professional wordpress themes

Reflections on “How do colleges decide when to schedule courses?” [Seltzer]

On 10/21/2022, in adjunct faculty, business side of he, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, Daniel S. Christian, faculty/staff, higher education, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, online learning, United States, universities, workplace, by Daniel Christian

How do colleges decide when to schedule courses? — from highereddive.com by Rick Seltzer

Dive Brief (excerpt):

  • Two-thirds of colleges are thinking about the courses students will need to complete their degrees on time when they build their schedules, according to a survey released Tuesday by Ad Astra, a scheduling software and analytics provider.
  • Meanwhile, 51% said they considered when they could offer courses to help students avoid conflicts in their schedules, and 30% looked at balancing in-person, online and hybrid courses.
  • Almost two-thirds of respondents, 65%, said they use retention rates and enrollment ratios to gauge the effectiveness of a course schedule.

From DSC:
This is a tough one, as faculty members and staff members have obligations outside of work as well. They may have families. They may need to transfer kids to/from school or drop them off at music lessons, sporting events, etc. So many people working within higher education like to keep to “normal business hours” as much as possible. Obviously, that’s not always true and I’m likely painting with too broad a paintbrush.

That said, online-based learning opens up a lot of possibilities for faculty members as well as for students. Schedules can often be opened up quite a bit. This level of flexibility is becoming increasingly important, given the prices of obtaining degrees out there. Students often need to work as well — and their places of employment don’t always provide the required flexibility.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

Higher Ed’s Enrollment Fell Again This Fall, if a Bit More Slowly [Williams June]

On 10/21/2022, in business side of he, colleges, community colleges, higher education, trends, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Higher Ed’s Enrollment Fell Again This Fall, if a Bit More Slowly — from chronicle.com by  Audrey Williams June

Excerpt:

New data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center provides a somber message about college attendance in the fall of 2022: Undergraduate enrollment, under severe pressure since the start of the pandemic, is still on the decline.

While the 1.1-percent dip in undergraduate enrollment this fall was less severe than the drops during the same period in 2020 and 2021, the loss of undergraduate students still hit every sector, according to the data, released on Thursday.

Also relevant/see:

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

2022 EDUCAUSE Horizon Action Plan: Hybrid Learning [educause.edu]

On 10/18/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, accessibility / UDL, adjunct faculty, Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), blended learning, business side of he, change, changing business models, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, credentialing, economics, education technology, experimentation, face-to-face, faculty/staff, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, higher education, hybrid learning, instructional design, leadership, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, learning spaces, liberal arts, more voice more choice more control, new business models, online learning, pace of change, political science, professional development, reinvent, society, strategy, student-related, teaching & learning, technology (general), traditional / tradition, United States, universities, user experience (UX), vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

2022 EDUCAUSE Horizon Action Plan: Hybrid Learning — from library.educause.edu

Excerpts:

Building on the trends, technologies, and practices described in the 2022 Horizon Report: Teaching and Learning Edition, the panel crafted its vision of the future along with practical action items the teaching and learning community can employ to make this future a reality. Any stakeholder in higher education who teaches in or supports hybrid learning modalities will find this report helpful in preparing for the future of hybrid learning. The future we want is within reach, but only if we work together.

Asked to describe the goals and elements of hybrid learning that they would like to see 10 years from now, panelists collaboratively constructed their preferred future for institutions, students, instructors, and staff.

Institutions

  • Higher education is available on demand.
  • Learning is not measured by seat time.
  • Collaboration across institutions facilitates advancement.
  • College and university campuses are not the sole locations for learning spaces.

Students, Instructors, and Staff

  • Everything is hybrid.
  • Student equity is centered in all modalities.
  • Professional development is ongoing, integrated, and valued.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

Amazon ups its cloud training investments [Ashburn]

On 10/16/2022, in Alternatives, Amazon, business side of he, career development, change, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, credentialing, learning spaces, online learning, skills, training / L&D, trends, United States, by Daniel Christian

Amazon ups its cloud training investments — from workshift.opencampusmedia.org by Byelyse Ashburn
Amazon Web Services just launched a new skills center near D.C. and is expanding both its in-person and online training programs for cloud careers.

Excerpt:

The big idea: The skills center is just one part of AWS’ plan to spend hundreds of millions of dollars providing free training in cloud computing to 29 million people globally by 2025. In the past year, the company has dramatically increased its free cloud skills offerings, adding AWS Skill Builder, an online library of 500-plus self-paced courses. It’s also twice expanded re/Start, its cohort-based training program for workers who are unemployed or underemployed.

Thus far, the company has helped more than 13 million people gain cloud skills for free through its various offerings—seven million more than this time last year.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

77% of adults think it would be hard to pay for college, according to survey [Seltzer]

On 10/16/2022, in Alternatives, business side of he, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, higher education, leadership, learning ecosystem, parents/guardians, student-related, surviving, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

77% of adults think it would be hard to pay for college, according to survey — from highereddive.com by Rick Seltzer

Excerpt:

  • Women were more likely than men to call a college education unaffordable, 82% vs. 73%. The survey found 80% of Black respondents, 78% of Hispanic respondents, and 77% of White respondents said college would be difficult to afford.
  • Community colleges and two-year colleges were viewed as the most affordable option — 65% of respondents said they considered them affordable. That was ahead of vocational and professional certificate programs, which 57% of respondents viewed as affordable.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

More Than 3 in 4 Americans Believe College Is Difficult to Afford [Jacobson Snyder]

On 10/12/2022, in Alternatives, business side of he, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, funding / grants, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, learning ecosystem, parents/guardians, society, sociology, student-related, trends, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

More Than 3 in 4 Americans Believe College Is Difficult to Afford — from morningconsult.com by Amanda Jacobson Snyder
And about half of U.S. adults say in-state public universities are “not affordable,” as shifting trends in enrollment may make flagship state schools seem financially out of reach

Excerpt:

  • A college education is widely perceived as unaffordable for most Americans, with 77% of U.S. adults saying a college degree would be difficult for someone like them to afford.
  • 82% of women said a college degree would be difficult to afford, compared with 73% of men.
  • Roughly 4 in 5 Black and Hispanic adults said college would be difficult to afford.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

What Ails Our Labor Market Is Evident in College [Busteed]

On 10/12/2022, in business, business side of he, career development, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, corporate / business world, future of higher education, higher education, United States, universities, workplace, youth, by Daniel Christian

What Ails Our Labor Market Is Evident in College — from insidehighered.com by Brandon Busteed
Both colleges and employers must fix work-readiness failures and inequitable work-readiness practices, writes Brandon Busteed.

Excerpts:

The price tag for college continues to rise, while doubts about the work readiness of college graduates are rampant. This is very bad news for higher education, given the No. 1 reason Americans value a college degree is to get a good or better job.
…
Higher education isn’t alone in needing to fix what ails us. Employers of all shapes and sizes need to step up. After all, what they want most from a college graduate is one with relevant job or internship experience. State and federal governments can and should provide more incentives (whether matching funds or tax subsidies) to encourage more paid internships offered by employers. And why not an addition to the Pell program to provide stipends for unpaid or low-paid internships?

Unfortunately, only 14 percent of current college students received academic credit for their internship.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

More adults, low-income students enroll when community colleges offer bachelor’s degrees, study suggests [Schwartz]

On 10/04/2022, in business side of he, community colleges, higher education, leadership, learning ecosystem, United States, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

More adults, low-income students enroll when community colleges offer bachelor’s degrees, study suggests — from highereddive.com by Natalie Schwartz

Dive Brief:

  • Community colleges that begin offering bachelor’s degrees see enrollment increases, including among low-income students and those who are age 25 and older, according to new research published in Community College Review, a peer-reviewed journal.
  • However, the research is inconclusive on whether community college baccalaureate degrees increase enrollment of students of underrepresented races, which include those who are African American, Hispanic, Native American and multiracial.
  • Opponents of community colleges offering bachelor’s degrees often argue that these programs cause institutions to drift away from their missions of serving underrepresented students. But the new research suggests that the programs actually reinforce community colleges’ commitments to certain disadvantaged student populations.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

5 college recruiting lessons from a mom and a marketer [Lamphier]

On 10/04/2022, in business side of he, colleges, community colleges, higher education, ideas, leadership, marketing/social marketing, productivity / tips and tricks, strategy, United States, by Daniel Christian

5 college recruiting lessons from a mom and a marketer — from highereddive.com by Denise Lamphier
The executive director of communications and marketing at Central College, in Iowa, shares what she learned from her own child’s college search.

Excerpt:

Just after that first piece arrived, I proposed the idea to E.J. to collaborate on a four-year project together, reviewing admission materials. As part of the project, he wrote some journal entries about the mailings. Then I took the pieces to my office at Central and taped them on the wall. This allowed my team to see the four-year progression of materials that a high school student receives from colleges. E.J. also offered me access to his school email account so I could read all the college emails he amassed.

The following statistics reflect his recruitment experience in a numbers nutshell:

One student. Four years. Ninety different colleges and universities. A total of 5,228 emails. Four military recruitment brochures, 23 handwritten notes, 302 postcards, and 162 viewbooks and pamphlets mailed alone. That’s in addition to 130 letters, often including viewbooks, applications or other materials. And we mustn’t forget one yellow flying disc mailed as an irregular parcel.

All to elicit one decision.

Addendum on 10/10/22:

  • 4 more insights from a mom and a marketer — from highereddive.com by Denise Lamphier
    The executive director of communications and marketing at Central College, in Iowa, shares more of what she learned from her child’s college search.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

Why aren’t people going to college? [Seltzer]

On 09/30/2022, in Alternatives, business side of he, career development, cost of getting a degree, game-changing environment, higher education, learning ecosystem, more voice more choice more control, parents/guardians, research, society, sociology, student-related, workplace, youth, by Daniel Christian

Why aren’t people going to college? — from highereddive.com by Rick Seltzer
Many of those who didn’t enroll or complete degrees say college was too expensive — but they also cite stress and career uncertainty, new research finds.

Excerpts:

Researchers offered four main insights for higher education:

  • Who attends college isn’t just a demographic question
  • The education marketplace is fundamentally different today than it has been in the past
  • Higher education’s language is missing the mark, and so are educational pathways
  • Students are willing to pay for college if they know returns will follow

Also relevant/see:

Some High-School Grads Say No to College. Here’s Why — and What Might Change Their Minds. — from chronicle.com by Audrey Williams June

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

The data also underscore how the education marketplace has shifted in recent years, said Adam Burns, chief operations officer and senior research analyst for Edge Research, during a media call. For instance, nearly 47 percent of the young adults surveyed said they had taken a class offered via YouTube or were currently doing so.

“As we all know,” Burns said, “there are more educational options at people’s disposal than ever before.”

MIT Professors Propose a New Kind of University for Post-COVID Era — from edsurge.com by Jeffrey R. Young

Excerpt:

Five professors at Massachusetts Institute of Technology say they have some answers.

They released a white paper yesterday called “Ideas For Designing An Affordable New Educational Institution,” where they lay out a framework for essentially a new class of university that would take advantage of various trends that have emerged in the past few years.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

The Public’s Growing Doubts About College ‘Value’ [Lederman]

On 09/29/2022, in adjunct faculty, adult learning, Alternatives, business side of he, career development, change, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, credentialing, faculty/staff, higher education, society, training / L&D, United States, universities, vendors, workplace, by Daniel Christian

The Public’s Growing Doubts About College ‘Value’ — from insidehighered.com by Doug Lederman
Americans aren’t questioning the importance of higher education, but they’re concerned it is unaffordable and unavailable for too many people. Experts dig into the data.

Excerpt:

After decades of almost unquestioned public support as some of America’s most valued institutions, colleges and universities are facing growing questions—not about whether higher education remains important but whether it’s available, affordable and valuable enough.

An episode of Inside Higher Ed’s The Key podcast recently explored the public’s evolving attitudes toward higher education, part of a three-part series on the concept of “value” in higher education…

Thousands of Students Take Courses Through Unaccredited Private Companies. Here’s a Look Into One of Them. — from chronicle.com by  Taylor Swaak

Excerpts:

A growing number of students are taking courses offered by unaccredited private companies and completing them in a matter of days or weeks — often for less than $200 — and then transferring the credits to colleges.
…
That growth comes in response to a perfect storm of skyrocketing higher-education costs, more adult learners seeking flexibility, and drops in enrollment that have spurred colleges to beef up retention and re-engagement efforts with “stopped-out” students.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

What the Faltering OPM Market Means for Colleges [Hill]

On 09/24/2022, in business side of he, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, higher education, instructional design, online learning, United States, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

What the Faltering OPM Market Means for Colleges — from chronicle.com by Phil Hill
Even institutions not involved with the companies should take heed.

Excerpts:

It turns out that the OPM business is a difficult one. And colleges with online programs — whether or not they use OPMs — can take a handful of important lessons away from the recent developments.
…
Long-term contracts might not be viable. What happens to an online program if the OPM company helping manage the program with complicated contractual terms gets bought or starts operating at a reduced level? That is no longer a theoretical question. Colleges need to become much more sophisticated when they enter into contracts, coming up with real contingency plans and terms that can end partnerships without harming the underlying academic programs.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

Transfer enrollment declined 13.5% since the pandemic started [Schwartz]

On 09/15/2022, in business side of he, change, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, higher education, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Transfer enrollment declined 13.5% since the pandemic started — from highereddive.com by Natalie Schwartz
The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center found that transfer enrollment had declined twice as much as nontransfer enrollment.

Excerpt:

Transfer enrollment at colleges and universities has declined 13.5% since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, representing a loss of nearly 300,000 students.

That’s according to the latest figures from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, which based the findings on a fixed panel of institutions that collectively enroll more than 13 million undergraduate students.

Also relevant/see:

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

It seems to me that this type of thing is going to be hard to compete against [Christian]

On 09/13/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adjunct faculty, adult learning, Alternatives, blended learning, business side of he, career development, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, experimentation, face-to-face, faculty/staff, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, hybrid learning, innovation, instructional design, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, United States, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
I signed up to receive some items from Outlier.org. Here’s one of the emails that I recently received. It seems to me that this type of thing is going to be hard to compete against:

  • Professionally-done content
  • Created by teams of specialists, including game designers
  • Hand-picked professors/SME’s — from all over the world
  • Evidence-based learning tools

Outlier dot org could be tough to compete against -- professional-executed content creation and delivery

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

Reflections on “8 big questions as colleges start fall 2022” [Seltzer]

On 09/07/2022, in adjunct faculty, business side of he, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, experimentation, faculty/staff, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, ideas, innovation, leadership, skills, society, strategy, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

8 big questions as colleges start fall 2022 — from highereddive.com by Rick Seltzer
Will higher ed’s financial picture clear? Can campuses innovate? Is a new generation of presidents ready to rise to the moment?

Excerpt:

Can colleges innovate?
Observers wonder whether the higher education sector is ready to make the changes necessary to meet the moment, like becoming more flexible, serving a wider range of students and containing costs. Higher ed leaders have been discussing certain priorities for years amid projections of diversifying student bodies, financial crunches and public policy changes.

From DSC:
I excerpted an item re: innovation because I think institutions of traditional higher education will have to make some significant changes to turn (the negative tide of) the public’s perception of the value of a college degree. No more playing around at the edges — significant value/ROI must be delivered and proved.

A quick way to accomplish this would be to lift up the place of adjunct faculty members at one’s institution:

  • Give them more say, voice, and control — especially in the area of which topics/courses should be offered in the curricula out there
  • Give them more input into faculty governance types of issues 
  • Pay them much more appropriately while granting them healthcare and retirement kinds of benefits

I say this because adjunct faculty members are often out there in the real world, actually doing the kinds of things in their daily jobs that they’re teaching about. They’re able to regularly pulse-check their industries and they can better see what’s needed in the marketplace. They could help traditional institutions of higher education be much more responsive.

But because higher education has been treating its adjunct faculty members so poorly (at least in recent years), I’m not as hopeful in this regard as I’d like to be.

Another option would be to have faculty members spend much more time in the workplace — to experience which topics, content, and skills are required. But that’s tough to do when their job plates are often already so full that they’re overflowing.

Bottom line: It’s time for change. It’s time to become much more responsive — course-offering-wise.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 
Previous Entries Next Entries
© 2025 | Daniel Christian