Springboard was new to me so it was interesting to read more about it on their website. It’s particularly relevant to me since I work in Continuing Education for adults. One of the real benefits I see in this program is the mentorship component. There are quite a few of these types of online services like Udemy and Coursera. It’s tempting to think this is the future but they really haven’t caught on with the general public. For example I think the average learner/consumer would look at what’s offered locally at post-secondary institutions. I wonder what will be the tipping point for this type of thing to get traction. I think public institutions have the benefit of real social roots in the community but I also think at times that can make them complacent. In my own experience as a student I feel frustrated that some content seems to be filler content and I really can’t customize my learning. For example there have been times within the MET program where I wish I could explore something in further depth and drop things that I know I will never use (despite being required).
I couldn’t help but notice that another major educational tech company was started by someone without a background in education. This seems to be a trend.
