Based on the passage describing the author’s enthusiasm for MOOCs, answer this comprehension question: “What aspect of the MOOC experience especially excited the author, according to the passage?”

Introduction / Context:
The passage not only explains what MOOCs are but also conveys the author’s emotional reaction to discovering them. After completing a first course, the author describes spending hours browsing course catalogues and feeling almost delirious with excitement. The question asks specifically what aspect of MOOCs caused this excitement. To answer correctly, you must focus on the sentences that describe the author’s feelings and the reasons behind them.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The author notes that by early 2013, Coursera and EdX had partnered with many educational institutions and expanded their course offerings widely.
• The passage says the author was “spoilt for choice” and spent hours studying course descriptions.
• Most importantly, the author says he was excited by the fact that he was “actually going to be able to take classes offered by universities I had only dreamt of attending.”
• The options mention free courses, flexibility to take breaks, the chance to study at dream universities, and the ability to take any course from any university in the world.
• The passage does not emphasise cost or complete unlimited choice from every university in existence.

Concept / Approach:
The concept is careful interpretation of the author’s stated motivation. While MOOCs have many advantages, the question is not about what MOOCs can theoretically offer, but about what the author personally found exciting. The key phrase about “universities I had only dreamt of attending” directly expresses the emotional highlight for the author. That phrase closely matches option C and not the other choices, which are either not mentioned or exaggerate the situation beyond what the text says.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Re read the part of the passage where the author describes being “delirious with excitement.” Step 2: Note the sentence that he was going to be able to take classes offered by universities he had only dreamt of attending. Step 3: Compare this directly with option C, which talks about the chance to take a course from a university he dreamt of. Step 4: Examine option A. Although MOOCs can be free, the passage does not emphasise cost as the main source of excitement. Step 5: Examine option B. The idea of taking a break in a course is not discussed in the text at all. Step 6: Examine option D. The passage says the platforms had partnered with many institutions, not literally every university in the world, so this is an exaggeration. Step 7: Conclude that option C accurately captures the author’s expressed excitement.

Verification / Alternative check:
A good verification technique is to underline the words that express feelings in the passage and see what they refer to. Words like “delirious with excitement” and “spoilt for choice” appear near the comment about universities the author had dreamt of attending. If cost or flexibility were the main reason, the author would have highlighted those factors at that point. Instead, the emotional emphasis is clearly on the status and prestige of the universities whose courses he can now experience online. This confirms that the correct answer is linked to that opportunity.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A mentions free courses, which is a possible benefit of MOOCs, but the passage never frames this as the central exciting factor for the author. Option B introduces the idea of taking a break in a course, which is completely absent from the text and therefore unsupported. Option D exaggerates the situation by saying “any course from any university in the world,” which the passage does not claim.

Common Pitfalls:
Students often project their own ideas about why MOOCs are attractive, such as low cost or flexibility, instead of sticking to what the author says. Another pitfall is to choose the option that sounds the most impressive, such as being able to study at any university, even if the passage does not support it. To avoid this, always anchor your answer in direct phrases from the text and resist the temptation to inject outside opinions or assumptions.

Final Answer:
The aspect that especially excited the author was “the fact that he could take a course from the university he had dreamt of attending”.