As you know, such students are paying for the piece of paper which certifies that they learned something. Who's to say it doesn't work?

They are paying for the piece of paper not for the content.

In an intro CS class, many of the students don't want to be there. They're taking the class because it's a requirement for the degree they actually want, which may have little or nothing to do with CS. Intro classes aren't just for people who want to specialize in that area.

Then perhaps the world needs to stop caring so much about the assement part of a university.

That would be wonderful if more people were able to focus on the learning, and less on the grades for unrelated subjects that don't matter for your job.

They're very frustrating to interview.