Data Caps Could Dim Online Learning's Bright Future

[Commentary] Will the Internet remake education? Prestigious universities like Stanford and Georgetown now offer free classes to any student with an Internet connection and an attention span. Educators and policy makers believe these new online courses could make higher education more available and affordable for all. The key word here: could. As people struggle to sort the good from the bad in the world of massive open online education, some are already asking, as The Chronicle did recently, "For Whom Is College Being Reinvented?" But even that debate rests on a fundamental assumption that access to the courses themselves is not a barrier.

Today, data caps—monthly limits that force Internet users to pay for a specific amount of data and bill them even more if they exceed the limit—are proliferating. They threaten to put the brakes on this potential online revolution. Although much of the data-cap debate has focused on how these restrictions affect streaming-video services like Netflix, a recent study by the Open Technology Institute found that the caps also create barriers to using other data-intensive services, including online education. Sites like Coursera and Udacity, which offer free online lectures and interactive feedback, are growing in popularity, as are downloadable lectures on iTunes. As a nation, we should embrace the potential benefits of online education. But we must not ignore the disparities that may keep many from taking advantage of those innovations. In the 21st century, ensuring equal access to education may also depend upon equal access to broadband.

[Benjamin Lennett is policy director and Danielle Kehl is a program associate at the New America Foundation's Open Technology Institute.]