HCI Course done!

Along with CFHE12 ending, this is the last week of the Human Computer Interaction course on Coursera.  This course was mostly a review for me considering that I had already taken an HCI course (grad level) back when I was doing my BA in computer science and I wanted a refresher.

This particular course had 3 levels of participation, and I opted to participate at the lowest level which was to watch videos and take the quizzes, and of course, pass with a satisfactory grade.

I have to say that the course was a nice review.  Initially I wrote that (comparatively) the professor didn't have as much screen presence as the previous coursera MOOC I had taken, but he grew on me. By the end the Lectures weren't bad at all.  Of course, I am seeing this through the lens of someone wanting a review.  If this were my first time around in HCI, that first level of participation would probably not have been enough and I would have to kick it up to the peer reviewed coursework level.

Having done HCI, and having received peer review, I am having issues with the anonymity aspect of the assignments (especially for HCI).  I think anonymity can breed conformity and a sense of not caring.  I think that coursera needs to find a way to do peer review in a way that is not anonymous, and has the ability to match people for language and skill level. Until then, peer review is not going to be an effective means of assessment. Just my 2c.

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