So many articles about changes in education options lately, with MOOCS being a sort of major representation of what can and will happen with our current system. Among in all, I notice that everything is framed in an all-or-nothing format: You can study for a LARGE amount of money that will probably require taking out loans and living frugally for years afterwards, forgoing travel and other things that could enlighten you, OR you can study for absolutely FREE, putting together your own courses and hoping that MOOCs will come into their own as respected college courses in the job market. (And do interesting things such as travel to boot.)
At this point, there has been lots of finger-pointing regarding quality of course content and online vs. traditional learning, comparatively little has been said regarding the main problem with our current education system: It is WAY OVERPRICED. We need to have a huge PRICE REDUCTION on this oversized house that no longer fits the needs or income of today's family.
I will write about this more this soon. But I want to say that it's time to drastically reduce the price of that house, because - lovely as it is - even if we want to buy it, we can't.
My biggest concern with considering MOOCs as an alternative to a proper degree is the lack of continuity between modules. Any non-elementary university course has non-trivial presumed knowledge. One of the biggest problems facing non-elementary MOOCs is expressing that requirement.
ReplyDeleteWhat does "some statistics" mean? Do I need to know n-choose-r? Poisson distributions?
What does "some knowledge of computer programming" mean? Variables and loops? Python/Lisp list handling? OO programming?
Within traditional education, you don't have to specify it to that level, because you can publish prerequisites at the level of other courses offered by your institution.
Identifying prerequisite knowledge in a truly open environment is non-trivial.
If a degree is like a house, then individual courses are the rooms, and we need to check the the floors and ceilings are the same height, the walls are of the same length, and that the doorways meet...
I agree completely that there may be a difference in continuity. The main point I was thinking about when I wrote this was the very extreme difference in cost.
ReplyDeleteI imagine that MOOCs will start to get more organized about that aspect as well, but in the meantime they offer great leaning opportunities...
My concern, though, is that the organisation may go the wrong way. Already US colleges are standardising syllabuses to allow movement between community colleges and larger institutions, which is in principle a good thing, but in practice demotes universities to a mere extension of the school system, all teaching the same thing.
ReplyDeleteThe other reason this concerns me is the damage that "modularisation" has done to Scottish education. I took a year our recently to go back to university. I went into the second year of a Gaelic language and culture degree scheme. My concern was that I'd be lacking prerequisite knowledge from the first year, particularly as I hadn't done any literature study since high school.
In the end, I found they had modularised to the point that there was no prerequisite knowledge whatsoever, resulting in a very shallow, superficial view of the various topics. I did a module on short stories and I still don't even know the Gaelic for "simile". That's what I'm afraid of: compartmentalised, shallow learning.
I'll not deny that MOOCs offer great learning opportunities, but I do think it's important not to overegg the pudding: all the MOOCs in the world are not equivalent to a high quality degree.
Speaking from the point of view of another country, Venezuela, I agree that: "all the MOOCs in the world are not equivalent to a high quality degree" the matter is that humanity must give space to people interests and multiple educational needs: Not everyone can go to Harvard, and it is not necessary. The educational alternatives as MOOCs and others, can supply, with quality and level, training and instruction in many aspects. Otherwise this actual educational trend will be perfected and will reach a significant level, and besides they are increasingly attractive to people who want to learn in an environment and conditions that are familiar and reaffirming the appropriate use of technology. For example, here I am, 65 years retired professor, participating in an online course, learning things I did not know, meeting people from all over the world, living experiences.
ReplyDeleteBig changes expected from the educational system are coming; we must allow time for them to be perfected and can reach everyone everywhere, in an equitable and socially just manner.
Otherwise traditional and prestigious institutions, I think, will include a lot of these new developments, but their heart will never change; this will ensure that in those institutions the nations will form the level of human resources needed in a changing world, resources that must be at the frontier of knowledge. Thanks.