Free online courses impact models of higher learning

By Denmark Luceriaga. Companies arise to compete with universities for education. A recent surge of interest in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) is sparking a revolution in higher education. Often regarded as the next great technological disruption in education, supporters of MOOCs have been lauding its potential to widen productivity in higher learning while relieving cost pressures. 
MOOCs are mostly free, and are open to everybody. Taught by an instructor -- usually a college professor, they are very similar to courses here at UMBC. Lectures, tests, and class assignments are given, but the main difference is that the lessons are on video. Work is done and submitted online, and all discussion of class topics takes place on online discussion boards, very similar to features that Blackboard offers. 
The original MOOC was launched in 2008: a course called “Connectivism and Connective Knowledge” that was taken free-of-charge by 2,300 members of the general public along with 25 tuition-paying students at the University of Manitoba. After seeing the potential in its concept, several Internet startups generated a business model for the low-cost online education market. More...