So I am sure you are wondering, What am i talking about? How is it possible to get a degree literally for free!
Well this post is not an advertisement of an online website called coursera that allows you to download and attend classes for free but it is to debate the advantages and disadvantages to a content producer of making their materials freely available online.
I am currently a student and the problem of student loans that are impossible to pay off are very real. The reason why I am highlighting this point is because not every student is chasing for that graduation certificate, many are studying because they simply want to gain knowledge and develop their minds!
The content producer coursera allows free access to all their courses and content, this allows users to sign up and gain knowledge. This allows students to not only gain knowledge but prevent such horrific stories of student loans.
Regardless of age, young or old can gain so much from this content being freely available. The old are less inclined to sign up for these courses but due to the fact of it being free, their motivation increases so much more! I speak from experience as my dad himself uses this website! The mechanics of how they profit from this is also something I believe that can be applied for online journals and the problem of people paying for journals that is irrelevant to them because the synopsis was unable to sufficiently describe that they were looking for as mentioned by Nick Shockey and Jonathan Eisen.
They follow a simple system where you are given access to everything for free but if you would like a certificate or if you would like to state officially that you have completed the course you will have to pay a fee. Which makes perfect sense as you end up paying for exactly what you want.
As mentioned by an article on Forbes, all we need to do is provide internet to the less fortunate areas of the world and they will educate themselves! With more websites like coursera, these people can have a structured free education!
Then again this is at an advantage of the end consumer and not the provider, as mentioned in a post by jasmin mcveigh, skilled publishers do not work for free and their objective is to be published in reputable journals!
I guess being an optimist I believe everyone should benefit from education regardless of your financial status, and the internet has given us the ability to do so if we let it!
Reference:
Anon, 90% of online content to be held behind paywalls in three years media company survey suggests | The Drum. Available at: http://www.thedrum.com/news/2013/04/12/90-online-content-be-held-behind-paywalls-three-years-media-company-survey-suggests [Accessed December 9, 2014a].
Anon, Advantages and Disadvantages to a content producer of making their material freely available online | Jasmin McVeigh on WordPress.com. Available at: http://jasminmcveigh.wordpress.com/2013/09/29/advantages-and-disadvantages-to-a-content-producer-of-making-their-material-freely-available-online/ [Accessed December 9, 2014b].
Anon, Education Finally Ripe for Radical Innovation by Social Entrepreneurs – Forbes. Available at: http://ht.ly/jPTX3 [Accessed December 9, 2014c].
Anon, The Pros and Cons of Digital Distribution | New York | Raindance. Available at: http://www.raindance.org/site/index.php?aid=6963 [Accessed December 9, 2014d].
Wiley, D., Green, C. & Soares, L., 2012. Dramatically Bringing down the Cost of Education with OER: How Open Education Resources Unlock the Door to Free Learning. Center for American Progress. Available at: http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED535639 [Accessed December 9, 2014].
The thoughts of Mr Ebra 
Hi Ebrahim! Great post in the perspective of students; I haven’t heard of Coursera until I come across your post. I am with you on the aspect of providing information freely through the internet, although the payment system introduced by Coursera sounds quite promising and introduced logistic feasibility to this whole Open Access. Interestingly your dad has enrolled himself in one of the courses for Coursera. In your opinion, will such courses’ certificates will potentially be more advantageous compared to traditional courses (eg our current degree in Southampton)? Because if it is, it would be quite a turn in the education department as students no longer have to go through the traditional path in order to complete their education and can thus look for jobs with higher pays. Keep up the good post! 🙂
xoxo,
/ novina ✿ ladyskorpios /
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Hello Ebrahim!
Thanks for sharing about Coursera, I believe many of us can benefit from your post. In addition, letting us know that there are such sad stories, that still exist even in today’s society.
We have the same stand on providing free materials on the web as so many people can benefit from such system! Underserved people and underprivileged communities will be able enjoy the privilege of receiving education without facing the difficulties of paying school fees..In your opinion, which type of certificate is more valuable and brings more recognition? Which of them individuals are more valuable? After all these individuals that self learn does shows reasonable comprehension abilities. Share with me more, great post!
Cheers,
Amanda
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Hey Ebra!
I love the idea that Coursera was built on and that users can choose to pay a fee to be “certified”. But wouldn’t that make it not exactly “free” anymore? The advantages of using open access to provide relevant information to those who want it are also clearly represented here.
In my post, I mentioned that open access presents itself as a great opportunity for individuals to learn actively but some information may not be as reliable due to lesser regulations which results in a potential drop in quality of materials. In your opinion, how would educational organisations, such as Coursera, maintain the quality and reliability of the materials that they provide to the public?
Great post! I look forward to your reply.
Regards,
Evan
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Hi Ebra! ^^
Coursera is a brilliant example to showcase the advantages of an open access concept for education! Your belief that “everyone should benefit from education regardless of your financial status, and the internet has given us the ability to do so if we let it!” highlights how open access can greatly benefit all human kind! I got to know about Coursera only when you introduced it to us! One question though, as you gave the scary examples of students’ debt crisis. Does that mean that, students should focus more on the online courses rather than enrolling in schools?
Furthermore, when you mention that the payment model of Coursera can be used to solve the problem of paying for irrelevant journals, does it mean that only when people “find” the correct information they need from the journals, then they make a payment?
Would be glad to hear your views! 🙂
Cheers Zoe!
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Hi Ebrahim!
Firstly, although your post on Coursera is not for advertising, i guess since you are a great marketing student, you have naturally marketed it, and done it well! haha I cannot agree more about learning, money should not limit learning. Thus, if it is available for free like in Coursera, it is truly amazing! Plus, it is not only learning but structured learning with classes etc. Sometimes, i really think about how unpleasant it is that we are paying for school, but reality is reality. But then again, who will pay for it, the government? with all the tax payers’ money? If everything is free, appreciation might not be guranteed.
This free education online really shows that the creators and contributors really add great educational and life value to many people around the world! Aside all that, what is it actually the disadvantages for Coursera? Is it lesser monetary benefits? Also, how is the quality of their materials and certificates?
Cheers
Patricia
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