Abstract:

Formative evaluation is the assessment and improvement of a process that takes place within pre-defined time periods and pre-defined criteria.

One form of evaluation is learning history diagnostics, where the educator documents learners' learning progress with short, mostly standardized tests and uses the results to evaluate and change their own teaching, and provide feedback on the development of the learner.

In contrast to the summative evaluation - which ultimately determines only a comparison between postulated and achieved target status of learning - formative evaluation allows interventions and corrections of ongoing measures based on the achieved results in order to increase the probability of achieving the goals.

The learning curve diagnostics measures and documents the individual learning development by economical, short tests in a weekly, fortnightly or monthly distance. Learning outcomes diagnostics are carried out continuously during the learning time period and the results are discussed in a team in order to adapt the lessons, the current educational interventions or support individually to individual persons, groups of people or classes and to optimize the learning processes.

We have used formative evaluation strategy consisting different defined criteria for evaluating and improving the individual learning development of MOOC users in order to find out which criteria positively influence individual learning development. Our target group were the users of the MOOCs aged between 20 to 60 years old who want to learn a CAD application.

Keywords:

MOOC, CAD, Formative evaluation.