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Books accomplish pretty much the same thing as moocs, yet the academy survived the invention of the printing press. I'm sure moocs will have their place, but I
by k2enemy 14y ago
Books accomplish pretty much the same thing as moocs, yet the academy survived the invention of the printing press. I'm sure moocs will have their place, but I think fears about the destruction of academia are a little exaggerated.
- bayesianhorse 14y agoMoocs are in the majority better than corresponding books. Generally books are more detailed (and expensive) than most students would need or benefit at a "first read". When I pick up a university-level text without the need to study for an exam, I usually don't follow through. Mostly because I get stuck somewhere. With Moocs that doesn't happen. Moocs are currently only scraping the surface of what is possible with computerassisted instruction. They offer quizzes. But in the future I fully expect interactive Tutoring software that would for example be able to "nudge" you towards the solution of a problem, train you in a particular skill through repetition or even check a proof for a math problem.
- VLM 14y agoI'm old enough to just barely remember frantic screaming about VHS video cassette lectures would destroy academia. 20 years later academia was still around so I could pay lots of money to attend, but a decade or to ago VHS cassette tapes mostly disappeared. It is rather reminiscent of claims the VCR would destroy Hollywood back in the 70s/80s. Complete with the (hidden?) assumption that the existing business model is worth saving, that useless jobs must be saved at any cost, anti-technological progress rants...