An Open Online Harvard

Almost 40,000 students apply to Harvard every year, which is no wonder since it is ranked as a top university by organizations like U.S. News and World and Forbes. Unfortunately, there are only a limited number of seats every year and some students never even apply for reasons ranging from location to family situation. If we believe in the importance of education accessibility, however, we should not allow these factors to be barriers for the public to get a taste of what it is like to be in a Harvard class.

Thanks to the explosion of the internet, it is now possible to share content with billions of people. This has also allowed for increased access to high quality education through online platforms. Services like Khan Academy have reached millions of students worldwide and offered them resources for the classroom and traditionally expensive test prep for exams such as the SAT. And the rise of Massive Online Open Courses has given universities platforms for offering free, online versions of their own classes. Harvard has produced many of these, replicating almost 100 courses through the edX platform which it cofounded with MIT.

This is just the beginning of what could be. Currently available topics are rather scattered and there are only a handful of popular classes, such as Computer Science 50, available. Although it takes time to “remaster” (make custom versions of) classes for this platform, Harvard should nevertheless strive to open up as many courses from as many departments as possible. Harvard should be encouraged by the popularity of its current online selection across different channels.The video lecture playlist for Statistics 110 on YouTube, for example, has over 430,000 views.

An alternative to MOOCs is for Harvard to build its own repository of course content online. A great blueprint for such a program is MIT’s OpenCourseWare. The site includes content from MIT classes, including lecture videos, problem sets, and even exams. Many of the introductory level classes have almost all possible content available. This allows the public to get an immersive and complete experience of fundamental concepts across disciplines. For upper-level classes, there is more variability, with classes generally offering fewer videos and more written notes. This is suitable, however, since viewers supposedly have prior experience in the field and thus require less “hand-holding.”

A service like OpenCourseWare would be beneficial not only to the public but also to current students. Certain classes, especially higher-level electives, are not offered every year, and the service would remedy this by allowing students to independently explore topics taught in previous years.

It would not be difficult for Harvard to develop such a system. Many classes already have their video lectures recorded, and class content is organized on Canvas, Harvard's course management software. It would only be a matter of collecting and organizing materials, determining what to make public, and creating an easy interface through which to browse. In addition, the content for individual classes would only have to be updated every few years to reflect major changes in content. In the process, the University could work with faculty members and even students to ensure that the content is being properly presented and organized for a rich educational experience.

Even if it should choose to create its own interface, however, the University should continue to invest in creating MOOCs since they offer a more traditional classroom experience, with weekly deadlines, a large group of peers, and direct contact with course staff. MOOCs also offer a path for obtaining verified certificates for those willing to pay, making the content gained even more applicable.

There is a tremendous opportunity for Harvard to push the digital envelope of education and set an example for other institutions to follow. With the rapid rise of digital content and devices connected to the internet, now is the right time to mobilize technology for global good. Only then can we get a real democratization of knowledge.

Akhil S. Waghmare ’20 is an Editorial Board Editor living in Matthews Hall.