Todd Wallack WP: For less than $100, I clicked my way toward a college degree in days

[LevelUP]

Here's my three points about the article:

• Alternative credit isn't a new loophole. Colleges have accepted competency-based credit for decades through programs like CLEP, and many also award credit for industry certifications because they recognize demonstrated knowledge and skills, not simply seat time.
  
  
• Cheating isn't unique to online providers. The article spends a lot of time explaining how someone could cheat on Study.com or Sophia, but people have been cheating in traditional education for decades too. That's basically the Nirvana fallacy, where a system is criticized because it isn't perfect, even though no education system has ever been able to eliminate cheating completely.
  
  
• You get out of college what you put into it. Anyone can do the bare minimum and learn very little, regardless of where they attend. Employers ultimately hire based on a candidate's knowledge, skills, and ability to perform the job, not just the degree itself.
  

[Mint Berry Crunch]

Here's my three points about the article:

• Alternative credit isn't a new loophole. Colleges have accepted competency-based credit for decades through programs like CLEP, and many also award credit for industry certifications because they recognize demonstrated knowledge and skills, not simply seat time.
  
  
• Cheating isn't unique to online providers. The article spends a lot of time explaining how someone could cheat on Study.com or Sophia, but people have been cheating in traditional education for decades too. That's basically the Nirvana fallacy, where a system is criticized because it isn't perfect, even though no education system has ever been able to eliminate cheating completely.
  
  
• You get out of college what you put into it. Anyone can do the bare minimum and learn very little, regardless of where they attend. Employers ultimately hire based on a candidate's knowledge, skills, and ability to perform the job, not just the degree itself.
  

I haven't heard of the Nirvana fallacy before (at least I don't remember). Now I have a cool wiki read

[wow]

• Alternative credit isn't a new loophole. Colleges have accepted competency-based credit for decades through programs like CLEP, and many also award credit for industry certifications because they recognize demonstrated knowledge and skills, not simply seat time.
  

Not to mention AP exams. One could argue that it doesn't count because students are generally required to take a class first, but my high school AP History class did NOT teach me what I needed for the exam. My teacher had some specific interests that he liked to talk about a lot, so we never got past the Civil War, as far as I can remember, and what we got before that was by no means comprehensive or thorough. I crammed the week(end) before by skimming one or two prep books, took the exam, and passed with a good score--I don't remember the exact score except that it was one of the two highest possible and enough to qualify for credit at most US colleges. Would I have been able to answer those questions correctly and get as high a score a week or two later, when the cramming was no longer fresh? Probably not.

[Mint Berry Crunch]

• Alternative credit isn't a new loophole. Colleges have accepted competency-based credit for decades through programs like CLEP, and many also award credit for industry certifications because they recognize demonstrated knowledge and skills, not simply seat time.
  

Not to mention AP exams. One could argue that it doesn't count because students are generally required to take a class first, but my high school AP History class did NOT teach me what I needed for the exam. My teacher had some specific interests that he liked to talk about a lot, so we never got past the Civil War, as far as I can remember, and what we got before that was by no means comprehensive or thorough. I crammed the week(end) before by skimming one or two prep books, took the exam, and passed with a good score--I don't remember the exact score except that it was one of the two highest possible and enough to qualify for credit at most US colleges. Would I have been able to answer those questions correctly and get as high a score a week or two later, when the cramming was no longer fresh? Probably not.

Colleges hate the idea that their own systems are flawed and that people can realistically complete these courses for a fraction of a fraction of the cost and time. You could literally complete the same course for a sliver of the cost of a singular credit at [insert college/university course here]. AP exams are just one example. Again, this is why I am very fond of CBE principles