MOOCs within Higher Education Lead to an Aggravation of Educational Inequality in China

In China, where education is often viewed as a scarce resource, the fairness of its production and distribution is crucial for social development. While Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are widely promoted as a solution to bridge the educational gap and increase accessibility in higher education, this thesis challenges this optimistic view. It argues that MOOCs do not fundamentally lead to a more equitable production and distribution of educational resources. Contrary to prevailing narratives, there is a lack of evidence proving that MOOCs do not exacerbate existing educational inequalities in China. To support this argument, the study first defines key concepts of MOOCs and educational inequity. It then employs a dual theoretical framework: utilizing Marxist thought to analyze how inequality is embedded in the content of MOOC courses themselves, and drawing on Bourdieu's theory of capital to demonstrate how capital influences the unfair distribution of these educational resources.