Wasting $250,000 in grant money

One of the things I hate the most is the waste of money on educational tools that are expected to work for all but work for very few. Thomas Edison State College received $250,000 in grant money for a program that would allow virtual classes via a flash drive. Students would receive the flash drive with all their material, including the Course Management. They would only connect to the internet to drop off their assignments and check for email updates. When reading this article, my first thought was, my dad did this in the 90's and my grandfather in the 50's. How is it that they accomplished the same goal as this program? Well, in the 1950's after my grandfather had to drop out of Carnegie Mellon University to support my Great Grandmother after my Great Grandfather's sudden death, he continued his education through distance education courses. He continued to work on his education for many years never successfully completing his degree. My father is what I would consider a life long learner. As I was growing up and as long as I can remember he attended school through distance education. The school would send his books via mail, he would complete the work and send back his completed work and exams. Interesting enough, I see the same situation with this flash drive. Does it take a new step in another direction? Yes, I believe if they wanted to send the class to an area that does not have the ability to afford the luxury of the internet it may cater to that group of people. Do I see this as the new up and coming way of learning? No, this may provide a small closure, but long term, I do not see this as a successful project.
Dr. Cunningham
http://www.tesc.edu/news/6533.php