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MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

web.mit.edu

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Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#131

Post by jcranmer »

sarbaz wrote: post #82
Jtsummers wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a lot of value in running through the lecture live with a new class. Different students, different needs. If my undergrad CS Theory prof had used recorded lectures, it would've been great for 5 of us, and terrible for the other 30 or so. There were sections that they just did not get and needed repetition or clarifying examples. What's more, the students often don't know what they aren't understanding (someti…

This sounds pretty silly. There's bound to be a way to make online (or semi-online) learning agile too. Distance learning is basically a solved problem and has been done for hundreds of years. How about recorded lectures and in-person small group recitations? Or longer office hours? Obviously you have to change the methodology of learning a bit, but I'm sure it can be figured out. In any case undergrad level science…

How do you handle things like chemistry labs? Vocational training and art curricula are also going to be very difficult to do remotely, since you're probably not going to have requisite materials at home.

Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#132

Post by JMTQp8lwXL »

smallnamespace wrote: post #76
CodesInChaos wrote: post #59

I never understood why US universities have so many more rights over their tenants than other landlords. Why do they have the right to terminate what's effectively a rental agreement with only a week's notice?

Many universities are either municipalities in their own right, or have delegated municipal powers from the city government. Universities are their own small towns - they provide food, housing, have police forces, a large staff, etc. Put it the other way around, does it make more sense for a city official to be calling the shots, when campuses have their own special context?

Universities also have their own judicial systems under Title IX as well.

Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#133

Post by simonw »

IAmGraydon wrote: post #122

The real reason behind such a move is the culture of litigation in the US. Someone made your coffee too hot? Sue them. Someone stepped on your toe? Sue them. In this case, everyone is ducking for cover because they don't want to be the focus of a lawsuit that claims they didn't do anything to prevent the spread of the disease. The people who make these decisions at MIT are not unintelligent. They have all the resourc…

I'm certain that's not the case here. This isn't about avoiding litigation. It's about flattening the curve.

https://www.flattenthecurve.com/

Universities are taking this extremely disruptive step because they have a very large influence on how quickly this disease spreads, and they know it.

Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#134

Post by petschge »

sarbaz wrote: post #82
Jtsummers wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a lot of value in running through the lecture live with a new class. Different students, different needs. If my undergrad CS Theory prof had used recorded lectures, it would've been great for 5 of us, and terrible for the other 30 or so. There were sections that they just did not get and needed repetition or clarifying examples. What's more, the students often don't know what they aren't understanding (someti…

This sounds pretty silly. There's bound to be a way to make online (or semi-online) learning agile too. Distance learning is basically a solved problem and has been done for hundreds of years. How about recorded lectures and in-person small group recitations? Or longer office hours? Obviously you have to change the methodology of learning a bit, but I'm sure it can be figured out. In any case undergrad level science…

Completely solved problem? What about lab courses?

Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#135

Post by wegs »

mumblemumble wrote: post #51

The "empty out campus" bit seems a bit overmuch to me. What's the epidemiologists' take on something like this? I can see asking students who left for spring break not to come back. But asking students currently on campus to leave, and even demanding that they travel internationally, seems like it might just increase everyone's risk of exposure, and spread it around. Especially considering that, at least according to…

Not an epidemiologist, but a Boston resident. Generally, people under 30 completely ignore anything about the coronavirus here. You have people hitting a different nightclub each night, going to parties, and that sort of thing.

A college town full of students who see their risk as 0.1% is not what you want right now.

Now, a more sensible thing might be to close the nightclubs, bars, and parties. But the city hasn't done that. Patient zero will probably infect hundred here.

And the people who will die will be the elderly (which includes a lot of faculty too).

Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#136

Post by Tomte »

IAmGraydon wrote: post #122

The real reason behind such a move is the culture of litigation in the US. Someone made your coffee too hot? Sue them. Someone stepped on your toe? Sue them. In this case, everyone is ducking for cover because they don't want to be the focus of a lawsuit that claims they didn't do anything to prevent the spread of the disease. The people who make these decisions at MIT are not unintelligent. They have all the resourc…

The Truth About the McDonald's Coffee Lawsuit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9DXSCpcz9E&feature=youtu.be

Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#137

Post by simonw »

nostrademons wrote: post #95
JPKab wrote: post #2

One of my coworkers daughters is affected by this. The big question this begs: If there is no refund being offered for the content shifting online from in-person, why have in-person at all? Is room and board going to be refunded? If courses being taught online is an acceptable substitute, why have caps on admission at all? Edit: Understood that infinite sized classes aren't workable for human intensive grading, inter…

> If there is no refund being offered for the content shifting online from in-person, why have in-person at all? There isn't really a good reason other than some people being more disciplined when there's a human instructor that they see face to face every couple days. Plenty of people self-teach from MOOCs, MIT OCW, or just buying the textbooks and working through the exercises and get just as good an education. Whe…

"Plenty of people self-teach from MOOCs".

Are there studies (not from the MOOC providers themselves) that demonstrate that this works?

I got the impression that the MOOC thing wasn't working out as well as expected. The hype around them certainly seems to have cooled off since their peak a few years ago.

My hunch is that it's only a small subset of people that thrive with MOOCs.

Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#138

Post by HarryHirsch »

chrisseaton wrote: post #117
rurp wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It would be nice if they had thought about it enough to offer some sort of concrete solution. I can only imagine how stressful and infuriating the situation MIT is imposing on its students must be for many of them.

I think there's a limit to how well thought out you can expect the response to a global pandemic that's emerged in just a couple of months to be. Sorry it isn't perfect?

Taiwan seems to be handling it extremely well, but over there they had first-hand experience with SARS, and they had plans in place for when it was going to be back, because consensus was that it was going to be back.

Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#139

Post by chickenpotpie »

saagarjha wrote: post #126
chickenpotpie wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't get it either. It was especially irritating at my university because the dorms were several thousand dollars a semester more expensive than larger, better apartments nearby, but they were the worst landlords I ever had. They would kick me out all the time, while still charging me rent. During finals week you had to be gone within 24 hours of taking your last final or be fined. If schools in the US aren't goin…

Surely they had better things to do than to try to figure out when people had their finals and check door-to-door every day to make sure people left when they should?

That's exactly what the RAs did

Re: MIT moves all classes online for the rest of the semester

#140

Post by Trasmatta »

smallgovt wrote: post #94
PureParadigm wrote: post #50

I think large decisive moves like this may seem to some to be an overreaction, but it will prove to be the correct decision in hindsight (like the early travel bans). Exponential growth is real, and anything we can do to slow the rate of infection will save lives. As a current undergrad at UC Berkeley, they've moved all classes here online [1], and exams are either being postponed or converted to take-home assignment…

Actually, I think it's likely going to be seen as an overreaction in hindsight by the general public (even though it may not be). If these actions are successful in curbing the virus' spread, most people won't appreciate how bad things could have really gotten.

So a Y2K style hindsight? I wonder if there is a phrase for that type of thing.
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