Yale Offers On-line Classes for Free
Yale University just announced that it will offer digital videos of some of its courses on the Internet for free, along with transcripts in several languages, in an effort to make the elite private school more accessible. Princeton University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and some other schools already offer course material online without charge, but Yale is the first school to offer free video lectures.
So what's the catch? Well, the courses cannot be counted toward a Yale degree and educators say they are no substitute for actual classroom teaching but there is no question that this program will make Yale more accessible to people without the financial means or inclination to attend and maybe, just maybe, it might result in increased demand for Yale's paid education programs in much the same way that ice cream stores increase the demand for their products by offering free tastes to interested customers.
According to Yale President Richard Levin, "This is a wonderful opportunity for us to share a vital and central part of the Yale experience with those who, for whatever reason, are not in a position to pursue a Yale education at first hand."
The project is funded by a $755,000 grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.