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Federally Developed and Administered Home Study College Courses for Credit at $10 per Credit Hour
The majority of courses at the undergraduate level are the same in all universities. Many courses have been the same for decades and even centuries. Calculus, physics, and mechanics were the same for me at Purdue in 1961 as they were for my children at Ohio State in the 1990s, the first years of this century, and now. Indeed, they were the same in universities across the country in the 1940s and before. While the effectiveness of instructors have varied greatly, the bad text books have been weeded out and the very good ones remain. Those books define the courses and are still there to teach new students. We should create a national program to allow students to receive credit for courses by home study and passing locally proctored tests. The standards of credits received through this program must be high. If administered properly, credits received by this method will be more highly regarded than credits received from most universities. This credit should be recognized by all state universities. Private universities will follow in recognizing these credits due to the competitive environment and recognition of the standards maintained. After a short period of initial program development, the cost of the program should be borne by the fees charged to the students. The course development costs would be minimal (a few cents) when spread over the large student group. Test development would be a little more (a dollar or two per student). Where multiple choice tests are appropriate, tests would be optical scan machine graded at minimal cost. The largest cost would be for tests which must be hand graded. Some courses require a student/instructor interaction and would not be amenable to home study. Other courses may be supported by recorded lectures. In a given course, some students may thrive in a home study environment while others may need the traditional classroom setting. The idea is for the student to use the home study approach where it works for him and thereby cut the cost of his education. Other organizations may offer tutoring and/or organized classroom support for these programs. The total cost could still be a fraction of the cost of a course at a state university. If properly administered, credits obtained from this program
will likely be better regarded than credits from colleges where the standards
are uncertain. 1. A very detailed synopsis would be developed for each course. It would include a list of recommended textbooks which cover all of the course material. 2. As with a typical university course, there would be two or three interim
tests and a comprehensive final. 3. A course grade would be assigned (A, A-, B+, ...) 4. Certified volunteer proctors would be sought to administer the tests in local high schools, community colleges, civic centers, etc. 5. Qualified volunteer tutors would be sought. 6. Target cost would be $10 per credit hour. 7. Materials would typically be emailed to the student. 8. Sample problems with solutions would be provided for technical courses (like Schaum's Outline). 9. Tests would not be released to the student to preclude the building of test files. 10. Recorded lectures may be valuable to some courses. A college instructor told me that he wouldn't support me
because of this proposal. He said that a young person needs instructors
and the college experience. The essential need of students is education
preparing them for employment, not the "college experience". The cost of
college is standing in the way of fulfilling that need. This program will
allow a typical student to avoid the high tuition for one third to one half of a
college degree. It will increase the demand for the traditional university courses because
more students will pursue degrees. Most importantly, it will help students
achieve and will help us meet the national need
for a more educated workforce.
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