colleges

What a New Strategy at 2U Means for the Future of Online Higher Education — from edsurge.com by Phil Hill

Excerpt:

The acceleration is that 2U is going all in on the education platform strategy that started with the company’s acquisition of edX last year. The idea at the time was to rely on a flywheel effect, where edX can upsell to its tens of millions of registered learners taking free or low-cost online courses known as MOOCs, thus driving down the marketing costs required for the OPM business, while offering a spectrum of options—from free MOOCs to stackable certificates, to bootcamps and short courses, all the way to full degrees. The flywheel aspect is that the more the strategy succeeds, the more revenue is made by institutional partners and by the company, leading to more free courses and registered learners. It’s a self-reinforcing strategy that is the same one followed by Coursera.
.

3 in 5 higher education employees feel unheard at work, survey says [Spitalniak]

On 08/15/2022, in business side of he, career development, change, colleges, community colleges, higher education, IT in HE, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

3 in 5 higher education employees feel unheard at work, survey says — from highereddive.com by Laura Spitalniak

Excerpt from Dive Brief:

More than half of higher education employees, 59%, reported feeling unheard at work, according to a new survey from consultant Grant Thornton. Only 17% of respondents said they are actively looking for a new job, but 49% would consider a switch if a new opportunity presented itself.
Faculty and staff also expressed discontent about their pay and compensation. Just 37% said their pay allows them to live the lifestyle they choose. That’s compared to 46% of respondents from Grant Thornton’s cross-sector State of Work in America survey.

College Rankings Are ‘a Joke,’ Education Secretary Says [Hatch]

On 08/13/2022, in Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), business side of he, colleges, culture, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, higher education, ideas, innovation, IT in HE, leadership, society, strategy, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

College Rankings Are ‘a Joke,’ Education Secretary Says — from chronicle.com by Brianna Hatch

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Education Secretary Miguel A. Cardona called college rankings “a joke,” and took aim at selective colleges’ obsession with them, as he made a broader push on Thursday for closing stubborn equity gaps in the nation’s college-graduation rates.

“Many institutions spend enormous time and money chasing rankings they feel carry prestige, but in truth do little more than Xerox privilege,” Cardona said, attributing the phrase to the president of a historically Black college.

There’s a “whole science behind climbing up the rankings” that leads to misplaced priorities, Cardona said. The best-resourced colleges are playing a prestige game instead of centering “measures that truly count,” he said. “That system of ranking is a joke.”
…
Cardona called for a “culture change” in higher ed so that institutions would value inclusivity, use data to help students before they dropped out, and create more-accessible pathways for adult learners, rural students, and first-generation students.

“Let’s confer prestige on colleges’ breaking cycles of poverty. Let’s raise the profiles of institutions delivering real upward mobility, like all of you,” Cardona told attendees, echoing an essay he wrote for The Chronicle on Thursday. “Let’s turn the universities that walk the walk on equity into household names.”

From DSC:
The above item re: culture change caught my eye. Coming out of college, I didn’t think about the culture of an organization. It didn’t mean anything to me.

But as the years went by — and especially as I was working for Kraft Foods at the time when it got acquired by Philip Morris — I began understanding the power and influence of the culture of an organization. That power and influence could be positive and helpful or it could be negative and could stunt the growth of the organization.

I personally question whether many of the existing cultures within our colleges and universities have the ability to change. Time will tell. But the culture of places where I’ve worked had a (sometimes strong) distaste for the corporate world. They didn’t want to be called a “business.” I put that word business in quotes purposefully — as the term was spoken with disdain. The higher calling of higher education could not be considered a business…yeh right. Looking at things these last few years, one can certainly not claim that any longer.

The cultures of our traditional institutions of higher education may be the biggest challenge to their survival. Perhaps some tips in this article may help — though it has to go waaaaay beyond the IT Department.

How higher education lost its shine [Marcus]

On 08/13/2022, in business side of he, change, colleges, community colleges, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, faculty, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, leadership, learning ecosystem, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

How higher education lost its shine — from hechingerreport.org by Jon Marcus
Americans are rejecting college in record numbers, but the reasons may not be what you think

Excerpt:

“With the exception of wartime, the United States has never been through a period of declining educational attainment like this,” said Michael Hicks, director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at Ball State University’s Miller College of Business.

There has been a significant and steady drop nationwide in the proportion of high school graduates enrolling in college in the fall after they finish high school — from a high of 70 percent in 2016 to 63 percent in 2020, the most recent year for which the figure is available, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Myriad focus groups and public opinion surveys point to other reasons for the dramatic downward trend. These include widespread and fast-growing skepticism about the value of a degree, impatience with the time it takes to get one and costs that have finally exceeded many people’s ability or willingness to pay.

From DSC:
This again reminds me of my concerns captured in this graphic I created with Mr. Yohan Na back in 2009:
.

2022 CHLOE 7 Report (Changing Landscape of Online Education) — from qualitymatters.org

The seventh installment of the Changing Landscape of Online Education (CHLOE) report, produced by Quality MattersTM and Eduventures®, offers an overview of the current state of online learning in higher education as well as insights into its future development. The report was compiled by surveying chief online officers (COOs) at two- and four-year colleges and universities — the professionals best situated to assess the current state of this ever-developing field.

Also relevant/see:

Online Education Is Booming, but Colleges Risk Lapses in Quality, Report Says — from chronicle.com by Taylor Swaak

Excerpt:

A survey of more than 300 officials at American colleges shows many are planning for long-term growth in online education, but few are consistently evaluating the quality of their mushrooming course lists.

According to a newly released report on the survey’s findings — by the nonprofit group Quality Matters and Encoura’s Eduventures, a higher-education-market research firm — more than 90 percent of the “chief online officers” surveyed said they expect the typical traditional-age undergraduates on their campus would be taking courses in some kind of hybrid format by 2025. That’s a stark departure from just three years ago, before the pandemic, when 20 percent of such undergrads took hybrid courses.

Is Higher Ed Really Ready to Embrace Hybrid Learning? — from edsurge.com by Rebecca Koenig
New study shows colleges may need to hire more digital experts and better prepare students to learn online.

Excerpt:

The future of higher education will bring more hybrid learning models—but colleges may not yet have the staff and systems they need to scale up high-quality programs that blend in-person and online experiences.

So believe chief online officers at U.S. colleges, according to a new survey of more than 300 such leaders published today by Quality Matters and Encoura Eduventures Research. It’s the seventh edition of the Changing Landscape of Online Education (CHLOE) report.

A Best-Selling Textbook Is Now Free — from insidehighered.com by Liam Knox
A popular chemistry book’s jump from a publishing titan to an OER pioneer could be pivotal for the open access movement. For the author, it’s also a fitting tribute to his late son.

Excerpt:

John McMurry’s textbook Organic Chemistry has helped millions of students across the globe pass the infamous gauntlet of its namesake class — also known among stressed-out pre-med students as “orgo” — since the book was first printed in 1984.

For his bestseller’s 10th edition, McMurry has decided to part ways with his longtime publisher, the industry giant Cengage, which has published the book since the beginning. He recently sold the rights to OpenStax, a nonprofit based at Rice University that is dedicated to developing open education resources (OER), learning and research materials created and licensed to be free for the user.

From DSC:
From someone paying for a young adult to get through college, I hope this kind of thing happens more often! 🙂 But seriously, there are too many instances when students have been treated as cash cows, when we should have been bending over backward to help them get their educations.

For example, if I pay an invoice from our son’s university by credit card, I get a 3% charge — of the total invoice/$$ amount!!! — added to the bill. Are you kidding me? I have to pay several hundred dollars just for an electronic transaction?!

Can you imagine if the same thing happened to the rest of us at restaurants, hotels, grocery stores, etc. out there? Consumers would throw a fit! And I’d be right there with them.

Also related, see:

Millennials have money problems — from linkedin.com by Taylor Borden

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

The average millennial is $117,000 in debt, but don’t blame avocado toast. According to new research, more than 70% of millennials have some form of non-mortgage debt, typically linked to student loans and credit cards.

Too Broke to Finish a Ph.D. Program? Tell Us About It — from the chronicle.com by Fernanda Zamudio-Suarez

Excerpt:

Doctoral programs can be long, trying, and expensive — even cost-prohibitive, depending on your circumstances.

“Average Student Not on Track to Graduate in 5 Years” [Greenberg] + other items re: higher education

On 08/10/2022, in business side of he, career development, changing business models, colleges, community colleges, Daniel S. Christian, higher education, learning ecosystem, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Average Student Not on Track to Graduate in 5 Years — from insidehighered.com by Susan H. Greenberg

Excerpt:

The average full-time college student doesn’t even attempt to take enough credits to complete a bachelor’s degree within five years, according to a new Postsecondary Data Partnership Insights report by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

The report evaluated the credit-completion ratio—the ratio of credits earned to those attempted—and the credit-accumulation rate of more than 900,000 first-time students at 342 postsecondary institutions during the 2019–20 school year.

College students average less than 22 credits in their first year, too few to graduate on time — from highereddive.com by Rick Seltzer

(Excerpt from Dive Brief)

Barely over half of a group of first-time, full-time students — 51% — earned 24 or more credits in their first year of college, meaning most aren’t on track to graduate in four or even five years, according to research released Tuesday by the National Student Clearinghouse.
The average full-time student took classes worth under 27 credit hours and earned fewer than 22. Just 28% of students earned 30 hours of credit or more in their first year, which is the annual pace typically required to graduate on time from four-year bachelor’s programs.

More High School Students Are Taking College Classes. But Not Everyone Gets the Chance. — from edsurge.com by Rebecca Koenig
Can better pathways help schools, colleges and students avoid “random acts of dual enrollment”?

Excerpt:

Dual-enrollment programs help nearly 1.4 million high school students take college courses each year. It’s an opportunity that offers lots of proven benefits, like enabling more people to graduate from college, saving families money on higher education and helping community colleges attract more students during an era of falling enrollments. It’s even popular across the political spectrum.

But as dual enrollment grows across the country, access to the option is not distributed equally, according to a new report produced by nearly two dozen higher ed researchers and experts, with funding from the Joyce Foundation.

College is increasingly out of reach for many students. What went wrong? — from npr.org by Terry Gross; with thanks to EdSurge.com for this resource

Excerpt:

Journalist Will Bunch says instead of opening the door to a better life, college leaves many students deep in debt and unable to find well-paying jobs. His new book is After the Ivory Tower Falls.

What’s working in community college baccalaureate degree programs — from ccdaily.com by Tabitha Whissemore

Excerpt:

A growing number of community colleges are offering baccalaureate degree programs.

According to a national inventory published in 2021 by the Community College Baccalaureate Association (CCBA) and New America, there are nearly 570 community college baccalaureate (CCB) programs in the United States, operating at 148 community and technical colleges across 25 states. Most of the programs focus on healthcare or business, though newer programs also are being offered in computer and information sciences, and other STEM fields, as well as education.

It’s Time to End Higher Ed’s Gimmicky Sales Tactics — from chronicle.com by Barmak Nassirian
Teaming up with online program managers comes at a steep reputational cost.

Excerpt:

Initially trumpeted as an innovative model to expand access and drive down costs, the programs have seen a spate of recent media stories that paints a far less favorable picture: College-OPM partnerships are Faustian bargains that drive up tuition costs and reduce educational quality.

How did it come to this?

From DSC:
Though much of what Barmak is saying may be true, the gimmicks were going on long before OPM’s came into play. We should stop blaming everything on OPMs, or on the pandemic, or on online learning, or on this or that technology. The causes of higher education’s current issues go back a long way — such as approving standard/annual cost increases over the last several decades.

For students entering their first year at a college or a university: “24 Tips for Dorm Living” [custom-writing.org]

On 08/10/2022, in colleges, community colleges, higher education, ideas, parents/guardians, productivity / tips and tricks, student-related, surviving, universities, by Daniel Christian

24 Tips for Dorm Living — from custom-writing.org; with thanks to Julia Reed for this resource

Excerpt:

Dorms become like a second home to many students during their university experience. And while dorm life can mean making new friends and having exciting adventures, adjusting to new routines is not always easy. Since most students who come to the dorms have no prior experience living outside their parents’ homes, the reality of taking care of themselves and sharing space with strangers can be overwhelming.

Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean that dorm life has to be a total culture shock. This list of excellent tips compiled by Custom-Writing.org will help you settle in and make the most out of your student life.

Addendum on 8/13/22:

Lisa L. Lewis on the Sleep-Deprived Teen — from gettingsmart.com

Key Points

Middle and high school should start no earlier than 8:30 a.m. This is just one factor in the life of the sleep deprived teen, but it is a policy issue.
California will become the first state with a start school later policy.

Online Learning, From the Margins to the Center [Schroeder]

On 08/03/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Augmented Reality (AR), business side of he, change, changing business models, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, education technology, educational games / serious games, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, face-to-face, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, Holographic comms, ideas, immersion, innovation, instructional design, interaction design, IT in HE, law schools, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, learning spaces, Metaverse, Mixed Reality (MR), online learning, society, teaching & learning, trends, United States, universities, user experience (UX), virtual field trips, virtual K-12 schools, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, virtual tutoring, wearables, web-based collaboration, Web3, XR - extended reality, by Daniel Christian

Online Learning, From the Margins to the Center — from insidehighered.com by Ray Schroeder
Online learning has evolved over the past 25 years from a niche position on the margins of higher ed to the leading driver of growth in enrollment and innovation.

Excerpt:

Online learning has grown from a marginal niche of higher ed to the largest provider of postsecondary learning in the world. We are now on the cusp of yet another technological evolution in the delivery of online learning. The advent of the metaverse in higher education is closer than many casual observers may think. By 2025, we will begin to see significant numbers of offerings using avatars and immersive technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality and extended reality engaging learners at a distance.

Do you have developmental immersion laboratories for your faculty and staff to prepare for 2025? Who at your university is advocating for the integration of VR, AR and XR into online delivery? Are you already collaborating with industry and business in developing the most effective and relevant technology-enhanced online programs that will meet their needs? Those who lead in these ventures will set the standards and gain the recruiting advantage in higher education.

Two Years After Promising a ‘Transformational’ Partnership, the U. of Arizona and Zovio Part Ways [Bauman]

On 08/03/2022, in business side of he, change, changing business models, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, distance education, global / globalization, higher education, learning ecosystem, online learning, United States, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Two Years After Promising a ‘Transformational’ Partnership, the U. of Arizona and Zovio Part Ways — from chronicle.com by Dan Bauman

Excerpt:

The University of Arizona Global Campus announced on Monday it would take over management of its online education programs from Zovio Inc. — the same company that two years earlier transferred its for-profit college holdings to the University of Arizona in what was touted then as a “transformational” agreement.

The news marks a precipitous end for the original deal, Arizona acquired Zovio’s Ashford University in 2020 and created the University of Arizona Global Campus, a nonprofit organization affiliated with the traditional public university.

The article links to “An Open Letter from Paul Pastorek” (President of the University of Arizona Global Campus) — from uagc.edu

Excerpt:

As an institution, this new chapter reflects our belief that our mission demands that the governance and control of critical functions, in particular enrollment, marketing, student advising, and financial aid, rest exclusively with UAGC leadership. It is grounded in a conviction that outsourcing such functions is inherently at odds with our aspirations and desired outcomes. Placing all of our services under one roof, we believe, will increase efficiency, reduce costs, and is a necessary precondition to making good on our commitments to our students.

Impatient for workers, businesses help students take college shortcuts — from hechingerreport.org by Lilah Burke
Employers and states are adding faster-paced skills training for people who want to forgo college

Excerpt:

It’s part of an accelerating movement of noncredit, short-term training programs, not just in technology, but in many fields for which students are impatient for jobs and employers for workers who want to leapfrog their way to careers — and do it without necessarily spending the years and money it takes to earn a university degree.

These are among the ways “employers are creating the solutions they need in order to deal with their talent demands,” said Bridgette Gray, chief customer officer at Opportunity@Work, a nonprofit that encourages employers to hire more people without degrees.

Now some companies, motivated by a mix of corporate social responsibility and the need for talent, are edging toward a new model in which they create their own, or hire from other, training programs.

2U announces layoffs and new approach to tuition-share agreements [Schwartz]

On 07/30/2022, in business side of he, change, changing business models, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, higher education, learning ecosystem, new business models, online learning, United States, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

2U announces layoffs and new approach to tuition-share agreements — from highereddive.com by Natalie Schwartz
The online program manager expects the restructuring will lead to about $70 million in annual cost savings.

Excerpt:

2U announced across-the-board layoffs and changes to its business strategy on Thursday, as it reorients the company around edX, a prominent MOOC platform it acquired last year.
…
2U officials announced the company is updating this part of the business model, saying it will offer tuition-share agreements starting at 35% of a program’s revenue — with higher rates available to colleges that want more services.

4 Institutional Effectiveness Indicators to Watch [Neill]

On 07/29/2022, in business side of he, colleges, community colleges, funding / grants, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, organizational change, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

4 Institutional Effectiveness Indicators to Watch — from campustechnology.com by Jack Neill
Is your college or university on track to achieve its strategic goals? Taking the pulse of these four areas can identify problems that need attention or successes moving the institution forward.

Future-proofing higher ed means knowing what’s coming and not waiting to enact a plan. In terms of what’s coming, we know advancements in technology, changing accreditation requirements, student demand, and employer-led education and job training (to name a few examples) are quickly changing the nature of how we learn and how we work. When it comes to future planning, embracing the new era of Institutional Effectiveness is the way forward.

Excerpt:

Like many things in life, Institutional Effectiveness is easier to define than it is to implement. But now we can’t deny the urgency for institutions to get these next steps right when it comes to executing their short-term and long-term strategic plans. Institutional change can take a long time, and while a holistic approach is encouraged, it’s usually not feasible (or recommended) to try to tackle everything all at once. Therefore, it’s important to recognize which areas require immediate attention in order to successfully steer the college or university in the right direction.

Here are four key indicators to watch, and how to determine if your institution is on the right track:

Online education’s reputation jumps, survey says [Seltzer]

On 07/29/2022, in adjunct faculty, colleges, community colleges, education technology, faculty, higher education, online learning, teaching & learning, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Online education’s reputation jumps, survey says — from highereddive.com by Rick Seltzer

Excerpt from “Dive Brief:”

Almost half of adults in the U.S., 47%, think online education is of roughly the same quality as in-person instruction, increasing sharply from about a third who said the same last year, according to survey data released Tuesday by left-leaning think tank New America.
But four out of five respondents said online education should cost less than in-person instruction, the survey found. More generally, people are almost evenly divided over whether students can get affordable, high-quality education after high school.

Americans’ Confidence in Higher Ed Drops Sharply [Fischer]

On 07/27/2022, in career development, change, colleges, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, leadership, learning ecosystem, trends, United States, universities, user experience (UX), by Daniel Christian

Americans’ Confidence in Higher Ed Drops Sharply — from chronicle.com by Karin Fischer

Excerpt:

Public confidence in higher education’s ability to lead America in a positive direction has sunk steeply in recent years, falling 14 percentage points just since 2020.

Two years ago, more than two-thirds of Americans said colleges were having a positive effect on the country, according to a survey conducted by New America. In the most recent version of the survey, released Tuesday, barely half agreed.

.

Another resource from Goldie Blumenstyk from The Chronicle (emphasis DSC):

I’m Goldie Blumenstyk, a senior writer at The Chronicle covering innovation in and around higher ed. This week I report some early details on how a new $800-million nonprofit is shaping its strategy to improve online learning. I also share some thoughts on how colleges should treat climate change and some hopeful signs in recent public-opinion polling on higher ed.
.
Hey, can you do me a favor? If you know others who might also enjoy The Edge, please share this sign-up link with them so they can get it free in their inbox every week, too.

Learning Ecosystems

What a New Strategy at 2U Means for the Future of Online Higher Education [Hill]

3 in 5 higher education employees feel unheard at work, survey says [Spitalniak]

College Rankings Are ‘a Joke,’ Education Secretary Says [Hatch]

How higher education lost its shine [Marcus]

“Average Student Not on Track to Graduate in 5 Years” [Greenberg] + other items re: higher education

Online Learning, From the Margins to the Center [Schroeder]

Two Years After Promising a ‘Transformational’ Partnership, the U. of Arizona and Zovio Part Ways [Bauman]

Impatient for workers, businesses help students take college shortcuts [Burke]

2U announces layoffs and new approach to tuition-share agreements [Schwartz]

4 Institutional Effectiveness Indicators to Watch [Neill]

Online education’s reputation jumps, survey says [Seltzer]

Americans’ Confidence in Higher Ed Drops Sharply [Fischer]

Categories

Tags