Shai Reshef has a vision: soon, anyone with an Internet connection and some proficiency in English can take classes online at his new "University of the People." And not just classes—the school will be accredited, offering actual degrees in subjects like computer science. Charges will be minimal, starting at just $15, and will be based on the student's country.

It sounds too good to be true, but Reshef is enough of a believer in the idea to pump a million dollars of his own into it, and he argues that it can be a self-sustaining nonprofit once it tops 10,000 worldwide students.

Open coursework, peer learning, volunteers

To make this vision a reality, University of the People will embrace two key concepts: open courseware and peer learning. The courseware aspect is simple enough to understand; numerous top-ranking universities have recently made complete course lectures and other materials available free of charge, and the Internet is awash in quality resources that could be used in online classes without paying license fees.

But there's a problem with lectures: the size of the audio or video files. Reshef is especially targeting the developing world with his new project, and though Internet access is increasingly possible to come by, many students won't have broadband. To make sure they can access the course materials, University of the People will start with text-based materials. Later on, audio and video resources will be added.

Materials are only a small part of the cost of higher education, though. There's also the cost of all those campus buildings, which Internet learning largely eliminates, and the cost of employing all those professors. To operate with the low fees he proposes, Reshef explained the new learning model to Ars as a combination of three factors: peer teaching, volunteers, and paid (likely Indian) professionals.

Students in any particular course will be broken up into a virtual class of 20. They will have an online forum in which they can download lectures, see discussion questions, and discuss items with one another. Students are expected to help other students in their class learn the material, but when problems or questions arise, any student can go to the forum for the larger course and pose questions.

These questions can be answered by students in the other classes, but volunteer educators will also assist in these broader forums. Reshef hopes to attract a community of professors, graduate students, and professionals willing to contribute a bit of time to help students from around the world. To maintain quality, courses will also be overseen by paid staff, who will likely be based in India to save money. The paid staff will monitor the courses, the work of the volunteers, and will step in themselves when problems arise or questions go unanswered.

Quality control

The emphasis on peer learning means that courses have no grades. Weekly quizzes and assignments will exist, with answers provided, but these are simply meant as learning aids. To assess the students—a necessity for any university that hopes to gain accreditation—University of the People plans to partner with worldwide testing agencies. At the end of each course, students will need to travel to the nearest test center, show a photo ID and pay another small fee, then sit for a comprehensive course exam.

"I don't see any reason why we won't be accredited," says Reshef, who claims that the university will be "very similar to a regular American program" in terms of number of courses, content, and quality of exams.

He acknowledges that certain programs, such as science courses that require lab work, won't work with this model. In addition, anything that is "culturally biased would not work," he says, which means that teacher training programs are probably out for now.

But for programs like computer science, he believes the model will work. It's not the same experience as attending a four-year residential college, of course, but Reshef points out that for most of the students he wants to reach, the choice isn't between University of the People or a traditional college—it's a choice between University of the People or nothing.

For many students, "we are the only alternative," he says. And so, while it's not a model that everyone will want to use, he hopes it can bring educational opportunities to those who would otherwise have none.

The school will start enrolling 300 students on a trial basis this year, with classes beginning in September. Reshef hopes to grow by 30 percent a semester until he hits 10,000 students, at which point even the minimal fees will cover the school's expenses.

Optimism and experience

Reshef isn't simply a wide-eyed Internet optimist, either. He holds an MA in Chinese Politics from the University of Michigan, and he has spent most of his life since in education. He has already helped to start an online university and is currently on the board of Cramster, an online service that helps students with homework questions.

His new venture must hurdle some significant obstacles—raising several million dollars, gaining accreditation—but if successful it could mean new opportunities for many. It sounds like the best sort of transformative Internet thinking, but it has some way to go before it's a reality.