Like Chen, some edX students said they would prioritize other commitments or in-person educational experiences over the virtual classroom, especially because there is no tangible value—such as a GPA boost or course credit—associated with the edX certificate.
For others, like John Chirikjian, an 18-year-old high school senior from Maryland who did not finish CS50x, a certificate is unnecessary as long as one has learned something new.
“Certificates don’t mean anything. I’m looking to learn things, not to earn a degree or get credit,” Chirikjian said. “EdX does not transfer to anything.”
Malan agreed that “completion rates have been overemphasized in the MOOC community.”
“Saying only 10 percent or 1 percent of students have finished a MOOC is misleading,” he said. “To argue that they are not effective educational opportunities is true for some students but not all.”
CHARGING FOR THE CERTIFICATE
Currently, edX does not charge its users any fees for participating, but the non-profit is considering multiple financial models to ensure its endurance—including a charge for face-to-face professor contact or certificates.
Some Harvard professors have said that charging for courses could increase completion rates by giving MOOC students a financial incentive to complete their courses.
This theory has already been tested in flipped classrooms, in which colleges supplement in-class material with online information.
“The likelihood of the completion would then go up if we charge $100 or set it up as an academic experiment,” said Jorge I. Dominguez, a government professor and Harvard’s vice provost for international affairs, after outlining a hypothetical financial model. “We would charge $1,000 for the course, and for every week you complete, we would rebate $100, and if you complete it and pass it at the end, it would be free.” Dominguez added that there is a difference between “for-profit” and “for-free”—edX could charge its students without making any money.
Still, there are those who say charging for online courses hinders edX’s founding goal of democratizing knowledge.
“Having courseware open and free so that everyone can access high quality education is a real fundamental part of online learning,” said Bhave. “If I had to pay, I might not have taken the course.”
If someone like Bhave is to remain a version of the edX student, the online platform will have to ensure its future accessibility and relevance to its constituents.
—Staff writer Amna H. Hashmi can be reached at amnahashmi@college.harvard.edu. Follow her on Twitter @amna_hashmi.
—Staff writer Cynthia W. Shih can be reached at cshih@college.harvard.edu. Follow her on Twitter at @CShih7.