MIT Study: Online Courses Really Work (If You Finish Them)

Students learn as well online as they do in the classroom, according to a study from MIT researchers. It focused on MOOCs (massive open online courses), the online courses offered by for-profit companies like Udacity and colleges like MIT, Harvard and Caltech. They became a hot topic in 2011 when 160,000 people signed up for a course on artificial intelligence taught by a Stanford professor. That enthusiasm was dampened two years later when a University of Pennsylvania study found that only 4 percent of people who signed up for MOOCs actually completed the courses. This new study from MIT claims that people who do finish MOOC courses end up with the same learning gains as those who physically attend class. That goes for people of all education levels, from those with a high school diploma to those with a Ph.D. (They didn't end up with the same grades; they just made a similar amount of progress). “It’s an issue that has been very controversial,” researcher David Pritchard said in a statement. “A number of well-known educators have said there isn’t going to be much learning in MOOCs, or if there is, it will be for people who are already well-educated.”

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

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IN-DEPTH

• How Much Will College Cost in 25 Years?
• School Daze: Students at Troubled Corinthian Colleges Say They're in the Dark
• Beyond the Buzz, Where Are MOOCs Really Going? (Wired)

— Keith Wagstaff