Udacity has issued a press release announcing its partnership with San Jose State University to design three college credit courses to be taken online "at an affordable tuition rate." This pilot program is in keeping with Gov. Jerry Brown's urging to take higher education online to save money.
What are the three college classes in the Udacity pilot program?
The courses will be college algebra, elementary statistics and entry-level mathematics. The Mercury News reports that the cost for these for-credit courses would be $150 per course. They could be opened up to high school learners, community college and San Jose State students.
What prompted California's sudden interest in online learning as part of statewide education reform?
KCBS and the Associated Press have reported that Brown is giving California's colleges more budget funds with the stipulation that the schools reduce their operating costs through the expansion of online learning. Brown also warned the schools to stop raising tuition. Since tuition has gone up by almost 50 percent in recent years, the governor has made some of the higher education funding dependent on actual tuition freezes.
The Democratic administration looks to the development of online courses as a viable cost reduction measure. Brown hopes that the online availability of the courses also makes it possible for students to take required classes and keep on track with their graduation plans. Brown has earmarked $10 million per university system for the setup of "digital versions of high-demand courses." The community colleges have the mandate of spending $17 million on the development of virtual learning communities that offer about 250 courses.
What does Governor Brown say?
"Deploy your teaching resources more effectively. We want more kids to be able to get through school quicker," Brown told CBS and the AP.
What do supporters say?
"As the public university that sends 8,000 graduates annually into the Silicon Valley workforce, San Jose State University must and will take a leading role in leveraging technology to transform higher ed with the goal of making a college degree affordable and accessible to all," the president of San Jose State University told the Mercury News.
How are critics reacting?
The union president of the University Council-American Federation of Teachers (UC-AFT) criticizes the move toward online education as not being championed by educators, Information Week points out. The president of the California Faculty Association called for further research into online education before making any decisions. Writing for Tech Crunch, one former University of California educator warned that the move to online learning "spells the end of higher education as we know it." Warning that the very lower-division courses targeted for online coursework are the "financial backbone of many part-time faculty," he admits that his own teaching job "could have easily been automated."
Sylvia Cochran is a Los Angeles area resident with a firm finger on the pulse of California politics. Talk radio junkie, community volunteer and politically independent, she scrutinizes the good and the bad from both sides of the political aisle.
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