In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak forced universities in Turkey to move their educational activities onto online platforms. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) thereupon have gained urgent attention from higher education institutions thanks to their capacity to make educational opportunities accessible to the masses. Similarly, an area of increasing importance recently has been the concept of self-directed learning (SDL) for online learners. The purpose of this study is to find out student teachers' readiness for MOOCs and their learner autonomy development in a MOOC learning environment based on the theoretical models of SDL. Thus, to expand the capacity for teacher professional autonomy, the present research has focused more on autonomy in distance learning. The study is likely to offer valuable insights into the views of teacher educators on being in a better position to assess the concept of learner autonomy in MOOCs for post-COVID educational practices.