One massive reason to teach online – lecturers transform education at the University

University lecturers will soon be able to share reading material, interactive quizzes and academic papers with learners online.

The School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR) is pioneering the University's first Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) which will give people of all ages the opportunity to take part in a unique, high quality, flexible and innovative learning experience.

There are no prerequisites for registering for any of the courses and education or academic background is not important – budding learners simply need an internet connection.

Almost 1,000 people from 52 countries across the globe, including Brazil, Ethiopia and Nepal, have already signed up to the first three MOOCs entitled Healthy Sustainable Diets, Health Inequalities and Health Technology Assessment.

Dr Michelle Holdsworth, Senior Lecturer in Public Health at ScHARR, said: "Our MOOCs offer a stimulating virtual learning environment which will give people from across the globe an interactive taster of the high quality education we have to offer. We hope that the flexible and engaging nature of the courses will nurture a community spirit amongst learners which will show them what higher education has to offer.

"Learners will be able to participate in webinars in real time and interact with fellow pupils and academics, as well as being able to pause the tutorials and watch them at whatever time suits them – whether that is in the middle of the night or first thing in the morning.

"The success of ScHARRs online Masters Programme in Public Health, which was launched in 2011, means that we already have the expertise and specialist programmes in place to offer an exceptionally high quality course which is free to all on an international scale."

The MOOCs will run for four weeks and participants will be required to invest between four and five hours of study per week.

The first course; Health Inequalities, will begin on 17 June 2013 and will be run by Dr Holdsworth and ScHARR Research Fellow, Dr Angie Clonan. As a result of the huge interest and demand for the initial MOOCs varied programme of courses have already been planned for 2014.

Dr Clonan said: "MOOCs are a new and exciting way of learning which are open to all and best of all they are completely free. All you need is an internet connection and a positive attitude. The initiative will bring learning to life and remove the barriers to education for people across the world – no matter what stage of life they are like."

She added: "ScHARR deals with a wide range of health related research from alcohol, obesity, nutrition and physical activity. We also have a range of expertise in public interventions such as cost effectiveness analysis and clinical trials. This is reflected in the diversity of modules offered on our Masters of Public Health Course which is also available by distance learning and now our MOOCs."

On 2 May the University joined the British Museum, British Council and 16 other leading UK universities in collaboration with Futurelearn – the first free, open online platform for engaging and entertaining courses.

Professor Paul White , Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Learning and Teaching, said: "The digital world is the future. Online education provides a means for the University to engage with learners from around the world and in circumstances we would otherwise never be able to reach out too. The courses are an important way for more people to access the high quality education that the University of Sheffield delivers."