Harold: Thanks for the links! To follow up on Guy's comment first - during the twelve years I taught college, I used a problem-based approach. That gave me four ways to approach new material: 1) here's a problem, let's figure out how to solve it 2) here's a solution, let's see what kinds of problems it solves 3) here's a situation, let's determine what the problem is so we can solve it 4) here's a solution that's causing other problems, let's figure out what the real problem is that's not getting solved yet.

As the students and I used this problem-based approach, it became obvious to us that the university administration and other faculty were not solving problems in their situations. Otherwise they would solve the problems of the 50% drop out rate, soaring tuition rates, widespread anxiety disorders among students, and negligible retention of what was taught. As I explored this issue with other faculty members, it only resonated with those instructors who empathized with their students, remembered what it was like to not know the material at all, and realized what a difference it makes to show respect to the students. Those that were devoted to being right, in control and admired for their superior expertise - could not get the value of using a problem based approach in their professional life.

As I've been thinking a lot about disrupting higher-ed, I agree with Daniel's assessment of how slow most disruptions coming into play will be: free content, problem-based teaching, online 24/7 delivery, etc. As you said Harold, they are not real upstarts. The one disruption that may take hold much faster is serving the non-consumers who dropped out of college or never applied.