Assessment of cognitive, behavioral, and affective learning outcomes in massive open online courses: A systematic literature review

Abstract

This systematic review on massive open online courses (MOOCs) in higher education examined the research on the assessment of learning outcomes based on 65 peer-reviewed articles published between 2017 and 2019. This study aims to investigate the learning outcomes, related instruments, and assessment characteristics of these instruments in MOOCs. Learning outcomes that were examined in the studies that were reviewed concerned cognitive, behavioral, and affective learning outcomes. Twenty-five types of assessment approaches were employed to examine these outcomes and to identify the assessment characteristics. The results indicate that a consideration of the assessment of learning outcomes at the beginning of course design could support the formulation of explicit assessment goals and, in this way, instruct learners to work toward learning outcomes. A combination of knowledge tests and skill tasks can be used to examine cognitive outcomes in a particular MOOC. Outcome-oriented feedback rubrics are beneficial to support learner essay performance and interpretations of the utilization of rubrics could better guide providers to give peer feedback. A variety of behavioral and affective outcomes reflect multiple aspects of participant learning in MOOCs, which might contribute to better understanding by teachers and the provision of learning support. Furthermore, assessment tasks throughout the course may differ in difficulty and complexity, which could align with different levels of learner motivation. The findings provide a holistic picture of learning outcomes and related assessment instruments in current MOOCs. Curriculum designers and teachers could benefit from this study to consider appropriate learning outcome variables and instruments to apply in their MOOC practices. Future research might investigate the motivation of learners to participate in a MOOC and how this changes during a MOOC. This could help MOOC designers and teachers to align how learners are motivated, what they want to learn, and what they actually do learn.