Cloud Cuckoo Land: evidence from a study of student drop-out

Resumen

This paper considers some of the issues around the migration of higher education services to ‘the cloud’, selecting MOOCs as an example of one element of service delivery that is being seen as an example of how new forms of distributed services can revolutionise higher education – in particular by opening up access to more people from diverse backgrounds. The paper presents some counter-arguments to this view, and explores whether these new technologies of teaching and learning are able to preserve the integrity of ‘reflexive dialogue’ that seems to reflect the core value of our higher education institutions. It presents evidence from an EU-funded project – STAY IN – which is researching student drop out and how it can be reduced through on-line services – as a contribution to these debates.