Ivy league schools go distance learning
From Wednesday, January 15, 2003
Harvard joins the distance learning ranks as technology improves and certain upstarts gain traction according to this Wall Street Journal story (subscription required). ""The world is changing whether we like it or not," says James H. Ware, the dean for academic affairs at Harvard's School of Public Health."
Indeed, it has been hard for mainstream academe to ignore stories like Apollo Group Inc., the parent of University of Phoenix, which counts 57,000 students in its online program (and 84,300 more in physical classrooms). Apollo, whose stock is up 500% since January 2000, credits its success on the convenience it offers adults who need a diploma to improve their job prospects.
"The No. 1 reason people take this way of learning is convenience," says Michael P. Lambert, executive director of the Distance Education and Training Council, an accrediting body for distance-learning institutions. Mr. Lambert estimates that 2.5 million U.S. students took online courses for credit last year.