Robert Siemens , who coined the term " MOOC " and helped create the first massive open online course , has taken issue with the recent talk by higher education disruptors who claim higher education is " broken and stagnant " , and has defended the innovation recently made by traditional colleges and universities . He does recommend that colleges and universities create committees focusing on responding to such pressures for change systemically, to stay ahead of the curve. However , he also lamented the lack of preparation that higher education has for what is coming , including dramatic changes from competency - based education , the unbundling of degree programs , venture capital funding , and technology .
Robert Siemens , who coined the term " MOOC " and helped create the first massive open online course , has taken issue with the recent talk by higher education disruptors who claim higher education is " broken and stagnant " , and has defended the innovation recently made by traditional colleges and universities . However , he also lamented the lack of preparation that higher education has for what is coming , including dramatic changes from competency - based education , the unbundling of degree programs , venture capital funding , and technology .