What can Massive Open Online Courses do for Museums?

What a museum MOOC can offer

MOOC stands for Massive Open Online Course: an online course designed to reach many learners. It can help a museum share knowledge beyond its building, but access depends on the platform, fees, language, technology and support available. Free registration does not necessarily include the whole course. The museum examples below began in the 2010s; current access guidance is identified separately.

Khan Academy is a familiar example of online learning, with resources across subjects including maths, science and art history. Its self-paced learning model is useful context, but online resources need not follow the structure of a cohort-based MOOC. Museums can choose the format that suits their intended learners.

Online learning can combine videos, readings, quizzes and discussion. Some courses are self-paced; others organise learners around a timetable or cohort. Decide which activities need teaching support and which can work independently, rather than assuming that putting resources online creates the same learning experience for everyone.

Decide who the course is for

It’s easy to see how many have called this model the future of learning. There are many ways that museums can use MOOCs. This type of course can connect with new audiences and increase outreach potential. MOOCs concentrate on self-guided learning, aligning with the approach that many museums take. Museums can use this tool to offer people a chance to discover more and increase their own knowledge. Start with a learning goal and an intended audience; Te Papa’s approach to learning design offers a related collections-centred example.

There are world-class museums all over the world and it isn’t possible for everyone to visit in person. A MOOC can introduce collections to people who cannot visit in person, provided its access requirements work for them. The social element of MOOCs is important too. It can help people to connect with fellow art and museum lovers globally.

Museum examples and teaching approaches

MoMA’s 2013 move into MOOCs

MoMA launched its first MOOC in 2013, as Deborah Howes described in her contemporary first-person account. Later courses included Fashion as Design, Modern Art & Ideas and Seeing Through Photographs. Check the museum’s current course guidance for availability and access terms.

These courses come with a suggested timescale. This is flexible and allows users to reset deadlines. They are available with a variety of language subtitles. The syllabus outlines the skills that users can expect to gain from the course. MoMA also offers MOOCs that act as professional development tools for teachers. For example, ‘Art and Inquiry: Museum Teaching Strategies for your Classroom’. Over 17,000 students enrolled on this course after the initial launch and feedback was good. For a related approach to supporting educators, see designing museum learning around classroom needs.

Deborah Howes was the Director of Digital Learning at MoMA when the courses launched. In her view, they are a valuable tool in reaching new audiences, as well as providing high-quality expertise and mentoring to teaching professionals. MoMA hopes that the courses will motivate participants to visit in person. But Howes also acknowledges that it can be a great way to foster a love of museums in general. She says, “We also hope that they visit their local museums and build a lifelong conversation with and about modern and contemporary art.”

A MOOC dedicated to Andy Warhol

While the courses designed by MoMA cover a wide range of topics, others are more specific. The Tate announced in 2013 that it was launching the first art MOOC dedicated to a single artist. The Artist Rooms Warhol MOOC explores the life and work of Andy Warhol over a five-week syllabus. The University of Edinburgh, the Tate and the National Galleries of Scotland worked together to produce the course. It was delivered through Coursera by staff from Edinburgh University and Edinburgh College of Art. This is a historical example, rather than a current enrolment invitation.

The course is broken up into five topics; celebrity, sex, money, death, and time. Through these areas, students explore why Warhol has international standing. They examine his work and interrogate some of his themes. The course also positions Warhol in relation to 20th Century art movements and looks at the concepts of artistic worth and value. For those interested in Warhol, his life and art, it explains where his work fits in and the impact he had on the art world.

Speaking about the course, the Tate has said: “The development of this MOOC affords the opportunity for Artist Rooms to do important early work in establishing the impact of MOOCs on gallery learning.” The intended audience extended beyond students enrolled at one institution. Whether a learner can access a course, and on what terms, still needs checking when it is promoted.

Extending museum education with a MOOC 

The AMNH has a history of providing professional development opportunities for teachers. In fact, they have been providing expertise for educators since the 1880s. For this museum, MOOCs are the latest tool that they are using to continue this mission. In 2013 the museum launched three online courses through Coursera.

The 2013 courses were designed for science teachers at the K-12 level. They focus on genetics, evolution and earth science. The courses last for four weeks. They feature a variety of resources developed by museum professionals. Materials include 3D virtual models, videos, and behind the scenes footage from the museum’s collections. Each course is taught by AMNH’s expert curators. As well as courses for teachers, the museum also offers options for the general public. For instance, users can study a five-week course titled ‘Our Earth’s Future’. They can also experience an introduction to stem cells or a course on conservation.

The museum saw MOOCs as a way to extend its resources beyond an in-person visit. Online activity can reach people who do not attend the museum, but website visitors and physical visitors may overlap. Adding the two counts does not establish the number of distinct people reached.

Museum teaches the Teachers with a MOOC

The benefit of museum-designed MOOCs is that there is no one set way of doing things. Courses can take many different forms and make use of different approaches. Museums can develop courses that echo their own ethos and teaching style. The Exploratorium has always had a focus on innovative, experiment-based learning. A visit to the museum is full of interactive experiences that ignite curiosity. The MOOCs that this institution has designed follow the same path.

At the time of the original 2019 account, the Exploratorium offered three courses for educators on Coursera. They focus on inquiry-based learning. The aim is to encourage teachers to integrate engineering and ‘tinkering’ into the classroom. Course participants learn the principles and benefits of introducing hands on learning. The museum uses the courses to explain its approach to designing activities. Educators will learn practical skills to set up classroom experiments. As with many MOOCs, there is a forum for participants to share ideas and innovations. This social element provides key support to learners.

The museum sees these courses as a natural progression of their work in training science teachers. Rob Semper is the Associate Executive Director of the Exploratorium. He says “We are constantly tinkering with new ways to expand our impact and reach those who stand to benefit the most”

MOOC focused on careers in Museums

Many museums have looked at how MOOCs can engage with the general public. Others have used them to provide professional development for teachers. This partnership between National Museums Liverpool and the University of Leicester is different. They developed a MOOC aimed at people interested in a career in museums. The University positioned it as a taster for its School of Museum Studies, as well as a course for general interest. It is included here as a historical teaching example; current enrolment and access terms have not been established.

The course is called ‘Behind the Scenes at the 21st Century Museum’. It covers a variety of topics connected with the impact of modern museums. It also looks at how museums communicate with audiences. Over six weeks, students will examine how people respond to museum spaces. They explore the key role that these cultural institutions can play in health and wellbeing, human rights and social justice.

Each module is taught by a different academic researcher or museum professional. This is unlike traditional learning methods, as it exposes the students to different voices. In this way, they gain insight into multiple points of view and experiences. The course also involves a range of activities and forums. These encourage peer group work and social learning.

Check free access, fees and certificates

The ability to reach a large audience with content that they control is appealing to museums. But are there any downsides of the rise in MOOCs? Two key issues need to be taken into account.

Access update, 10 October 2026: Free enrolment does not necessarily mean free access to the whole course. MoMA’s current guidance says learners can preview the first modules of its Coursera courses, while further modules and a completion certificate require payment. That distinction matters if a museum is promising open access to teachers or community partners. Before promoting a course, check what a learner can actually use without paying, how long access lasts and whether any certificate carries academic credit. Put that information beside the enrolment link.

Measure the learning people came for

A 2013 University of Pennsylvania study of its early MOOCs found an average completion rate of about 4% among registrants. That historical result describes registration-to-completion, not the share of active learners or people who intended to finish. A museum should distinguish those groups and also ask whether learners found the material they came for, tried an activity or gained something useful from part of a course.

Another potential negative to consider is the lack of real-life interaction with students. Unlike a traditional classroom setting, teachers don’t connect with their students on a personal level. This could mean they miss out on meaningful feedback and guidance during the course. A lack of engagement could be one of the reasons why people don’t finish a full course.

Plan production and learner support

A course needs staff time as well as a platform. Plan learning design, image and recording rights, captions, accessible materials, forum moderation and updates to content. Decide who will respond to questions and how long the museum can maintain that support. The ability to pause or revisit material is useful only if learners can access and understand it.

Cost, location and time can all make learning difficult. An online course may reduce travel and offer a flexible pace, while introducing other requirements such as a suitable device, reliable connectivity or paid access. Be clear about those conditions when working with teachers or community partners.

Museums can excel in online learning

Museums are experts in their own fields. Digital learning platforms give institutions a unique opportunity to share this knowledge. This type of course can reach a new audience. MOOCs allow museums to take control of their own content and how people benefit from it. They can shine a light on various collections or theories, and bring the museum experience to people on a global scale. MOOCs are a useful professional development tool too. Through online courses, museums can help educators to inspire new generations.