Digital twins in MOOCs: exploring ways to enhance interactivity

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this conceptual paper is to inform the administrators, designers, trainers and scholars, and encourage conversations on the role of digital twin technologies in enhancing interactivity in the context of massive open online courses (MOOCs). Design/methodology/approach Drawing on a review of literature, this article highlights the concept of digital twins and discusses its potential applications on enhancing interactivity in MOOCs. Findings Findings of this conceptual paper highlights the significance of the emerging industry 4.0 technologies such as digital twins, in enhancing interactivity in a MOOC environment. Implementation of modern technologies such as digital twins and AI in MOOCs could guarantee access to comprehensive and equitable quality education and could expand the scope of lifelong learning for everyone. Practical implications This conceptual paper is particularly relevant to the post-pandemic context where organizations and educational institutions have both adopted a hybrid mode of learning. Inclusion of the interactive elements may provide better insights to the platform administrators, designers, trainers and to enhance levels of learner engagement in MOOC environments. Moreover, effective utilization of these technology driven learning models in future may have larger impacts in catering to meet the sustainable development goal (SDG-4) towards provision of quality education. Originality/value While past studies focused more on the conceptualization of human-to-human interactivity, the facets of human-to-platform interactivity remained largely unexplored. To our understanding, this paper is one of the initial attempts to conceptually highlight the applications of digital-twin technology to enhance human to platform interactivity in a MOOC context.