Senate Committee Holds Hearing on Free Online Courses

Back in October, we reported about state statutes that temporarily prevented some students from t...  More »

Back in October, we reported about state statutes that temporarily prevented some students from taking free online courses. Tuesday, state senators held a hearing to talk about updating the laws that many say haven't kept up with technology. The Senate committee heard from one of the founders of Coursera, it's basically on online platform where students can take non-credit classes for free. 1.7 million students around the world are taking free courses through Coursera. But here's the problem with current state law. Right now, Minnesota requires colleges to register with the state and pay a per course fee. But if institutions are offering free online courses to Minnesota residents, charging those universities a fee defeats the purpose of what they're trying to do. Daphne Koller, a computer science professor from Stanford, founded Coursera and now 33 institutions are a part of it. She along with senators on the Higher Education Committee feel like updating state law will help all families. The statutes were originally created so the state could try to protect students from educational scams. Sen. Jeremy Miller introduced a bill he believes will help all students and families save money. The committee will vote on the bill March 7.  « Less