overall, it was tempting to bristle a bit at the notion of Harvard MBA's giving pat educational advice about our broken system. However, in the introduction--and continuing throughout the book-- they allay some of these concerns by taking some of the traditional and long-standing criticims of schools and playing devil's advocate against them. Structurally, this gives them a bit of credence for reader-educators.
I agree with the authors that simply "cramming" computers into our classrooms is not the solution. This approach was part of the model in South Dakota--begun with good intentions with the Governor's wiring projects in the late 90's, but really following the path described by the authors.
While i agree in part with the disruptive model for deployment of the computers, I'm not sure about the emphasis and somewhat wholesale buy-in into online courses. I would echo Mile-High's concerns that they are just as good as traditional models. I look at my own students who are taking online courses, and the patterns they fall into: figure out the bare minimum to read, take the quizzes with friends, and if there's discussion, bland affirmations to get the points.
But...stuff like this is good to read. While i think we've gotten away from the commercial system of material buy-in discussed on p128--most of us are going far beyond that now--status quo is comfortable. Outside perspectives can always help.
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