Evolution of MOOC designs, providers and learners and the related MOOC research and publications from 2008 to 2018

Massive Open Online Courses emerged in 2008 as a result of openness movement in education and drew a lot of attention by 2011 when MOOCs were adopted by higher education institutions and used as a mean to deliver knowledge and educational content. Though MOOCs have a recent history, much has been articulated and MOOCs are claimed to be a revolution in education while some others claimed that MOOCs are a hype that will eventually fade away. In this context, this research aims to investigate MOOC research by reviewing MOOC literature. The findings of the study suggest that MOOC interest tend to continue, and the evidence-based empirical MOOC research is increasing steadily. MOOC research area is dominated mostly by educational research; however, other research areas demonstrate that there is an interest from other research areas which is thought to be promising. Regional interest demonstrates that USA, Spain and UK are leading countries; and most interest stems from developed countries with Anglo-Saxon cultures. Likewise, the leading higher education institutions in MOOC research are located in Europe or USA. It is also promising that nearly half of the MOOC research is funded by stated agencies. The study concludes that MOOCs are evolving and, based on research findings, it is moving from Slope of Enlightenment to Plateau of Productivity in Gartner hype cycle.