Ed-Tech Platforms Need Improvement
lukethomas.com
lukethomas.com
Stanford and MIT don't have great reputations because they former students score well on tests, they have great reputations because their former students achieve notable things.
I think in the long run the MOOV providers will need to cultivate the same sort of reputations. If I were them, I'd start newsletters about it right now. Start promoting former students and their accomplishments.
Udacity seems to be doing some of that, and I think it's absolutely the right call.
Having said that, your experience and criticism reflect many people's experiences. Just a little while ago there were some posts here about the Stanford NLP online class and the (perceived) difference in value vis-a-vis the "real" Stanford class...