In my opinion, anything that improves upon the current system of education in public schools is a welcome innovation. As it stands, teachers have little leeway

In my opinion, anything that improves upon the current system of education in public schools is a welcome innovation. As it stands, teachers have little leeway when it comes to actually TEACHING a class. Teachers are forced to follow a curriculum that the school board deems appropriate for the majority of students. How is that effective? Generally, it caters to the lowest common denominator. Personally, I think it's a great idea to let students follow the lectures on their own time and use class as an opportunity to engage the teacher in more personal questioning. I can count on one hand the number of times I actually got personal time with my teachers in school. Why? Because 99% of school was suffering through lectures. My teachers never had time to actually work with students one on one. The Khan Academy recognizes that teachers could be better utilized by actually tracking where students are excelling or failing and working with them In the classroom on a personal basis. In the end, the proof is in the pudding. I think it's great that this concept is even being tested. There isn't much use in arguing that the state of public education is in turmoil, that's a fact. The real question is what anyone is going to do about it. Whether right or wrong, at least the Khan Academy is TRYING to help improve the situation, that's more than I can say for my local board of education, who seem to value ego arguments over actually getting anything done.