Dive Summary:
- Top administrators at George Washington University are questioning the effectiveness and educational value of MOOCs, which could potentially postpone plans for the school to begin offering the free online courses.
- In January, GWU's new online learning czar, Paul Schiff Berman, said his first months on the job would be spent planning the school's entrance into the MOOC arena, and he plans on meeting with administrators and faculty in the coming weeks to hopefully alleviate their concerns.
- According to Richard Garrett, a higher education analyst for Boston consulting firm Eduventures, the school's reluctance to dive in without a focused strategy is logical, adding that MOOCs can potentially be used as recruitment tools and as a way to give students a sample of the school's best instructors and courses.
From the article:
"... GW’s new online learning czar Paul Schiff Berman said in early January that he will spend his first months planning a rollout of massive open online courses, or MOOCs – which include Web lectures, slides and videos for non-degree courses ranging from philosophy to web design. Across GW’s colleges though, there is uncertainty about the courses’ academic potential. ..."