Bozoification of Education

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I am deeply sorry to witness the first steps towards accepting online courses being taken at my home institution.

At the moment, it is restricted to permitting students to take one course off-campus that uses an online delivery system, and up to four online courses to be accepted for transfer for a new student, if they have been taken elsewhere, and are acceptable otherwise. (The previous policy was no online courses, period.)

Is this going to be the thin end of the wedge, or is it going to stop here? Both situations are possible. Younger faculty joining the institution are often more rigid in their expectations, but surprisingly, also more likely to embrace methodology that could compromise standards. They're also more likely to subconsciously sympathize with a consumer attitude towards education ("we took their money, we owe them something, even if they're incompetent! We can't just flunk them!!").

I firmly believe that education should be free. But I think health care should be free, too, and look what happened to that idea! No; the US seems to be firmly entrenched in the idea that it should not be a utopia. Struggle is good.

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