Harvard-for-Free Meets Resistance as U.S. Professors See Threat - John Hechinger and Michael McDonald, Bloomberg News

Professors across the U.S. are criticizing a rush to offer free online college courses, challenging a movement designed to spread knowledge and reduce higher-education costs. Amherst College faculty voted last month against joining an initiative led by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The provost at American University issued a moratorium this month on such massive open online courses, or MOOCs. At San Jose State University, the philosophy department refused to use a free Web course from a Harvard professor. As college costs soar, professors are concerned that MOOCs may primarily become a way for universities to reduce expenses. Even at Harvard, some faculty members said at a meeting last week that the movement could damage higher education by leading institutions to cut face-to-face instruction. http://www.sfgate.com/business/bloomberg/article/Harvard-for-Free-Meets-Resistance-as-U-S-4517796.php