Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
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Re: Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
#2It is great that you posted this here. This is a big discussion that we will have in the following years.Obviously we have to find the right model for public universities. Clearly the MOOC classes can provide a lot of benefits. But we also want to keep good professors in College.
I personally think that MOOCs should supplement the lectures and professors should focus on directing discussions in class, solving problems, directing projects, making sure no one is left behind, providing his own view and experience.
Re: Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
#3The coming widespread adoption of MOOCs is another great example of what Jaron Lanier calls Mass Unemployment Events. Driverless cars will be another.
Together we trudge on towards a future requiring a basic minimum income.
Re: Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
#4The World is perfectly just.
God says...
increase thereof shall be for food unto them that serve the city.
48:19 And they that serve the city shall serve it out of all the tribes of Israel.
48:20 All the oblation shall be five and twenty thousand by five and twenty thousand: ye shall offer the holy oblation foursquare, with the possession of the city.
48:21 And the residue shall be for the prince, on the one side and on the other of the holy oblation, and of the possession of the city, over against the five and twenty thousand of the oblation toward the east border, and westward over against the five and twenty thousand toward the west border, over against the portions for the prince: and it shall be the holy oblation; and the sanctuary of the house shall be in the midst thereof.
48:22 Moreover from the possession of the Levites, and from the possession of the city, being in the midst of that which is the prince's, between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin, shall be for the prince.
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God says...
served doings awaited pet crucifixion reward unfriendly distended Thou entered day-break never plans exports materials shared an Saints grammar-learning liberty slightly patterns sooner commiserate or tookest pressed Curiosity fathers locking springeth sour regions philosophers THE companions wild message revenge forms trouble Psalmody beatings wonted transferring incorrect entrails concerns ninth envenomed god abhorring sinner's excellence irrevocable foretold mixture fire accomplished just_lovely palace keep glories followest utterly plunging pain jests I_was_just_thinking bred inviting strengthenest ipod urged Euodius killed next shoe dared supposed dragging shut mercies General reconciled deep Ostia darkenings Chatto
Re: Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
#5I'm sure the acronym MOOC is obvious to those in the area, but I wasn't sure what it stood for, and it seems sloppy to me that it wasn't defined in the article.
All it takes is writing "Massive Open Online Course (MOOC)" the first time it was used.
Re: Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
#6Educators are going to need to deliver in-person value in excess of their cost. The writing is on the wall, there is no technological limitation preventing world-class instructors from teaching everyone. This will doubtlessly be the first of many attempts by the entrenched to prevent this superior education from becoming the norm, out of fear they can't actually deliver real value aside from presenting slides.
Re: Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
#7The actual "open letter" sent by the SJSU philosophy department: http://chronicle.com/article/The-Document-an-Open-Letter/138...
Re: Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
#8Speaking for my self, a UK student 14 ish years ago doing Computer Science...
I found lectures mostly a waste of time. What I found was that the lecturers were simply presenting the latest chapter from the prescribed text book. So, I ended up reading the chapter the night before and just used the lecture as confirmation of what I thought I had learned by reading. Very occasionally I used the lecture to ask some question, but that was rare. By Year 2, I barely went to lectures and simply studied at home, handed in the required work, then did the exams.
Now, I fully accept that what I did does not suit all, in fact I am happy to be considered a minority case, but, and here is the point I'm waffling towards, I did have to question the true value of actual lecturers if all they did was present chapters of a text book. A video on-line might well have been better.
Another thing I ended up questioning was the length of the degree course. It could have been very easily done in 2 years, if not less.
Re: Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
#9One of the former chairs of our department (CS at the University of Chicago) has a saying, "all curriculum reforms initially succeed."
So I'm not surprised that the pilot program had great pass rates, as pilot programs are usually staffed by eager people with amazing support networks who are interested in putting in the time to make it work. It'll be more interesting if SJSU does ramp up their experiments to start to include professors or lecturers who are just fulfilling their service requirements and seeing what the difference is between student performance under those faculty and the prior model.
Re: Why Professors at San Jose State Won't Use a Harvard Professor's MOOC
#10> The letter is part of a brewing debate about how MOOCs might deepen the divide between wealthy universities, which produce MOOCs, and less wealthy ones, which buy licenses to use those MOOCs from providers like edX.
Why are only top universities producing MOOCs anyway? Do San Jose lack any renowned classes, or just the will to MOOCify them?