College as an Investment

May 8, 2012

The price you pay matters for every investment. A college education is no exception.
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Could Universities Follow Borders Bookstores into Oblivion?

March 22, 2012

We are passionate about the topic of education and think there is the potential, if not the probability, that over the coming decades the education industry could be disrupted like the newspaper industry has recently been. The consumers (i.e. students) are likely to be much better off, but in many cases we are not sure that current institutions will evolve quickly enough to survive.
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The Economic Way of Thinking

March 21, 2012

Khan Academy Revolutionizes Teaching

March 14, 2012

On Sunday, 60 Minutes reported how Khan Academy’s catalogue of free online educational videos, with the backing of Bill Gates and Google, are moving into the classroom and across the world. A new iPad app introduced this week will enable ‘students’ to connect through their tablets, further aiding the cause in making education accessible. Of course, with increased high speed access to the Internet, these transformational ideas transcend any specific hardware or software provider. Lecture length, non-linearity, data collection, and real-time feedback and testing are all critical for making learning more effective.
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Bill Gates’ Annual Letter

February 6, 2012

Mr. Gates provides an update on his work in health, poverty, and education.
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The Next Digital Frontier: Textbooks

January 18, 2012

We believe we are just at the cusp of rethinking the traditional definitions of lectures and textbooks. They should be more integrated and accessible to each other or perhaps indistinguishable eventually. Wikipedia, YouTube, the finest lecturers, graphic artists, animators, filmmakers, writers, software designers, and others will all have a role to play, and the outcome could be a radically better and cheaper way to educate than the current system.
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MIT Leads the Charge in Online Learning

December 30, 2011

We suspect this is another important step forward in broadening access to higher education and simultaneously lowering the cost of distribution significantly. Consumers around the world will be much better off as a result of this dislocation over the next decade and beyond. MIT seems to be the world leader.
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An Interview with Seth Klarman and Charlie Rose

December 26, 2011

As part of the Facing History and Ourselves New York Benefit Dinner, Charlie Rose interviewed Seth Klarman at Chelsea Piers. As usual, Klarman had interesting things to say.
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The Case for Paying Attention

November 27, 2011

Can we be aware without actually paying attention?
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Just Starting to Worry? May Already Be Too Late for Some…

October 31, 2011

The post-secondary education model continues to be challenged, with colleges and universities beginning to fully recognize the difficulties ahead (which have been further highlighted by the increasing public discourse about student loan debt and the potential problem it presents to graduates, particularly in tough job markets).
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A Top 20 Pushes All-in for Online Education

July 7, 2011

The competitive dynamics and technology enablement of online education continue to take shape, with University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler as the first top-20 U.S. business school to offer an online program that itself says is fully equivalent to and indistinct from its traditional, bricks-and-mortar M.B.A. degrees.
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The Digital Education Revolution

May 17, 2011

As we discussed in the Annual Report dated September 30, 2010, the Internet is transforming the public education system and we will not know the extent of this for years to come.
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