Since 2001, the MIT OpenCourseWare (OCW) initiative has been offering free and open access to the institution's courses on the Internet. The level of access varies considerably among different courses on the MIT OCW website. There are several courses that offer nothing more than just the course syllabus, reading list, and assignments; but there many courses that offer the entire package including streaming video lectures. As a student at MIT, I find the MIT OpenCourseWare extremely useful in helping me to prepare for exams or homework assignments. Today, many fine institutions around the world have adopted the OpenCourseWare initiative in opening their course content to the public. Some notable OCW spin-offs include:
- China Quality OCW - Links to course content from major universities in China
- ParisTech OCW - Links to course content from ParisTech, a consortium of French engineering institution (mostly science and engineering)
- Japan OCW - Links to course content from a consortium of Japanese universities
- Tufts OCW - Links to Tufts University course content (new site with mostly medical and dental courses)
- USU OCW - Links to Utah State University course content
- JHSPH OCW - John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health OpenCourseWare (plenty of health care related content)
While OpenCourseWare may be the pioneer, it is not the only project that publish course materials on the Web. Similar projects like the ones listed below have sprung up in recent years:
One thing to keep in mind is that none of the websites that I have mentioned are part of an online degree-granting program. But still, I often wonder if the willing dissemination of knowledge by universities from North America to France to Japan to people around the world constitutes a threat or an opportunity to the universities that publish them. Surely these universities can start charging a premium for such content and run a business model of distance-learning similar to that of the University of Phoenix or Devry University. Clearly, the expansion of the OpenCourseWare model to other universities has only demonstrated that many world-class universities do not feel threaten by embracing such practice. There must be something more in the educational process than just course content. Personally, I believe that while I can self-taught myself with many of the materials that are available from these fine websites, I don't think I can never replace it with the human factor. For me, there is no substitute for being on campus, learning and interacting with faculty and fellow students. There is something about being physically present in an environment that foster learning. Lastly, there are the trials and tribulations of homework assignments, term projects, and exams - pressure and deadlines do reinforce learning.
I think that OpenCourseWare and other similar projects have allowed universities return back its fundamental mission of providing higher education to the public. To educators (according to Wikipedia), such tools are and should be used to improve the teaching methods and to collaborate with scholars from around the world. To current students or self-learners, the OpenCourseWare is a great way to supplement one's learning. To the general public, the OpenCourseWare model is a great way for people to access the wealth of knowledge that they won't be able to otherwise. In ending, kudos to universities in making their education materials free and accessible.
| 5/27/2006 5:36:46 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00) |
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