Learning Banned in Minnesota

“The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education.”
Albert Einstein

Unless of course you are a resident of the state of Minnesota.  Recently, the state acted to prevent its residents from learning.  The so-called Office of Higher Education has banned , yes banned, a provider of free online education,Coursera,

Has the Minnesota “Office of Higher Education” perhaps made itself an oxymoron?

What disregard and disrespect has been forced upon the residents of that state.  The value that organizations like Coursera, Udacity, and edX  provide should be celebrated.   Even before the advent of these online learning opportunities, there was, and still is, wonderful learning with  MIT’s Open Courseware.   With that service, everyone with Internet access can benefit from the expertise at MIT, no admissions requirements, no tuition to pay, no 8am classes, no tests or grades to worry about.  You can just have fun.  (Check out the range of amazing courses, for example,  the famous Walter Lewin Classical Mechanics physics course.  Lecture 11 has the “physics works and so Professor Lewin avoids a trip to the hospital” video.  There are several other lectures with fun physical feats to enjoy.)

I digressed, back to the absurdity.  Methinks those Minnesota state folks should consider drinking from the Pierian Spring or at least realize that:

“There is no end to education. It is not that you read a book, pass an examination, and finish with education. The whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning.”
Jiddu Krishnamurti

In fact, considering the mess that has been made of education, states should be required to provide ongoing, free education for all, just to compensate for the failures they’ve caused.  Read John Taylor Gatto’s viewpoint, it’s quite insightful.  Note, in particular, how long ago he wrote it.  Yet today, its the same old, same old.

Fortunately, the outcry to the ban on learning brought the bureaucracy to its senses, and the ban was rescinded.  Minnesotans rejoice, you are allowed to learn after all.

The problem remains, though, that state officials ‘thought’ it was acceptable to ban learning in the first place.   Sigh.   America, the land of opportunity, even if it  means we have to fight our own government to protect our rights.