Surely you aren't suggesting that the US would tell American Universities they can no longer share data with, say Oxford or Cambridge?
Of course they can, would, and have done. All governments have export restrictions, and apply them to Universities as well as all other groups, and are not fooled by "I didn't do it, it was that other group". If Coursera was sending money or satellite images could they simply setup a "partner" outside the US? If you think that teaching is not comparable... the politicians don't agree with you, and they've made it clear they don't by forcing Coursera to exclude these countries.
US export restrictions only apply to US entities. That's the law.
International sanctions are approved and enforced by the majority of countries in the world, although often at the behest of the US. If a member of Coursera tried to make the material available to a restricted country, regardless of how they obfuscate the transfer, they're liable (and likely) to be charged with a crime.
Are you suggesting that people move to Iran and start a Coursera clone? (Even if they did, how would they get the new material?) Are you suggesting that people working with Coursera stay in the US and defy export restrictions with some fig leaf excuse? The idea that "there is a simple solution" to ignoring the government is, again, either naive or trolling.