Research on the correlativity between individual status in social network and corresponding concept network characteristics in a cMOOC

The interactive mechanism between social and concept networks is a key question in connectivist learning, which explains the impact of interaction on cognitive development and knowledge generation. The successful practice of “Internet Change Education: Dialogue between Theory and Practice”, the first cMOOC in China, provides data support and research context for exploring the learning rules. This study proposed an evaluation framework of individual social network status in cMOOCs and a model for concept network characteristics analysis in cMOOCs. Analysis from 10,598 interactive data points of cMOOC1.0 using complex network analysis, topic clustering algorithm and correlation analysis found that there was a correlation between a learner’s individual network status and concept network characteristics, and there are two kinds of special connectivist learners in cMOOC learning: someone with higher network status but lower knowledge output, and someone with higher knowledge output but weaker network status. Furthermore, we put forward three practical suggestions: (1) facilitators should focus on guiding learners’ expression and connection to important individuals; (2) according to different correlation trends, facilitators can flexibly tailor activity design strategies, such as providing additional wayfinding support for learners with low centrality; and (3) carry out adaptive learning evaluations and design diversified certificates.