colleges

“The economic potential of generative AI” [McKinsey & Co.] + using AI in the classroom + other AI-related items

On 06/27/2023, in adjunct faculty, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, assessment, business, changing business models, colleges, community colleges, corporate / business world, digital learning, digital video, economics, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, faculty, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, graphics, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, law schools, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, liberal arts, lifelong learning, new business models, open courseware and systems, personalized/customized learning, platforms, policy, society, teachers, teaching & learning, technologies for your home, tools, UK, United States, universities, workplace, writing, by Daniel Christian

The economic potential of generative AI — from mckinsey.com; via Superhuman

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DC: It should prove to be interesting & fun to watch how #AI and #XR related technologies will be integrated into games & the #gamification of #learning .https://t.co/HO2CftqNrs via @VRScout

— Daniel Christian (he/him/his) (@dchristian5) June 23, 2023

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On giving AI eyes and ears — from oneusefulthing.org by Ethan Mollick
AI can listen and see, with bigger implications than we might realize.

Excerpt:

But even this is just the beginning, and new modes of using AI are appearing, which further increases their capabilities. I want to show you some examples of this emerging world, which I think will soon introduce a new wave of AI use cases, and accompanying disruption.

We need to recognize that these capabilities will continue to grow, and AI will be able to play a more active role in the real world by observing and listening. The implications are likely to be profound, and we should start thinking through both the huge benefits and major concerns today.

Ethan Mollick

5 Steps to Transforming Images into Videos Using AI Tools — from heatherbcooper.substack.com by Heather Cooper
A simple guide to layering AI tools for quick video creation

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‘Nobody wins in an academic-integrity arms race’ — from chonicle.com by Ian Wilhelm
How artificial intelligence is changing the way college thing about cheating

Even though generative AI is a new thing, it doesn’t change why students cheat. They’ve always cheated for the same reason: They don’t find the work meaningful, and they don’t think they can achieve it to their satisfaction. So we need to design assessments that students find meaning in.

Tricia Bertram Gallant

Caught off guard by AI — from chonicle.com by Beth McMurtrie and Beckie Supiano
Professor scrambled to react to ChatGPT this spring — and started planning for the fall

Excerpt:

Is it cheating to use AI to brainstorm, or should that distinction be reserved for writing that you pretend is yours? Should AI be banned from the classroom, or is that irresponsible, given how quickly it is seeping into everyday life? Should a student caught cheating with AI be punished because they passed work off as their own, or given a second chance, especially if different professors have different rules and students aren’t always sure what use is appropriate?

GPT-4 Can Use Tools Now—That’s a Big Deal — from every.to by Dan Shipper; resource via Sam DeBrule
What “function calling” is, how it works, and what it means

Excerpt:

…OpenAI built tool use right into the GPT API with an update called function calling. It’s a little like a child’s ability to ask their parents to help them with a task that they know they can’t do on their own. Except in this case, instead of parents, GPT can call out to external code, databases, or other APIs when it needs to.

Each function in function calling represents a tool that a GPT model can use when necessary, and GPT gets to decide which ones it wants to use and when. This instantly upgrades GPT capabilities—not because it can now do every task perfectly—but because it now knows how to ask for what it wants and get it.
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How ChatGPT can help disrupt assessment overload — from timeshighereducation.com by David Carless
Advances in AI are not necessarily the enemy – in fact, they should prompt long overdue consideration of assessment types and frequency, says David Carless

Excerpt:

Reducing the assessment burden could support trust in students as individuals wanting to produce worthwhile, original work. Indeed, students can be co-opted as partners in designing their own assessment tasks, so they can produce something meaningful to them.

A strategic reduction in quantity of assessment would also facilitate a refocusing of assessment priorities on deep understanding more than just performance and carries potential to enhance feedback processes.

If we were to tackle assessment overload in these ways, it opens up various possibilities. Most significantly there is potential to revitalise feedback so that it becomes a core part of a learning cycle rather than an adjunct at its end. End-of-semester, product-oriented feedback, which comes after grades have already been awarded, fails to encourage the iterative loops and spirals typical of productive learning.
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The full 12 uses are here: https://edgeoflearning.com/your-new-teaching-superpower-ai-tools/

The AI Tools in Education Database — from kiwi-path-612.notion.site by EdTech Insiders

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Since AI in education has been moving at the speed of light, we built this AI Tools in Education database to keep track of the most recent AI tools in education and the changes that are happening every day. This database is intended to be a community resource for educators, researchers, students, and other edtech specialists looking to stay up to date. This is a living document, so be sure to come back for regular updates.

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Time for Class 2023 Study finds students are earlier adopters of generative AI tools than faculty, and majority (69%) of learners prefer hybrid, blended or online course formats — from globenewswire.com by Tyton Partners

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AI Could Prevent Hiring Bias — Unless It Makes It Worse — from nerdwallet.com by Anna Helhoski
Advocates say AI can eliminate human biases in hiring. Skeptics point out that AI tools are trained by … humans.

Excerpt:

These claims conjure up the rosiest of images: human resource departments and their robot buddies solving discrimination in workplace hiring. It seems plausible, in theory, that AI could root out unconscious bias, but a growing body of research shows the opposite may be more likely.
…
Companies’ use of AI didn’t come out of nowhere: For example, automated applicant tracking systems have been used in hiring for decades. That means if you’ve applied for a job, your resume and cover letter were likely scanned by an automated system. You probably heard from a chatbot at some point in the process. Your interview might have been automatically scheduled and later even assessed by AI.

From DSC:
Here was my reflection on this:

DC: Along these lines, I wonder if Applicant Tracking Systems cause us to become like typecast actors and actresses — only thought of for certain roles. Pigeonholed.

— Daniel Christian (he/him/his) (@dchristian5) June 23, 2023

Also related to AI in hiring, see:

4 in 10 Companies Will Be Using AI Interviews by 2024 — from resumebuilder.com

In June, ResumeBuilder.com surveyed more than 1,000 employees who are involved in hiring processes at their workplaces to find out about their companies’ use of AI interviews.

The results:

43% of companies already have or plan to adopt AI interviews by 2024
Two-thirds of this group believe AI interviews will increase hiring efficiency
15% say that AI will be used to make decisions on candidates without any human input
More than half believe AI will eventually replace human hiring managers

Watch OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on the Future of AI — from bloomberg.com
Sam Altman, CEO & Co-Founder, OpenAI discusses the explosive rise of OpenAI and its products and what an AI-laced future can look like with Bloomberg’s Emily Chang at the Bloomberg Technology Summit.

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PowerSchool Announces Collaboration with Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service to Provide Personalized Learning at Scale in K-12 Education — from powerschool.com
Large-scale language models integrated within PowerSchool Performance Matters and PowerSchool LearningNav products will empower educators in delivering transformative personalized learning pathways

The implementation of generative AI within these products will dramatically improve educators’ ability to deliver personalized learning to students at scale by enabling the application of personalized assessments and learning pathways based on individual student needs and learning goals. K-12 educators will also benefit from access to OpenAI technology…

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FETC 2023 Virtual Roundtable: How AI Will Transform K-12 Education

AI could be the great equalizer!

Holly Clark

Example screenshots:

The Cambrian Explosion of AI Edtech Is Here [Sarlin, Morin, & Kornell] + several other items re: using AI within our learning ecosystems

On 06/26/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, change, colleges, community colleges, computer science, content development, aggregation, repositories, digital learning, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, faculty, future, game-changing environment, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, K-12 related, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, lifelong learning, online learning, open courseware and systems, personalized/customized learning, platforms, teachers, teaching & learning, tools, training / L&D, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

The Cambrian Explosion of AI Edtech Is Here — from edtechinsiders.substack.com by Alex Sarlin, Sarah Morin, and Ben Kornell

Excerpt:

Our AI in Edtech Takeaways

After chronicling 160+ AI tools (which is surely only a small fraction of the total), we’re seeing a few clear patterns among the tools that have come out so far- here are 10 categories that are jumping out!

Virtual Teaching Assistants:
Virtual Tutors:
AI-Powered Study Tools:
Educational Content Creation:
Educational Search:
Auto-generated Learning Paths:
AI-Powered Research:
Speak to Characters:
Grammar and Writing:
AI Cheating Detection:

Ready or not, AI is here — from the chronicle.com’s The Edge, by Goldie Blumenstyk

Excerpt:

“I don’t usually get worked up about announcements but I see promise in JFF’s plans for a new Center for Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Work, in no small part because the organization bridges higher ed, K-12 education, employers, and policymakers.”

Goldie Blumenstyk

Goldie’s article links to:

Jobs for the Future Launches New Center for Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Work — from archive.jff.org
Center launches as JFF releases preliminary survey data which finds a majority of workers feel they need new skills and training to prepare for AI’s future impact.

Excerpt:

BOSTON June 14, 2023 —Jobs for the Future (JFF), a national nonprofit that drives transformation in the U.S. education and workforce systems, today announced the launch of its new Center for Artificial Intelligence &the Future of Work. This center will play an integral role in JFF’s mission and newly announced 10-year North Star goal to help 75 million people facing systemic barriers to advancement work in quality jobs. As AI’s explosive growth reshapes every aspect of how we learn, work, and live, this new center will serve as a nexus of collaboration among stakeholders from every part of the education-to-career ecosystem to explore the most promising opportunities—and profound challenges—of AI’s potential to advance an accessible and equitable future of learning and work.

OpenAI Considers ‘App Store’ For ChatGPT — from searchenginejournal.com by; with thanks to Barsee at AI Valley for this resource
OpenAI explores launching an ‘app store’ for AI models, potentially challenging current partners and expanding customer reach.

Highlights:

OpenAI considers launching an ‘app store’ for customized AI chatbots.
This move could create competition with current partners and extend OpenAI’s customer reach.
Early interest from companies like Aquant and Khan Academy shows potential, but product development and market positioning challenges remain.

The Rise of AI: New Rules for Super T Professionals and Next Steps for EdLeaders — from gettingsmart.com by Tom Vander Ark

Key Points

The rise of artificial intelligence, especially generative AI, boosts productivity in content creation–text, code, images and increasingly video.
Here are six preliminary conclusions about the nature of work and learning.

Wonder Tools: AI to try — from wondertools.substack.com by Jeremy Caplan
9 playful little ways to explore AI

Excerpt:

Create a personalized children’s story ? | Schrodi
Collaborate with AI on a free customized, illustrated story for someone special. Give your story’s hero a name, pick a genre (e.g. comedy, thriller), choose an illustration style (e.g. watercolor, 3d animation) and provide a prompt to shape a simple story. You can even suggest a moral. After a minute, download a full-color PDF to share. Or print it and read your new mini picture book aloud.
Generate a quiz ? | Piggy
Put in a link, a topic, or some text and you’ll get a quiz you can share, featuring multiple-choice or true-false questions. Example: try this quick entrepreneurship quiz Piggy generated for me.

3 Questions for Coursera About Generative AI in Education — from insidehighered.com by Joshua Kim
How this tech will change the learning experience, course creation and more.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Q: How will generative AI impact teaching and learning in the near and long term?

Baker Stein: One-on-one tutoring at scale is finally being unlocked for learners around the world. This type of quality education is no longer only available to students with the means to hire a private tutor. I’m also particularly excited to see how educators make use of generative AI tools to create courses much faster and likely at a higher quality with increased personalization for each student or even by experimenting with new technologies like extended reality. Professors will be able to put their time toward high-impact activities like mentoring, researching and office hours instead of tedious course-creation tasks. This helps open up the capacity for educators to iterate on their courses faster to keep pace with industry and global changes that may impact their field of study.

Another important use case is how generative AI can serve as a great equalizer for students when it comes to writing, especially second language learners.

What do higher education students want from online learning? — from mckinsey.com by Felipe Child, Marcus Frank, Jonathan Law, and Jimmy Sarakatsannis
What over 7000 students across 17 countries value most in online education

Shocking, But Not Shocking [Hill]

On 06/16/2023, in business side of he, change, changing business models, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, education technology, faculty, higher education, learning ecosystem, online learning, United States, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Shocking, But Not Shocking — from onedtech.beehiiv.com by Phil Hill
Wiley announces plans to sell its OPM business

Excerpt:

Just under three months ago Pearson, one of the “Big Four” of in the Online Program Management (OPM) space, announced the sale of its OPM business. Today, another of the four is also getting out of the business (the others are Wiley, 2U/edX, and Academic Partnerships).
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Why the Sale?
The immediate issue from an OPM perspective is that Wiley University Services has been losing revenue with no signs of returning to growth.

Several items re: higher education

On 06/08/2023, in adjunct faculty, business side of he, colleges, community colleges, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, faculty, higher education, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, policy, student-related, teaching & learning, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Discount Rates At Colleges Continue To Increase As Colleges Explore Alternate Pricing Strategies — from forbes.com by Lucie Lapovsky

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Since 2012, 65 private colleges and universities with enrollment of 500 students or more, that I know of, have reduced their tuition, and commensurately reduced their discount rate. Several more schools are planning price resets for fall 2024. Schools use this strategy to increase the number of students who will consider them, and this approach has been successful for more than 80 percent of the schools which have reduced their published price.

From DSC:
What I learned of economics in college would agree with this last bit. As the price goes down, demand goes up. And conversely, as the price goes up, demand goes down. As Lucie points out, many people don’t know about the heavily discounted prices within higher education. I’ve been fighting for price decreases for over 15 years…clearly, I haven’t had much success in that area.

As the price goes down, the demand goes up.

Excerpts from Kristen Trader’s recent posting on LinkedIn:
(Emphasis DSC)

AI-assisted cheating isn’t a temptation if students have a reason to care about their own learning.

Yesterday I happened to listen to two different podcasts that ended up resonating with one another and with an idea that’s been rattling around inside my head with all of this moral uproar about generative AI:

** If we trust students – and earn their trust in return – then they will be far less motivated to cheat with AI or in any other way. **

First, the question of motivation. On the Intentional Teaching podcast, while interviewing James Lang and Michelle Miller on the impact of generative AI, Derek Bruff points out (drawing on Lang’s Cheating Lessons book) that if students have “real motivation to get some meaning out of [an] activity, then there’s far less motivation to just have ChatGPT write it for them.” Real motivation and real meaning FOR THE STUDENT translates into an investment in doing the work themselves.
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Then I hopped over to one of my favorite podcasts – Teaching in Higher Ed – where Bonni Stachowiak was interviewing Cate Denial about a “pedagogy of kindness,” which is predicated on trusting students and not seeing them as adversaries in the work we’re doing.

So the second key element: being kind and trusting students, which builds a culture of mutual respect and care that again diminishes the likelihood that they will cheat.
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Again, human-centered learning design seems to address so many of the concerns and challenges of the current moment in higher ed. Maybe it’s time to actually practice it more consistently. #aiineducation #higheredteaching #inclusiveteaching

How liberal arts colleges can make career services a priority — from highereddive.com by John Boyer
Creating internships and focusing on short-term experiences has a big impact, the longtime undergraduate dean at the University of Chicago says.

Virginia to eliminate degree requirements for most state jobs — from hrdive.com/ by Kathryn Moody
State movement on the issue reflects ongoing private sector interest in reducing reliance on four-year degrees for hiring purposes.

GETTING STARTED WITH MICROCREDENTIALS: A PRIMER FOR HIGHER EDUCATION LEADERS — from cps.northeastern.edu by Ellen Stoddard | Allison Ruda | Emilee Trieckel | Sean R. Gallagher; with thanks to Goldie Blenstyk for this resource

3 Ways Campus Leaders Can Prepare Students for Technology Transformation in the Workforce — from campustechnology.comby Sandra Loughlin, Ph.D.
Consider these strategies for equipping students with the tech skills they will need to succeed post-graduation.

TI-ADDIE: A Trauma-Informed Model of Instructional Design — from er.educause.edu by Ali Carr-Chellman and Treavor Bogard
Adjusting the ADDIE model of instructional design specifically to accommodate trauma offers an opportunity to address the collective challenges that designers, instructors, and learners have faced during the current learning moment.

Online learning: Is it worth trying? — from social-and-emotional-learning.educationtechnologyinsights.com by Dr. Miko Nino

From DSC:
Dr. Nino makes several solid points in this article. The article won’t let me copy/paste some excerpts for you, but I would encourage you to look at it.

I would add a few things:

The huge advantage of online-based learning is that a significant amount of learning-related data is automatically captured and doesn’t need to be manually entered (if such manually entered data ever does get entered…which most of it doesn’t).
Learners have much more control over the pacing within the digital realm — i.e., which media they want to use as well as stopping/fast-forwarding/rewinding certain kinds of media.
Most people are now required to be lifelong learners — where convenience and time-savings become very important factors in continuing one’s education
And finally, as AI and other technologies continue to make their way forward, it will be hard to beat online-based and/or hybrid-based learning.

“ChatGPT is the shakeup education needs” + “Why L&D should be at the forefront of the AI revolution” + other AI-related items

On 06/06/2023, in adjunct faculty, art, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, business, career development, change, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, creativity, digital storytelling, digital video, disruption, education, education reform, education technology, emerging technologies, global / globalization, higher education, instructional design, intelligent systems, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, lifelong learning, media/film, professional development, skills, society, story, storytelling, training / L&D, UK, United States, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Why L&D should be at the forefront of the AI revolution — from managementtoday.co.uk by Bill Borrows
AI means that 50% of all employees will need reskilling or upskilling by 2025, according to the World Economic Forum.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Ernst and Young dug a little deeper. “Today’s disruptive working landscape requires organisations to largely restructure the way they are doing work,” they noted in a bulletin in March this year. “Time now spent on tasks will be equally divided between people and machines. For these reasons, workforce roles will change and so do the skills needed to perform them.”

The World Economic Forum has pointed to this global skills gap and estimates that, while 85 million jobs will be displaced, 50% of all employees will need reskilling and/or upskilling by 2025. This, it almost goes without saying, will require Learning and Development departments to do the heavy-lifting in this initial transformational phase but also in an on-going capacity.

“And that’s the big problem,” says Hardman. “2025 is only two and half years away and the three pillars of L&D – knowledge transference, knowledge reinforcement and knowledge assessment – are crumbling. They have been unchanged for decades and are now, faced by revolutionary change, no longer fit for purpose.”

ChatGPT is the shakeup education needs — from eschoolnews.com by Joshua Sine
As technology evolves, industries must evolve alongside it, and education is no exception–especially when students heavily and regularly rely on edtech

Key points:

Education must evolve along with technology–students will expect it
Embracing new technologies helps education leverage adaptive technology that engage student interest
See related article: AI tools are set to impact tutoring in a big way

My department asked me to give a brief talk about #GPT to them to help folks learn more about what’s going on. Here are my #tips in distilled form.

— Andrew Piper (@_akpiper) June 5, 2023

Welcome to the new surreal. How AI-generated video is changing film. — from technologyreview.com by Will Douglas Heaven
Exclusive: Watch the world premiere of the AI-generated short film The Frost.

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BEST 40 AI artists you need to follow now?? pic.twitter.com/t7WiXORhE2

— Rushik (@hey_rushik) June 2, 2023

The Future Of Education – Disruption Caused By AI And ChatGPT: Artificial Intelligence Series 3 Of 5 — from forbes.com by Nicole Serena Silver
Here are some ways AI can be introduced at various age levels

“ChatGPT Prompts for Learner Motivation” [Hardman] + other AI/T&L items

On 06/02/2023, in colleges, community colleges, higher education, instructional design, mathematics, motivation, teachers, teaching & learning, universities, by Daniel Christian

ChatGPT Prompts for Learner Motivation — from drphilippahardman.substack.com by Dr. Philippa Hardman
Three mega-prompts to motivate your learners like a pro

So, what can we – as educators and creators of ed-tech – do to build our learners’ intrinsic motivation and, in the process, drive both inclusion and achievement?

To help answer this question, I’ve put together a short guide. The guide includes:

A whistle-stop tour of the science of intrinsic motivation.
Three ChatGPT mega-prompts so you can apply the theory to the way you design learning experiences (and, perhaps, ed-tech products) and optimise for intrinsic motivation today.

How will Artificial Intelligence change higher education? — from chronicle.com by various
ChatGPT is just the beginning. 12 scholars and administrators explain.

Even discounting for hyperbole, the release of ChatGPT suggests that we’re at the dawn of an era marked by rapid advances in artificial intelligence, with far-reaching consequences for nearly every facet of society, including higher education. From admissions to assessment, academic integrity to scholarly research, university operations to disappearing jobs, here’s how 12 professors, administrators, and writers answer the question: How will AI change higher education?

Improving mathematical reasoning with process supervision — from openai.com

Excerpt:

We’ve trained a model to achieve a new state-of-the-art in mathematical problem solving by rewarding each correct step of reasoning (“process supervision”) instead of simply rewarding the correct final answer (“outcome supervision”). In addition to boosting performance relative to outcome supervision, process supervision also has an important alignment benefit: it directly trains the model to produce a chain-of-thought that is endorsed by humans.

Changed by Our Journey: Engaging Students through Simulive Learning — from er.educause.edu by Lisa Lenze and Megan Costello
In this article, an instructor explains how she took an alternative approach to teaching—simulive learning—and discusses the benefits that have extended to her in-person classrooms.

Excerpts:

Mustering courage, Costello devised a novel way to (1) share the course at times other than when it was regularly scheduled and (2) fully engage with her students in the chat channel during the scheduled class meeting time. Her solution, which she calls simulive learning, required her to record her lectures and watch them with her students. (Courageous, indeed!)

Below, Costello and I discuss what simulive learning looks like, how it works, and how Costello has taken her version of remote synchronous teaching forward into current semesters.

Megan Costello: I took a different approach to remote synchronous online learning at the start of the pandemic. Instead of using traditional videoconferencing software to hold class, I prerecorded, edited, and uploaded videos of my lectures to a streaming website. This website allowed me to specify a time and date to broadcast my lectures to my students. Because the lectures were already prepared, I could watch and participate in the chat with my students as we encountered the materials together during the scheduled class time. I drove conversations in chat, asked questions, and got students engaged as we covered materials for the day. The students had my full attention.

How Financially Resilient Is Your College? [Bain]

On 05/31/2023, in business side of he, colleges, community colleges, higher education, United States, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

How Financially Resilient Is Your College? — from bain.com; with thanks to Jeff Selingo for this resource
See how your school stacks up in our interactive database.

Excerpt:

Use this interactive tool to explore the impact of macroeconomic, enrollment, and cost scenarios on your institution’s financial position, actions you can take boost resilience, and how your school compares with others.

It takes a village… Reflections on sustainable learning design [Mihai]

On 05/27/2023, in adjunct faculty, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, faculty, higher education, instructional design, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, pedagogy, United States, universities, using teams, by Daniel Christian

It takes a village… Reflections on sustainable learning design – from educationalist.substack.com; The Educationalist by Alexandra Mihai

Excerpt:

For the purpose of this article I want to look at learning design in a more holistic way, as a practice that takes place at institutional level. Because we are actually not designing the learning, we are designing for learning. It’s all about an ecosystem with many variable components, including people, institutions, pedagogy, disciplinary content, technology. Some of them more controllable or predictable, some of them less so. So learning design is (should be!) all about being adaptive, iterative, empathic, but also efficient, sustainable (from different points of view, I will come back to that later), scalable.

What new grads can expect as they enter the working world — from mckinsey.com by Patrick Guggenberger, Dana Maor, Michael Park, and Patrick Simon

Excerpt:

May 21, 2023 It’s officially the season of caps, gowns, and stoles—and new grads are gearing up for entry into the world of work at a time when organizations are undergoing massive shifts. “The shifts include complex questions about how to organize for speed to shore up resilience, find the right balance between in-person and remote work models, address employees’ declining mental health, and build new institutional capabilities at a time of rapid technological change, among others,” write Patrick Guggenberger, Dana Maor, Michael Park, and Patrick Simon in a new report. These changes have significant implications for structures, processes, and people. How can new grads set themselves up for success in a quickly evolving environment? If you’re a soon-to-be new grad or know one, check out our newly refreshed special collection for insights and interviews on topics including productivity, hybrid work models, worker preferences, tech trends, and much more.

On a somewhat relevant posting (it has to do with career development as well), also see:

From Basic to Brand: How to Build and Use a Purposeful LinkedIn Profile — from er.educause.edu by Ryan MacTaggart and Laurie Burruss
Developing a professional brand helps higher education professionals establish meaningful work-related connections and build credibility in their area of expertise.

“2023 Higher Education Trends” [Clark, Cluver, & Selingo] + many other HE-related items

On 05/24/2023, in adjunct faculty, adult learning, blended learning, business side of he, career development, change, changing business models, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, credentialing, curriculum, experimentation, faculty, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, higher education, history, hybrid learning, Hyflex learning, leadership, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, learning preferences, liberal arts, lifelong learning, more voice more choice more control, new business models, online learning, parents/guardians, psychology, real-world assignments, reinvent, religion, skills, society, sociology, student-related, surviving, traditional / tradition, trends, United States, universities, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Trend No. 3: The business model faces a full-scale transformation — from www2.deloitte.com by Cole Clark, Megan Cluver, and Jeffrey J. Selingo
The traditional business model of higher education is broken as institutions can no longer rely on rising tuition among traditional students as the primary driver of revenue.

Excerpt:

Yet the opportunities for colleges and universities that shift their business model to a more student-centric one, serving the needs of a wider diversity of learners at different stages of their lives and careers, are immense. Politicians and policymakers are looking for solutions to the demographic cliff facing the workforce and the need to upskill and reskill generations of workers in an economy where the half-life of skills is shrinking. This intersection of needs—higher education needs students; the economy needs skilled workers—means that colleges and universities, if they execute on the right set of strategies, could play a critical role in developing the workforce of the future. For many colleges, this shift will require a significant rethinking of mission and structure as many institutions weren’t designed for workforce development and many faculty don’t believe it’s their job to get students a job. But if a set of institutions prove successful on this front, they could in the process improve the public perception of higher education, potentially leading to more political and financial support for growing this evolving business model in the future.

Also see:

Trend No. 2: The value of the degree undergoes further questioning — from www2.deloitte.com by Cole Clark, Megan Cluver, and Jeffrey J. Selingo
The perceived value of higher education has fallen as the skills needed to keep up in a job constantly change and learners have better consumer information on outcomes.

Excerpt:

Higher education has yet to come to grips with the trade-offs that students and their families are increasingly weighing with regard to obtaining a four-year degree.
…
But the problem facing the vast majority of colleges and universities is that they are no longer perceived to be the best source for the skills employers are seeking. This is especially the case as traditional degrees are increasingly competing with a rising tide of microcredentials, industry-based certificates, and well-paying jobs that don’t require a four-year degree.

Trend No. 1: College enrollment reaches its peak — from www2.deloitte.com by Cole Clark, Megan Cluver, and Jeffrey J. Selingo
Enrollment rates in higher education have been declining in the United States over the years as other countries catch up.

Excerpt:

Higher education in the United States has only known growth for generations. But enrollment of traditional students has been falling for more than a decade, especially among men, putting pressure both on the enrollment pipeline and on the work ecosystem it feeds. Now the sector faces increased headwinds as other countries catch up with the aggregate number of college-educated adults, with China and India expected to surpass the United States as the front runners in educated populations within the next decade or so.

Plus the other trends listed here >>

Also related to higher education, see the following items:

Number of Colleges in Distress Is Up 70% From 2012 — from bloomberg.com by Nic Querolo (behind firewall)
More schools see falling enrollement and tuition revenue | Small private, public colleges most at risk, report show

About 75% of students want to attend college — but far fewer expect to actually go — from highereddive.com by Jeremy Bauer-Wolf

There Is No Going Back: College Students Want a Live, Remote Option for In-Person Classes — from campustechnology.com by Eric Paljug

Excerpt:

Based on a survey of college students over the last three semesters, students understand that remotely attending a lecture via remote synchronous technology is less effective for them than attending in person, but they highly value the flexibility of this option of attending when they need it.

Future Prospects and Considerations for AR and VR in Higher Education Academic Technology — from er.educause.edu by Owen McGrath, Chris Hoffman and Shawna Dark
Imagining how the future might unfold, especially for emerging technologies like AR and VR, can help prepare for what does end up happening.

Black Community College Enrollment is Plummeting. How to Get Those Students Back — from the74million.org by Karen A. Stout & Francesca I. Carpenter
Stout & Carpenter: Schools need a new strategy to bolster access for learners of color who no longer see higher education as a viable pathway

As the Level Up coalition reports ,“the vast majority — 80% — of Black Americans believe that college is unaffordable.” This is not surprising given that Black families have fewer assets to pay for college and, as a result, incur significantly more student loan debt than their white or Latino peers. This is true even at the community college level. Only one-third of Black students are able to earn an associate degree without incurring debt.

Repairing Gen Ed | Colleges struggle to help students answer the question, ‘Why am I taking this class?’ — from chronicle.com by Beth McMurtrie
Students Are Disoriented by Gen Ed. So Colleges Are Trying to Fix It.

Excerpts:

Less than 30 percent of college graduates are working in a career closely related to their major, and the average worker has 12 jobs in their lifetime. That means, he says, that undergraduates must learn to be nimble and must build transferable skills. Why can’t those skills and ways of thinking be built into general education?
…
“Anyone paying attention to the nonacademic job market,” he writes, “will know that skills, rather than specific majors, are the predominant currency.”

Micro-credentials Survey. 2023 Trends and Insights. — from holoniq.com
HolonIQ’s 2023 global survey on micro-credentials

3 Keys to Making Microcredentials Valid for Learners, Schools, and Employers — from campustechnology.com by Dave McCool
To give credentials value in the workplace, the learning behind them must be sticky, visible, and scalable.

Positive Partnership: Creating Equity in Gateway Course Success — from insidehighered.com by Ashley Mowreader
The Gardner Institute’s Courses and Curricula in Urban Ecosystems initiative works alongside institutions to improve success in general education courses.

American faith in higher education is declining: one poll — from bryanalexander.org by Bryan Alexander

Excerpt:

The main takeaway is that our view of higher education’s value is souring. Fewer of us see post-secondary learning as worth the cost, and now a majority think college and university degrees are no longer worth it: “56% of Americans think earning a four-year degree is a bad bet compared with 42% who retain faith in the credential.”
…
Again, this is all about one question in one poll with a small n. But it points to directions higher ed and its national setting are headed in, and we should think hard about how to respond.

Brief reflections on “Colleges Race to Hire and Build Amid AI ‘Gold Rush’ [D’Agostino]

On 05/22/2023, in 21st century, adjunct faculty, Alternatives, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, business side of he, colleges, community colleges, culture, Daniel S. Christian, higher education, IT in HE, traditional / tradition, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Colleges Race to Hire and Build Amid AI ‘Gold Rush’ — from insidehighered.com Susan D’Agostino
Cue the bulldozers to make room for hordes of new AI faculty. But computer scientists willing to teach are in short supply, and innovation’s trajectory is rarely predictable.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

The University at Albany, part of the State University of New York, will hire 27 new faculty members—all specializing in AI—in the largest cluster hire in the institution’s history. Purdue University will recruit 50 new AI faculty. Emory University will hire between 60 and 75 new faculty members, including an endowed chair, for its AI Humanity Initiative.

When it comes to artificial intelligence, some universities are going big—very big. The University of Southern California has invested more than $1 billion in its AI initiative that will include 90 new faculty members, a new seven-story building and a new school.

From DSC:
Time will tell whether colleges and universities will be able to find and hire these folks. My guess? For the most part, no they won’t.

Such talent will likely go to deep-pocketed players, startups, and/or new alternatives to institutions of traditional higher education. The disparate salary levels, risk-averse nature, and overall culture of higher education may not be attractive to some of these individuals. Plus, the future of higher education is not looking as solid.

“Microcredentials Can Make a Huge Difference in Higher Education” [Riggs], education debt swells, + several other items re: HE

On 05/15/2023, in colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, economics, faculty, higher education, law schools, learning ecosystem, liberal arts, parents/guardians, policy, student-related, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Microcredentials Can Make a Huge Difference in Higher Education — from newthinking.com by Shannon Riggs
The Ecampus executive director of academic programs and learning innovation at Oregon State University believes that shorter form, low-cost courses can open up colleges to more people.

That so much student loan debt exists is a clear signal that higher education needs to innovate to reduce costs, increase access and improve students’ return on investment. Microcredentials are one way we can do this.

As the Supreme Court weighs Biden’s student loan forgiveness, education debt swells — from cnbc.com by Jessica Dickler

KEY POINTS

As the Supreme Court weighs President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan, college tuition keeps climbing.
This year’s incoming freshman class can expect to borrow as much as $37,000 to help cover the cost of a bachelor’s degree, according to a recent report.

College is only getting more expensive. Tuition and fees plus room and board at four-year, in-state public colleges rose more than 2% to $23,250, on average, in the 2022-23 academic year; at four-year private colleges, it increased by more than 3% to $53,430, according to the College Board, which tracks trends in college pricing and student aid.

Many students now borrow to cover the tab, which has already propelled collective student loan debt in the U.S. past $1.7 trillion.

Access, Outcomes, and Value: Envisioning the Future of Higher Education — from milkeninstitute.org with Jeff Selingo, Gene Block, Jim Gash, Eric Gertler, and Nicole Hurd

Leaders of colleges and universities face unprecedented challenges today. Tuition has more than doubled over the past two decades as state and federal funding has decreased. Renewed debates about affirmative action and legacy admissions are roiling many campuses and confusing students about what it takes to get accepted. Growing numbers of administrators are matched by declining student enrollment, placing new financial pressures on institutions of higher learning. And many prospective students and their parents are losing faith in the ROI of such an expensive investment and asking the simple question: Is it all worth it? Join distinguished leaders from public and private institutions for this panel discussion on how they are navigating these shifts and how they see the future of higher education.

What the New ‘U.S. News’ Law-School Rankings Reveal About the Rankings Enterprise — from chronicle.com by Francie Diep

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

This year’s lists also offer a hint of how widespread the rankings revolt was. Seventeen medical schools and 62 law schools — nearly a third of the law schools U.S. News ranks — didn’t turn in data to the magazine this year. (It’s not clear what nonparticipation rates have been in the past. Reached by email to request historical context, a spokesperson for U.S. News pointed to webpages that are no longer online. U.S. News ranked law and medical schools that didn’t cooperate this year by using publicly available and past survey data.)

Report: Many borrowers who could benefit from income-driven repayment don’t know about it — from highereddive.com by Laura Spitalniak

Dive Brief:

Student loan borrowers who would stand to benefit the most from income-driven repayment plans, or IDRs, are less likely to know about them, according to a new report from left-leaning think tank New America.
Around 2 in 5 student-debt holders earning less than $30,000 a year reported being unfamiliar with the repayment plans. Under a proposed plan from the U.S. Education Department, IDR minimum monthly loan payments for low-income earners, such as this group, could drop to $0.
Just under half of borrowers in default had not heard of IDRs, despite the plans offering a pathway to becoming current on their loans, the report said. Only one-third of currently defaulted borrowers had ever enrolled in IDR.

Addendum on 5/16/23:

Learning Ecosystems

Shocking, But Not Shocking [Hill]

“ChatGPT Prompts for Learner Motivation” [Hardman] + other AI/T&L items

How Financially Resilient Is Your College? [Bain]

It takes a village… Reflections on sustainable learning design [Mihai]

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