Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University have caused quite a stir by offering free online courses and degrees as part of a project called "EdX." The effect of these high profile universities taking on a new model of higher education is that others want to join the elite club. The University of California Berkeley recently
announced its entry into the free online education market. As more prestigious universities join the movement, the future of the massive open online course (MOOCs) becomes ever more prominent (read more about MOOCs in a
recent NY Times article). The model seems unlikely for many universities, whose budget is controlled much more by prospective students and government officials being willing to pay for access to quality instruction. Anyone might heft a guess as to what funding models might emerge in the future. Perhaps homework assignments will come with Google ads, or perhaps institutional funding will be based solely on foundation money donated by the vast alumni.
To read more about UC Berkeley's announcement, read the
recent article about these developments in the Chronicle.
http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/uc-berkeley-joins-edx-effort-to-offer-free-open-courses/37969
I would be interested in hearing some comments from the UNF community regarding MOOCs.
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