"Instead of toiling at Moocs alone with the dim light of a laptop, communities around the world are combining screen time with face time," writes New America fellow Anya Karmenetz. "In these small-group, informal, blended-learning environments, students work with the support of peers and mentors and compete online on a level playing field with the new elite of the world.

MOOC has become a loosely used term for three different types of courses in the new vision of online university. The first is the paradigmatic massively open online course (MOOC): a fully automated machine-run course with no face-to-face instruction or human contact that is open to everyone.

MOOCs are seen as a means to enhance curriculum, allow self-paced coursework, personalize the curriculum with individualized educational goals and increase digital literacy. MOOCs are more accessible than traditional enhancements, such as after-school activities, field trips, and museum and university summer camps.

Connectivist MOOCs are based on principles from connectivist pedagogy

Human interaction

Flipped classrooms