In the midst of all the hoopla surrounding the recent mushrooming of online learning efforts, Lauren Landry of BostonInno asks some sobering questions:

“Will online learning ever garner the same credibility, recognition and respect that a college degree is supposed to guarantee? Will you ever see edX on a résumé? And if you do, will the certification hold the same weight as a four-year Harvard or MIT diploma?”

Her article goes on to list current trends in the online learning space, but doesn’t really answer the questions she poses.

I think the answers to all these questions is “yes,” though I won’t hazard to guess as to when that’ll be the case. The term online learning comprises many aspects: technology-enhanced pedagogy, content delivery, student-student and student-instructor interaction, testing and assigning credentials, etc. Since a lot of smart groups are working hard in tackling each of these issues, I believe they will be suitably sorted out some day soon—at least well enough to satisfy employers.

What do you think?