If MOOC's carried a fraction of the "academic credibility" that college degrees did, Udacity would be a home run already.
It is unclear to me that any educational system that passes such a small percentage of students in Elem Stats would ever have a hope of gaining academic credibility. That's the playing field.
What an instructor at SJSU would do that Thrun is not going to do is lots of office hours, question-answering, and mentoring/being there. That's what it seems to require.
Personally I think it took a great deal of courage for Thrun to recognize that this is a game he is unlikely to win.
It is unclear to me that any educational system that passes such a small percentage of students in Elem Stats would ever have a hope of gaining academic credibility.
Do you think that if they inflated their pass-rates that you'd find them credible?
There is too much focus on pass-rates[1]. I shouldn't have to point out to a person who implies having taken statistics that it is silly to compare selective institutions' pass-rates to the pass-rates of open-enrollment institutions. Add the benefits of "free" and "I don't have to leave my home/workplace/etc." as is the case with MOOCs, and you have the potential for greatly expanded enrollment. Why would you think that large enrollment growth would generate better pass rates?
[1] I'm an instructor at a two-year college / vocational college where some people seem to never shut up about pass rates. The State also seems to think that pass-rates == quality, and has set about incentive-izing programs with "good" pass-rates. Even worse, one local (large) employer insists upon "B" or above average for anyone it hires.
Personally I think it took a great deal of courage for Thrun to recognize that this is a game he is unlikely to win.
Maybe he's not in it for the money, but to make genuine improvement.
Comments
It is unclear to me that any educational system that passes such a small percentage of students in Elem Stats would ever have a hope of gaining academic credibility. That's the playing field.
What an instructor at SJSU would do that Thrun is not going to do is lots of office hours, question-answering, and mentoring/being there. That's what it seems to require.
Personally I think it took a great deal of courage for Thrun to recognize that this is a game he is unlikely to win.
Do you think that if they inflated their pass-rates that you'd find them credible?
There is too much focus on pass-rates[1]. I shouldn't have to point out to a person who implies having taken statistics that it is silly to compare selective institutions' pass-rates to the pass-rates of open-enrollment institutions. Add the benefits of "free" and "I don't have to leave my home/workplace/etc." as is the case with MOOCs, and you have the potential for greatly expanded enrollment. Why would you think that large enrollment growth would generate better pass rates?
[1] I'm an instructor at a two-year college / vocational college where some people seem to never shut up about pass rates. The State also seems to think that pass-rates == quality, and has set about incentive-izing programs with "good" pass-rates. Even worse, one local (large) employer insists upon "B" or above average for anyone it hires.
Maybe he's not in it for the money, but to make genuine improvement.
Yes, those people comprise the playing field.