support the Ministry of Education’s reform initiatives and help advance the UN Sustainable Development Goal of making quality education available to all. This adapted MOOC, which will be made free and accessible, would enable many Burmese to have access to creative problem-solving skills content.
To make the MOOC viral, we replaced some of the video content delivered by American instructors with iconic Burmese figures such as a famous film star/producer, an athlete, an artist, and recognized leaders. Furthermore, to inspire the creative thinking of the MOOC viewer, we included interviews of people who are not famous but had stories of success to share in applying their creativity to a problem, challenge or opportunity.
In order to plant the seed for an even greater SUNY global impact, the ICSC has adapted its MOOC to dramatically expand access to applied creativity education across the country of Myanmar. Although a Global Civic Engagement Service-Learning course in Myanmar was successfully completed in the summer of 2018 and a return trip with a new cohort is scheduled for 2019, this study abroad program’s reach to promote creative thinking only goes so far. An adapted MOOC, therefore, has the potential to have a significantly wider reach.
In his forward of Myanmar’s National Education Strategic Plan, the Minister of Education stated that it is critical to reforming the way in which Myanmar's children are taught. He emphasized the need to nurture basic sustainable learning objectives such as learning how to make decisions, recognizing the option of taking responsibility and accountability for one’s own life, encouraging self-reflection, and using rationality to justify one's own beliefs and behaviors. These needs also extend to the wider population. To that end, a partially adapted Burmese language MOOC would support the Ministry of Education’s reform initiatives and help advance the UN Sustainable Development Goal of making quality education available to all. This adapted MOOC, which will be made free and accessible, would enable many Burmese to have access to creative problem-solving skills content.
To make the MOOC viral, we replaced some of the video content delivered by American instructors with iconic Burmese figures such as a famous film star/producer, an athlete, an artist, and recognized leaders. Furthermore, to inspire the creative thinking of the MOOC viewer, we included interviews of people who are not famous but had stories of success to share in applying their creativity to a problem, challenge or opportunity.
