6.00x Introduction to Computer Science and Programming MITx on edX Course Report - 2013 Spring

Abstract

This report describes 6.00x: Introduction to Computer Science and Programming, one of the first 11 courses offered by MITx on edX, a platform for delivering massive open online courses (MOOCs). In the Spring of 2013, 6.00x was rereleased as an MITx on edX course,with content largely mirroring the previous offering (Seaton et al, MITx Working Paper #3). 6.00x again covered an introduction to using computation to solve real problems, following the curriculum of a first-year course within the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. This report describes the course structure, in terms of the number of basic e-text, auto-graded problems, and video components. Following a methodology established for analysis of the first 17 HarvardX and MITx courses (Ho et al, HarvardX and MITx: The first year of open online courses), course registrants are described in terms of viewed, explored, and certified sub-populations, together with demographics. The diversity of student activity in the course, and the persistence of student interactions with the courseware, are addressed. The report concludes with a general comparison of features across the original (Fall 2012) and current offerings of 6.00x.

Keywords: MOOC, Massive Open Online Course, MITx, HarvardX, edX, online learning, distance learning, higher education