by Sean Michael Morris and Jesse Stommel, Hybrid Pedagogy
Shortly after “Broadcast Education: A Response to Coursera” appeared on Hybrid Pedagogy, Sean received a message from Sebastian Thrun, the founder of Udacity. He wanted to know what we thought of Udacity’s courses, of their approach to online education. Sean had said that Coursera was silly, and Thrun wanted to know if we thought Udacity was likewise silly. But Udacity isn’t silly. Not just because of their sleek interface, their jaunty, easy-to-follow videos, or the exercises embedded directly within those videos; nor is it because of their flash mob-style on-ground gatherings (like the upcoming “Global Meetup Day”), the spontaneous way that learners form hybrid clusters with one another around a course, or the nationwide “Secondary School Challenge” they held this summer. Udacity isn’t silly precisely because they have a clear concern for pedagogy. The company has a vision, and they wear that vision on their sleeve. Udacity classes feel like a strange, unpredictable blend of one-on-one tutoring, auditorium-style learning, and small-group work. The classes work because there is space within them for learners to create learning.
http://www.hybridpedagogy.com/Journal/files/Udacity_and_Online_Pedagogy.html#unique-entry-id-67
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