MOOC – Taking Learning to the Next Stage

MOOC – Massive Open Online Courses has been around for a number of years as we get used to the idea of self-learning at our own pace. Coursera and Udemy are the pioneers that are now one of the largest online learning providers in the world.

In the age of the internet where we are flooded with information resulting in shorter attention spans, a person’s interest may change constantly as time is precious. Just like Netflix in the age of video streaming, I want to watch what I want to watch NOW, at my own terms and not be a slave to a programming schedule.

I started using MOOCs in 2012 during my first reluctant long “work break” and then again in 2016 in earnest. In my learning plan, I committed myself to do at least 10 of such courses. I had also started to sign up for classroom courses too as the government has just started the skillsfuture initiative to help PMETs retrain and learn new skills.

As a marketing strategy, most online instructors develop a free introductory lesson on their course to gather interest first. If the interest continues, the students can sign up for more in-depth paid courses. Paid course nowadays do not cost much too, mostly around USD 10 to 30 each.

Initially, I would simply browse through all the free ones and pick a few topics that prick my immediate interest and sign up. I will then commit to spending at least an hour every day seated in front of my PC to do these courses. At that time, my learning interest was very wide and mainly into social media. So I learnt about Hashtag marketing, SEO (Search Engine Optimization), Python programming, Blogging and Affiliate Selling. Later, I moved on to other topics like wine, mindfulness and drone photography.

There are so many available courses you can take now as many reputable universities like Harvard and Oxford are also getting into the act now. It is a good source of income for them as the cost is fixed for them once it is online. Many individuals all over the world with cost and time constraints would also want an affordable completion certificate from a well-known centre of learning to boost their CVs or to learn a new skill.

Take for example my most recent MOOC adventure. I know bits and pieces about FinTech and seek to cover the information gaps I have so that I could have a better big picture overview. I was looking for a comprehensive introduction to Fintech MOOC which I did not mind paying for. There was one which I discovered from Oxford which was an 8 weeks interactive course https://www.sbs.ox.ac.uk/programmes/oxford-fintech-programme

The problem was the cost. It was priced at GBP 2,500.  A bit too rich for me. Back to the drawing board then. My search landed me to another one closer to home. Hong Kong University had offered another MOOC Introduction to FinTech that was less than $100 for a 6 weeks duration. https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-to-fintech What sealed the deal for me was the case study examples used in the course. They were mostly China and Asia based which was more relevant to me.

I am now more than halfway through the course and happy to report that I have learnt quite a few new things about FinTech. For example, Fintech’s components can be summarized by ABCD : A for Artificial Intelligence, B for Blockchain, C for Cloud computing and D for Data (Big Data). There are a total of 6 modules and they comprehensively cover the whole FinTech universe through video lectures:

1. What is FinTech?
2. Payment, Cryptocurrencies and Blockchain
3. Digital Finance and Alternative Finance
4. Payment, Cryptocurrencies and Blockchain
5. Data and TechFin
6. The Future of Data-Driven Finance

I now have a better understanding of RegTech and the transformative power via the India Stack social experiment. The ability of available technology pushes society to another higher level of impact investment via P2P, mobile money and alternative finance. I can’t wait to see the final module which will showcase companies like Alibaba and point to the next big trends.

I am already researching for the next topic I want to know more about. Artificial Intelligence or AI is a much-overused term and one of the 4 pillars of FinTech. I want to know more about this developing sector. Globally, there are only 20,000 people that are qualified AI practitioners. Like the HKU course, I need to get an intro to AI as I am getting bits and pieces from everywhere. I have narrowed down to this MOOC which I found. It is 6 months in duration and after all the subsidies, it will only cost me $100 🙂

https://www.np.edu.sg/lifelonglearning/Pages/aifinance.aspx

My learning journey is evolving and it seems endless. There is just so much to learn out there. My mantra is from Albert Einstein: “Once you stop learning, you start dying”. The world is so big out there and it is spinning continuously. One cannot afford to stand still and be left behind. The only way to prevent me from being left behind is to constantly seek to learn. Technology and the environment have now optimized my ability to absorb new information. There are no excuses left to not grab hold of this golden opportunity.