This article explores the role of culture and the concept of openness as they relate to learning using a massive open online course which teaches the Irish language and Irish culture to learners around the world. It explores how best to describe the meaning of such learning, and the social, material, and relational tensions that exist in such…

Many Open and Distance Learning (ODL) providers report that their students are prone to lower rates of retention and completion than campus-based students. Against this background, there is growing interest around distance-specific learning support. The current research investigated the experiences of students during their first semester as…