ISSN: 2226-3624
Open access
The growing popularity of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) has revolutionized education by offering accessible and flexible learning opportunities worldwide. However, retaining student engagement and fostering loyalty remains a significant challenge for MOOC providers. The importance of this issue lies in its direct impact on the sustainability and long-term success of MOOCs in an increasingly competitive online education market. This study investigates how the quality of MOOCs influences student loyalty, emphasizing key factors such as content quality, platform usability, instructor presence, community engagement, and certification value. Utilizing a library research methodology, this study systematically reviews recent literature, applying both the SERVQUAL model and Expectation-Confirmation Theory (ECT) to analyze the relationship between MOOC quality and student retention. The SERVQUAL model helps assess MOOC quality across dimensions such as reliability, usability, and instructor engagement, while ECT provides insight into how meeting or exceeding learner expectations contributes to student loyalty. The major findings of the study indicate that high-quality content tailored to learners' personal and professional goals, intuitive and user-friendly platform design, active instructor involvement, opportunities for meaningful peer interactions, and valuable certifications are key drivers of student satisfaction and loyalty in MOOCs. The study also highlights that courses aligning with market demands and offering recognized certifications enhance the perceived value of MOOCs, motivating students to complete courses and recommend the platform to others. The research concludes with practical recommendations for MOOC providers, suggesting continuous evaluation and adaptation of course content, platform usability, and community engagement to meet evolving learner expectations. Further research is proposed to explore the influence of emerging technologies and personalized learning experiences on student loyalty, as well as longitudinal studies to track the long-term effects of quality improvements on MOOC retention rates.
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