<p>After watching someone struggling in an online math class, I sincerely hope that college won’t go completely online.</p>
<p>Online coursework is way more than a niche. Many traditional schools are shifting part of their courses to online, or a blend. When I was in college, I had some large lecture courses that were one bored prof (who was often a brilliant researcher who had little interest in teaching equally bored undergrads). These non-interactive lectures could easily have been replaced by an online session, and could have been led by a more engaging prof who actually liked teaching. And, was good at it!</p>
<p>No, online won’t replace the whole in-person, residential experience. Unfortunately, thirty years of tuition increases that outpace inflation have made that experience unaffordable for many families.</p>
<p>Online coursework is way more than a niche. Many traditional schools are shifting part of their courses to online, or a blend. When I was in college, I had some large lecture courses that were one bored prof (who was often a brilliant researcher who had little interest in teaching equally bored undergrads). These non-interactive lectures could easily have been replaced by an online session, and could have been led by a more engaging prof who actually liked teaching. And, was good at it!</p>
<p>No, online won’t replace the whole in-person, residential experience. Unfortunately, thirty years of tuition increases that outpace inflation have made that experience unaffordable for many families.</p>
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<p>Perhaps the most common reason advanced for government subsidies of higher education is that college graduates earn much more than high school graduates. Controlling for student quality at matriculation, do college graduates of residential schools earn more than graduates of commuter schools? At the high end, this question cannot be answered, because there are no commuter schools comparable in selectivity to HYP etc. But a study could compare the graduates of unselective residential schools to unselective commuter schools. I don’t know of such a study. An online college is not just non-residential but also lacks in-person contact with college faculty, so it differs in at least two ways from a residential school.</p>
<p>I agree with the many posters who said that the residential college experience has benefits, but is it worth $240K, the approximate “list price” of some of the most prestigious schools? My wife and I are well off, and our kids will not qualify for financial aid. If a decade from now we offer to pay $40K for an online degree of $240K for a residential one, our kids will of course choose the latter. But if we offer them a $200K lump sum if they choose an online degree, the decision could be less clear.</p>
<p>Tech companies such as Google try to create workplaces that feel like college campuses.
When/if Google hires developers based on online degrees, having your “college experience” paid for by Google may look attractive.</p>
<p>Beliavsky, 200K is still expensive for any degree, let alone an online one with unproven market value, and I doubt that online degrees will achieve much more cachet in 10 years than they have now. Your children could go to the state flagship or go to a college that offers merit aid for their stats for less than 200K and still get a respected, recognized degree along with a residential experience, if that is what they want. We are also full-pay (no FA) and our D, a decent student, had numerous good residential options at a variety of price levels.</p>
<p>As a homeschooler, we’ve used our share of various online courses/tutors/websites. My oldest had a “reunion” with four other students from one of his online classes here in our town and it was very special.</p>
<p>However, for him, a super outgoing young person, online learning was not particularly appealing and he grew tired of it. Watching him thrive at MIT (at least for his first semester), in large part because of all the really interesting and cool students he’s meeting and all the fun activites (oh and the interesting classes), lets me know that, at least for his type of personality, online college would not be a good fit.</p>
<p>My middle son, more introverted, has had some success with online high school classes but even for him, interacting with his friends at our co-op is so much more interesting than doing things online. Further, he’s a gamer and already spends too much time (IMO) on his two online games. I could see him getting easily distracted.</p>
<p>I would think online college is ideal for the working adult of whatever age who doesn’t have the time to drive to campus, battle the parking and overcrowded classrooms, and has a specific goal in mind.</p>
<p>I would also think it’s ideal for people who love to learn but might not necessarily be degree seeking. It might even become very useful for working adults wanting to add to their resume with classes from Coursera, MITx, and Udacity.</p>
<p>I’m in a master’s program at a brick and mortar business college. However, my entire program is online. Nobody will be able to tell that from my diploma. I do have comraderie with classmates because of discussion boards in our “classroom” and group projects every term (yes, even in online courses and it is even harder to get people to do their share that way). There are pros and cons, but we have a virtual computer lab where we can do exercises and assignments that we couldn’t ethically do elsewhere. Some professors have been woefully absent from really participating in the class but others are very engaged and engaging. </p>
<p>As a single mom to two teenagers, I wouldn’t be able to do this any other way. I can never commit to having the same night free every week for an entire term. I think it’s great overall, for someone in my shoes.</p>
<p>Most of the masters programs I’m looking at are hybrid programs. I’m getting my MPH and every single one of them requires a practicum. In order to accomplish this and still graduate in 2 years, we are often out of state at different sites and continue some courses online. I quite like this model.</p>
<p>The remaining hurdle for on-line college degrees is credentialing and employer acceptance. Employers are starting to look at on-line candidates especially in technical areas where much of the on-line focus has been.</p>
<p>The issue is not whether people will prefer on-line over traditional but whether they can still afford traditional four year programs. The schools that will be most impacted are the middle-of -the-pack private schools that charge almost as much as the top HYPS schools but provided more limited employment opportunities and far less prestige. The top-schools will still attract the top-students and have deep pockets to pay people’s way through college.</p>
<p>I would expect to start seeing some of the middle tier schools go bankrupt over the next 10-20 years as students turn to on-line programs. </p>
<p>An interesting issue is how people address the “social” aspects of learning. I suspect this will evolve into on-line communities augmented by regional meetings as you see with many hobbies/clubs.</p>
<p>My dad has talked about the future of college being online when I mentioned possibly being a professor. I think the value of college is only partly the degree/education. The value of learning responsibilities, social interactions, networking, finding what your passions, etc. definitely can’t be ignored.</p>
<p>If I were starting college today, I’d happily create my own study-abroad type program, taking online classes while rotating between 3-4 months each in Europe, Asia, Australia and South America. I think the wide international exposure would be a big plus when seeking a job in today’s economy – at least you would get interviews because you “sound interesting.”</p>
<p>I don’t think online will ever fully replace residential classes. The interaction you get from professors in class can’t be replicated by purely online experience.</p>
<p>I’m already mad that differential equations is only offered at my community college online. :(</p>
<p>It’s not only the “college experience” that makes an on-campus University preferable.</p>
<p>As someone who is very active on the Coursera community, has TAd for a course, and has taken quite a few computer science courses I can guarantee you that the level of learning you achieve from a purely online environment will not match that at a university, at least not the top universities.</p>
<p>For one, even a highly automated grading system as is common for CS courses cannot validate and verify advanced theoretical concepts like proofs. Both Stanford and Princeton have offered online classes in Algorithms. The most challenging questions (which are likely required of on-campus students) were left as “Theory” questions or “Job Interview” questions as there is no basis to grade them.</p>
<p>Harvard’s CS50x also has the same trend where the “Standard” version of the question is graded online whereas the “Hacker” version is left for the user’s edification.</p>
<p>Secondly, it’s important to note that the bulk of the MOOCs offered right now (with the exception of Brown’s “Programming Languages”) are relatively introductory-level courses. If you’re majoring in a subject, there is no way you can pursue the depth of courses you need in an online format, at least not in my experience.</p>
<p>This, of course, is for students in America who can (probably) afford relatively (to the world) exorbitant university fees. A course from Udacity or Coursera is eons ahead of most Indian universities (even the “good” ones) and probably African and Asian ones as well. So if you can’t get into an IIT or afford to come to the US – these courses are a lifesaver.</p>
<p>They serve a greater purpose than replacing university education. The most they can do to that end is, maybe, allow a student to focus only on his/her major in College while getting GenEds and other courses of sheer interest out of the way online. However, it creates a lifelong spirit of learning and allows a student to experiment with a discipline that he’s not sure about (perfect for smart high schoolers).</p>
<p>I’m taking an online class next semester. It’s a USC class, but it’s offered entirely online. I’m excited to try it…after all, I think that having some online components to education could be very beneficial (for example, I could see some major lectures that break into smaller discussion sections converting the lecture into an online lecture and using discussions to create a more intimate classroom experience); online tests/quizzes can sometimes save class time for other obligations, and many professors require that written work gets submitted online (either in lieu of or in addition to a hard copy). Also, the occasional online class might be nice (especially because there are some fields that can definitely be taught online).</p>
<p>Oh, but I will say, MOOCs will replace the absolutely crappy online, paid courses offered by some universities.</p>
<p>I’m not sure how other universities are, but I took a University of Illinois NetMath course, paid quite a bit for it, and the experience was absolutely terrible. It’s something I would never recommend to anyone. The free courses are better in every imaginable way. The only benefit is you get a ‘real’ credit but, frankly, I’d be embarrassed to flaunt that qualification anywhere considering the nature of the course (and everything it fails to teach).</p>
<p>I have so much respect for the MOOC movement and everything these professors are doing to make such an amazing experience for the students who are not even paying. The half-assed industry that is paid online courses will hopefully implode when they realize their money-making initiatives are outdone by the noble service provided by the likes of the top schools teaching on these platforms.</p>
<p>Online learning may be able to replace a lot of classroom learning. </p>
<p>But don’t confuse learning with CREDENTIALING. School’s are going to just give that away.</p>
<p>Stanford University already has an on-line high school that offers a full or part time program. It started as part of the EPGY program, but as of last year is independent. Tuition for the full time program is $15,800 a year, and I think there are currently a couple of hundred students enrolled. Stanford has accepted more than a few of it’s graduates over the past 3 years. </p>
<p>I think it is a significant statement that an institution such as Stanford is supporting the idea of on-line education.</p>
<p>show me a resume with an on line degree listed or a for profit school listed and i will show you a trash can that is used for filing those resumes.</p>
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<p>This is what companies like Mozilla are working on. The credentialling they will offer will be a lot more specific than getting a BS or BA in such-and-such. Once employers catch-on that, the end for the 4-year college will draw nigh.</p>
<p>[Digital</a> Media and Learning Competition](<a href=“http://dmlcompetition.net/Competition/4/badges-about.php]Digital”>http://dmlcompetition.net/Competition/4/badges-about.php)</p>
<p>I’ve taken a few Coursera MOOCs, which were generally quite good, but they require much more self-motivation and self-discipline than the average student has. I think the MOOCs typically have very large dropout rates (80-90% or more).</p>
<p>For whatever reason, most students seem to need a regular classroom, and they need to be continually reminded about any online component. However, if anyone hits the magic formula for online learning with ordinary students, then there will be a lot of disruption. Looking for that formula is the stage we are at now.</p>