Though many of the country’s top universities began to offer free, non-credit online courses as supplemental education, Boston University will not do the same anytime soon, officials said.
Nancy Coleman, director of Distance Education at BU’s Metropolitan College, said BU has a large distance education program though which students can earn degrees online.
“We have 25 employees that are dedicated to supporting online learners,” Coleman said. “We help put up online degrees and have the ability to help faculty develop courses.”
About 3,000 degree-seeking and 2,000 certificate-seeking students are enrolled in BU’s distance education program, Coleman said.
On Wednesday, “Coursera,” an online course-hosting platform founded by Stanford University professors, announced its partnership with Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania and the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor to broaden the platform of courses available, according to an article Wednesday in the Chronicle of Higher Education.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Yale University and numerous other top institutions offer their own type of free online course, ranging from entire courses to recordings of lectures that are available to anyone, but do not count toward a degree in the way those at BU do.
“Technology is rapidly changing and is making distance education possible,” said School of Education Associate Professor Alan Gaynor. “The economy of the higher education market place is already changing.”
Online education is like the “Apple [computer] of higher education,” and there is a growing market for online learning as technology and the design of online classes improves, said Gaynor, director of Human Resource Education.
While online courses may not be of the highest caliber now, there is no reason they will not improve, he said. Free online courses may change to meet economic needs in time.
“Just like your Apple [computer] today, it is much better than the Apple from 1985,” he said. “There is no comparison.”
Though online courses seem to be the next big thing, they will need time to improve and find a way to make profits, Gaynor said.
“As long as a Harvard degree can be cashed for more than a degree from somewhere else, they’re going to be able to make you pay,” he said.
Fadi Humaid, a School of Management junior and vice president of the Undergraduate Economics Association, said he learns more through his club and internship opportunities than he does in classes, so he is unsure of how much of a benefit additional online courses would be to him.
“I suppose if a person wanted to take a math class but not mess with their GPA, they could take a class [online] out of curiosity,” he said. “I don’t know how they’re going to incentivize professors, though, if they’re not getting paid.”
On the other hand, free online classes for those who prefer to be self-educated could be a good initiative, said Emily Mohr, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences and president of the Undergraduate Classics Association.
“College isn’t for everyone,” she said. “Some people learn better in different environments.”
However, Mohr said online courses would not be beneficial for her because she aims to go into academia, and she actively seeks out supplemental lectures on campus instead.
CAS senior Sarah Sargent, president of the Marine Science Association, said she prefers classes on campus and supplemental marine science guest lectures to online courses.
“I wouldn’t take classes if I didn’t get credit for them,” Sargent said. “I already spend hours on the computer, I don’t want to spend more time on it.”
Although online resources such as lecture slides on Blackboard are very useful, Sargent said she learns more and in less time by going to her professors and asking for help.
“[Online resources] are not a bad thing, but I feel like it’s just a supplement to the real class, not a replacement,” she said. “There’s something very different about being in a classroom with a professor and students than meeting someone online for class.”
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