IT in HE

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.

Introducing Teach AI — Empowering educators to teach w/ AI & about AI [ISTE & many others]

On 05/09/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adjunct faculty, Amazon, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, change, collaboration, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, computer science, content development, aggregation, repositories, copyright/ownership/NFTs, corporate universities / corporate training, digital learning, education, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, faculty, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, global / globalization, heutagogy, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, leadership, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, learning theories, library / librarians, lifelong learning, Microsoft, more voice more choice more control, online media, online tutoring, open courseware and systems, personalized/customized learning, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, programming, research, skills, society, strategy, student teaching/teacher education, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, the downsides of how people use tech, tools, training / L&D, trends, United States, universities, vendors, virtual tutoring, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, workplace, youth, by Daniel Christian

Also relevant/see:

Accessibility Do’s and Don’ts for Website Navigation [boia.org]

On 05/03/2023, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), business, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, IT in HE, training / L&D, United States, universities, usability, vendors, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

Accessibility Do’s and Don’ts for Website Navigation — from boia.org

Excerpt:

If people can’t navigate your website, they can’t use it — and you miss an opportunity to connect with your audience.

Navigation controls can present a significant barrier to people with disabilities, making it difficult for them to find and interact with the content they need.

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) includes a list of success criteria to ensure that navigation controls are operable (they don’t require interactions that a user can’t perform). These criteria are put in place to assist users with a wide variety of abilities, including individuals who use assistive technologies (AT).

If you’re new to web accessibility, WCAG’s requirements may seem overwhelming. Fortunately, they’re based on simple principles — and by understanding a few basic concepts, you can avoid common mistakes.

Also relevant/see:

Assistive Technology: What’s an “Alternative Input Device?” — from boia.org

Examples:

Eye-Tracking Systems
Sip-and-Puff Systems
Head Mouse
Modified Keyboards
Joysticks

The GPT-4 Browser That Will Change Your Search Game — from noise.beehiiv.com by Alex Banks
Why Microsoft Has The ‘Edge’ On Google

Excerpts:

Microsoft has launched a GPT-4 enhanced Edge browser.

By integrating OpenAI’s GPT-4 technology with Microsoft Edge, you can now use ChatGPT as a copilot in your Bing browser. This delivers superior search results, generates content, and can even transform your copywriting skills (read on to find out how).

Benefits mentioned include: Better Search, Complete Answers, and Creative Spark.

The new interactive chat feature means you can get the complete answer you are looking for by refining your search by asking for more details, clarity, and ideas.

From DSC:
I have to say that since the late 90’s, I haven’t been a big fan of web browsers from Microsoft. (I don’t like how Microsoft unfairly buried Netscape Navigator and the folks who had out-innovated them during that time.) As such, I don’t use Edge so I can’t fully comment on the above article.

But I do have to say that this is the type of thing that may make me reevaluate my stance regarding Microsoft’s browsers. Integrating GPT-4 into their search/chat functionalities seems like it would be a very solid, strategic move — at least as of late April 2023.

Speaking of new items coming from Microsoft, also see:

Microsoft makes its AI-powered Designer tool available in preview — from techcrunch.com by Kyle Wiggers

Excerpts:

[On 4/27/23], Microsoft Designer, Microsoft’s AI-powered design tool, launched in public preview with an expanded set of features.

Announced in October, Designer is a Canva-like web app that can generate designs for presentations, posters, digital postcards, invitations, graphics and more to share on social media and other channels. It leverages user-created content and DALL-E 2, OpenAI’s text-to-image AI, to ideate designs, with drop-downs and text boxes for further customization and personalization.
…
Designer will remain free during the preview period, Microsoft says — it’s available via the Designer website and in Microsoft’s Edge browser through the sidebar. Once the Designer app is generally available, it’ll be included in Microsoft 365 Personal and Family subscriptions and have “some” functionality free to use for non-subscribers, though Microsoft didn’t elaborate.

Tech Titans: The crossroads of humanity and technology [Nadhan] + item from Mary Grush

On 04/14/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, colleges, community colleges, global / globalization, higher education, IT in HE, society, sociology, telecommunications, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Tech Titans: The crossroads of humanity and technology — from enterprisersproject.com by E.G. Nadhan
This year’s panel of IT leaders discusses the ongoing problem of equitable access to technology for underserved communities

Excerpts:

Can technology be a catalyst to improve the quality of life in these communities and, thus, resist the status quo?

“You cannot escape technology – tech is intertwined no matter what we do; it has become a utility like water, heat, and electricity. Not having access to technology can be detrimental to having access to the essentials of daily life. We need to work together to ensure that everyone – especially the underserved and disenfranchised communities – have access to technology.”

Also relevant/see:

Anywhere Learning Happens: The eduroam Global WiFi Access Service — from campustechnology.com by Mary Grush
A conversation with eduroam community leaders Saira Hasnain and Brett Bieber

Steadily, eduroam is reaching toward ubiquity, and that’s one big factor that will ultimately allow it to continue to expand services to users all around the globe.
…
Impressively, in 2022, eduroam logged more than 6.4 billion individual authentications around the globe.

The future of education in a world of AI — from oneusefulthing.org by Ethan Mollick
A positive vision for the transformation to come

Excerpt:

Imagine introducing high-quality AI tutors into the flipped classroom model. These AI-powered systems have the potential to significantly enhance the learning experience for students and make flipped classrooms even more effective. They provide personalized learning, where AI tutors can tailor instruction to each student’s unique needs while continually adjusting content based on performance. This means that students can engage with the content at home more effectively, ensuring they come to class better prepared and ready to dive into hands-on activities or discussions.

With AI tutors taking care of some of the content delivery outside of class, teachers can devote more time to fostering meaningful interactions with their students during class. They can also use insights from the AI tutors to identify areas where students might need extra support or guidance, enabling them to provide more personalized and effective instruction. And with AI assistance, they can design better active learning opportunities in class to make sure learnings stick.

Also relevant/see:

ChatGPT is going to change education, not destroy it — from technologyreview.com by Will Douglas Heaven
The narrative around cheating students doesn’t tell the whole story. Meet the teachers who think generative AI could actually make learning better.

Advanced chatbots could be used as powerful classroom aids that make lessons more interactive, teach students media literacy, generate personalized lesson plans, save teachers time on admin, and more.

Will ChatGPT Change How Professors Assess Learning? — from chronicle.com by Becky Supiano
It won’t be easy without their colleges’ support.

What the Past Can Teach Us About the Future of AI and Education — from campustechnology.com by Dr. David Wiley
Current attitudes toward generative AI hearken back to early skepticism about the impact of the internet on education. Both then and now, technology has created challenges but also opportunities that can’t be ignored.

How Easy Is It/Will It Be to Use AI to Design a Course? [Boston]

On 04/12/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, CMS/LMS, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, digital learning, elearning, emerging technologies, experimentation, future, game-changing environment, higher education, ideas, innovation, instructional design, interaction design, interactivity, IT in HE, law schools, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, microlearning, multimedia, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, teaching & learning, tools, traditional / tradition, United States, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

How Easy Is It/Will It Be to Use AI to Design a Course? — from wallyboston.com by Wally Boston

Excerpt:

Last week I received a text message from a friend to check out a March 29^th Campus Technology article about French AI startup, Nolej. Nolej (pronounced “Knowledge”) has developed an OpenAI-based instructional content generator for educators called NolejAI.

Access to NolejAI is through a browser. Users can upload video, audio, text documents, or a website url. NolejAI will generate an interactive micro-learning package which is a standalone digital lesson including content transcript, summaries, a glossary of terms, flashcards, and quizzes. All the lesson materials generated is based upon the uploaded materials.

From DSC:
I wonder if this will turn out to be the case:

I am sure it’s only a matter of time before NolejAI or another product becomes capable of generating a standard three credit hour college course. Whether that is six months or two years, it’s likely sooner than we think.

Also relevant/see:

The Ultimate 100 AI Tools

Major announcements from a key vendor in the AI space — NVIDIA

On 03/21/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, 3D, A/V -- audio/visual, art, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, business, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, collaboration, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, creativity, design, emerging technologies, engineering, entrepreneurship, Facebook / Meta Platforms, future, game-changing environment, generational differences, Holographic comms, human-computer interaction (HCI), immersion, innovation, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, languages and translation, media/film, Metaverse, multimedia, Natural Language Processing (NLP), new business models, NVIDIA, online media, pace of change, personalized/customized learning, platforms, society, technology (general), tools, United States, user experience (UX), vendors, Virtual courts and law firms, virtual field trips, virtual K-12 schools, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, virtual tutoring, vision/possibilities, visualizing information, web-based collaboration, Web3, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Explore Breakthroughs in AI, Accelerated Computing, and Beyond at GTC — from nvidia.com
The Conference for the Era of AI and the Metaverse

Addendums on 3/22/23:

Generative AI for Enterprises — from nvidia.com
Custom-built for a new era of innovation and automation.

Excerpt:

Impacting virtually every industry, generative AI unlocks a new frontier of opportunities—for knowledge and creative workers—to solve today’s most important challenges. NVIDIA is powering generative AI through an impressive suite of cloud services, pre-trained foundation models, as well as cutting-edge frameworks, optimized inference engines, and APIs to bring intelligence to your enterprise applications.

NVIDIA AI Foundations is a set of cloud services that advance enterprise-level generative AI and enable customization across use cases in areas such as text (NVIDIA NeMo™), visual content (NVIDIA Picasso), and biology (NVIDIA BioNeMo™). Unleash the full potential with NeMo, Picasso, and BioNeMo cloud services, powered by NVIDIA DGX™ Cloud—the AI supercomputer.

ChatGPT as a teaching tool, not a cheating tool [Rose]

On 03/14/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adjunct faculty, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, colleges, digital learning, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, faculty, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, IT in HE, law schools, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, liberal arts, pedagogy, personalized/customized learning, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, teaching & learning, tools, UK, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

ChatGPT as a teaching tool, not a cheating tool — from timeshighereducation.com by Jennifer Rose
How to use ChatGPT as a tool to spur students’ inner feedback and thus aid their learning and skills development

Excerpt:

Use ChatGPT to spur student’s inner feedback
One way that ChatGPT answers can be used in class is by asking students to compare what they have written with a ChatGPT answer. This draws on David Nicol’s work on making inner feedback explicit and using comparative judgement. His work demonstrates that in writing down answers to comparative questions students can produce high-quality feedback for themselves which is instant and actionable. Applying this to a ChatGPT answer, the following questions could be used:

Which is better, the ChatGPT response or yours? Why?
What two points can you learn from the ChatGPT response that will help you improve your work?
What can you add from your answer to improve the ChatGPT answer?
How could the assignment question set be improved to allow the student to demonstrate higher-order skills such as critical thinking?
How can you use what you have learned to stay ahead of AI and produce higher-quality work than ChatGPT?

Love it or hate it, academics can’t ignore the already pervasive technology. [McMurtrie]

On 03/11/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adjunct faculty, change, colleges, community colleges, digital learning, disruption, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, faculty, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, lifelong learning, online media, online tutoring, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, student-related, teaching & learning, tools, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

ChatGPT is Everywhere — from chronicle.com by Beth McMurtrie
Love it or hate it, academics can’t ignore the already pervasive technology.

Excerpt:

Many academics see these tools as a danger to authentic learning, fearing that students will take shortcuts to avoid the difficulty of coming up with original ideas, organizing their thoughts, or demonstrating their knowledge. Ask ChatGPT to write a few paragraphs, for example, on how Jean Piaget’s theories on childhood development apply to our age of anxiety and it can do that.

Other professors are enthusiastic, or at least intrigued, by the possibility of incorporating generative AI into academic life. Those same tools can help students — and professors — brainstorm, kick-start an essay, explain a confusing idea, and smooth out awkward first drafts. Equally important, these faculty members argue, is their responsibility to prepare students for a world in which these technologies will be incorporated into everyday life, helping to produce everything from a professional email to a legal contract.

“Artificial-intelligence tools present the greatest creative disruption to learning that we’ve seen in my lifetime.”

Sarah Eaton, associate professor of education at the University of Calgary

6 Tenets of Postplagiarism: Writing in the Age of #ArtificialIntelligence – In my 2021 book, #Plagiarism in #HigherEducation, I introduce the idea of life in the post-plagiarism era. Here I expand on those ideas.https://t.co/DGzelD9phc pic.twitter.com/hHej4e55zq

— Dr. Sarah Elaine Eaton?? (@DrSarahEaton) February 25, 2023

Artificial intelligence and academic integrity, post-plagiarism — from universityworldnews.com Sarah Elaine Eaton; with thanks to Robert Gibson out on LinkedIn for the resource

Excerpt:

The use of artificial intelligence tools does not automatically constitute academic dishonesty. It depends how the tools are used. For example, apps such as ChatGPT can be used to help reluctant writers generate a rough draft that they can then revise and update.

Used in this way, the technology can help students learn. The text can also be used to help students learn the skills of fact-checking and critical thinking, since the outputs from ChatGPT often contain factual errors.

When students use tools or other people to complete homework on their behalf, that is considered a form of academic dishonesty because the students are no longer learning the material themselves. The key point is that it is the students, and not the technology, that is to blame when students choose to have someone – or something – do their homework for them.

There is a difference between using technology to help students learn or to help them cheat. The same technology can be used for both purposes.

From DSC:
These couple of sentences…

In the age of post-plagiarism, humans use artificial intelligence apps to enhance and elevate creative outputs as a normal part of everyday life. We will soon be unable to detect where the human written text ends and where the robot writing begins, as the outputs of both become intertwined and indistinguishable.

…reminded me of what’s been happening within the filmmaking world for years (i.e., such as in Star Wars, Jurrasic Park, and many others). It’s often hard to tell what’s real and what’s been generated by a computer.

Using AI to help students with advising, registration, and career development [Christian] + several other items related to AI

On 03/02/2023, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, education technology, emerging technologies, entrepreneurship, experimentation, game-changing environment, generational differences, graphics, human-computer interaction (HCI), innovation, instructional design, IT in HE, languages and translation, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning spaces, machine-to-machine communications, Natural Language Processing (NLP), smart classrooms, smart/connected TV, vendors, vision/possibilities, voice recognition / voice enabled interfaces, by Daniel Christian

DC: Perhaps we’ll get to a point where AI can help here. (Perhaps we’re already there…?) https://t.co/kRguHmXw42

— Daniel Christian (he/him/his) (@dchristian5) March 1, 2023

Speaking of AI-related items, also see:

OpenAI just released both Whisper and ChatGPT as APIs!

Among the 3 infinity stones to make voice assistants great again, we’ve got 2 on the cloud now.https://t.co/boAP0yOK9p https://t.co/rkWGu5wGbP

— Jim Fan (@DrJimFan) March 1, 2023

OpenAI debuts Whisper API for speech-to-text transcription and translation — from techcrunch.com by Kyle Wiggers

Excerpt:

To coincide with the rollout of the ChatGPT API, OpenAI today launched the Whisper API, a hosted version of the open source Whisper speech-to-text model that the company released in September.

Priced at $0.006 per minute, Whisper is an automatic speech recognition system that OpenAI claims enables “robust” transcription in multiple languages as well as translation from those languages into English. It takes files in a variety of formats, including M4A, MP3, MP4, MPEG, MPGA, WAV and WEBM.

Introducing ChatGPT and Whisper APIs — from openai.com
Developers can now integrate ChatGPT and Whisper models into their apps and products through our API.

Excerpt:

ChatGPT and Whisper models are now available on our API, giving developers access to cutting-edge language (not just chat!) and speech-to-text capabilities.

Love this! Assigning collaborative annotation can help students engage with texts and the writing process and help prevent ChatGPT misuse. We can also invite students to critically annotate ChatGPT outputs. #ChatGPTedu #AItextedu #AIED #socialannotation https://t.co/wh2OkrAvL7

— Anna Mills, amills@mastodon.oeru.org, she/her (@EnglishOER) February 28, 2023

Everything you wanted to know about AI – but were afraid to ask — from theguardian.com by Dan Milmo and Alex Hern
From chatbots to deepfakes, here is the lowdown on the current state of artificial intelligence

Excerpt:

Barely a day goes by without some new story about AI, or artificial intelligence. The excitement about it is palpable – the possibilities, some say, are endless. Fears about it are spreading fast, too.

There can be much assumed knowledge and understanding about AI, which can be bewildering for people who have not followed every twist and turn of the debate.

So, the Guardian’s technology editors, Dan Milmo and Alex Hern, are going back to basics – answering the questions that millions of readers may have been too afraid to ask.

Nvidia CEO: “We’re going to accelerate AI by another million times” — from
In a recent earnings call, the boss of Nvidia Corporation, Jensen Huang, outlined his company’s achievements over the last 10 years and predicted what might be possible in the next decade.

Excerpt:

Fast forward to today, and CEO Jensen Huang is optimistic that the recent momentum in AI can be sustained into at least the next decade. During the company’s latest earnings call, he explained that Nvidia’s GPUs had boosted AI processing by a factor of one million in the last 10 years.

“Moore’s Law, in its best days, would have delivered 100x in a decade. By coming up with new processors, new systems, new interconnects, new frameworks and algorithms and working with data scientists, AI researchers on new models – across that entire span – we’ve made large language model processing a million times faster,” Huang said.

From DSC:
NVIDA is the inventor of the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), which creates interactive graphics on laptops, workstations, mobile devices, notebooks, PCs, and more. They are a dominant supplier of artificial intelligence hardware and software.

AI starter tools for video content creation — from techthatmatters.beehiiv.com by Harsh Makadia

Excerpt:

One of the most exciting applications of AI is in the realm of content creation. What if I told you there are tools to generate videos in mins?

Try these tools today:

Supercreator AI: Create short form videos 10x faster
Lumen5: Automatically turn blog posts into videos
InVideo: Idea to YouTube video
Synthesia: Create videos from plain text in minutes
Narakeet: Get a professionally sounding audio or video in minutes
Movio: Create engaging video content

Podcast Special: Using Generative AI in Education — from drphilippahardman.substack.com by Dr. Philippa Hardman
An exploration of the risks and benefits of Generative AI in education, in conversation with Mike Palmer

Excerpt:

Among other things, we discussed:

The immediate challenges that Generative AI presents for learning designers, educators and students.
The benefits & opportunities that Generative AI might offer the world of education, both in terms of productivity and pedagogy.
How bringing together the world of AI and the world of learning science, we might revolutionise the way we design and deliver learning experiences.

Speaking of podcasts, this article lists some podcasts to check out for those working in — or interested in — higher education.

Also relevant/see:

Teachers: Treat ChatGPT as Your Assistant, Not Your Enemy — from by Maria Andersen

Also relevant/see:

Are librarians the next prompt engineers? — from linkedin.com by Laura Solomon

Excerpt:

Without the right prompt, AI fails to provide what someone might be looking for. This probably is a surprise to no one, especially librarians. If you remember the days before Google, you know exactly how this tended to play out. Google became dominant in large part to its inherent ability to accept natural language queries.
A small industry is now popping up to provide people with the correct, detailed prompts to get what they want when interacting with AI. The people doing this work are referred to as “prompt engineers.”
Prompt engineers aren’t just people who write queries to be directed to an AI. They also have tend to have a great deal of technical expertise and a deep understanding of how artificial intelligences and natural language can intersect.
Prompt engineers don’t work for free.

The above item links to The Most Important Job Skill of This Century — from theatlantic.com by Charlie Warzel
Your work future could depend on how well you can talk to AI.

Also relevant/see:

My class required AI. Here’s what I’ve learned so far. — from oneusefulthing.substack.com by Ethan Mollick
(Spoiler alert: it has been very successful, but there are some lessons to be learned)

Excerpt:

I fully embraced AI for my classes this semester, requiring students to use AI tools in a number of ways. This policy attracted a lot of interest, and I thought it worthwhile to reflect on how it is going so far. The short answer is: great! But I have learned some early lessons that I think are worth passing on.

AI is everywhere already
Even if I didn’t embrace AI, it is also clear that AI is now everywhere in classes. For example, students used it to help them come up with ideas for class projects, even before I even taught them how to do that. As a result, the projects this semester are much better than previous pre-AI classes. This has led to greater project success rates and more engaged teams. On the downside, I find students also raise their hands to ask questions less. I suspect this might be because, as one of them told me, they can later ask ChatGPT to explain things they didn’t get without needing to speak in front of the class. The world of teaching is now more complicated in ways that are exciting, as well as a bit unnerving.

Why Educators And Employers Must Come Together To Cross The Skills Gap [Perna]

On 02/10/2023, in business, career development, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, education, higher education, ideas, IT in HE, K-12 related, learning ecosystem, United States, vision/possibilities, vocational / trades, workplace, youth, by Daniel Christian

Why Educators And Employers Must Come Together To Cross The Skills Gap — from forbes.com by Mark C. Perna

Excerpts:

Beyond the IT sector, skills gaps also exist in other areas of the economy, such as manufacturing and retail. There is a shortage of workers in the skilled trades industries, for example, which is growing more acute every year.

The other major factor in the growth of the skills gap is the aging of the Boomer generation, who are exiting the workforce—leaving open highly-skilled jobs that members of younger generations have not had the time or training to fill.

By 2030, forecasts predict that all Boomers will have left the job market—leaving some 85 million open jobs, according to a Korn Ferry study on the Global Talent Crunch. The cost? A projected $8.5 trillion in lost revenue.

Put another way, schools and employers need to team up in new ways to help provide access to members of the younger generation to gain the kinds of skills that make the skills gap a thing of the past. We need to connect the dots between school and work, because far too many people are getting lost in the middle.

And on a somewhat relevant note, also see:

General Assembly Launches Apprenticeship Solution to Help Employers Source, Deploy, and Retain Hard-to-Find Tech Talent — from finance.yahoo.com; via Paul Fain

Excerpt:

NEW YORK, Feb. 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — General Assembly (GA) today announced the launch of GA Apprenticeships, Powered by Interapt, a tech apprenticeship solution designed to fast-track high-potential, overlooked talent into careers in software engineering, data, and cybersecurity. In light of growing labor market challenges and ongoing skill shortages across a range of industries, this new model will provide employers with a derisked opportunity to onboard entry-level tech talent while also enabling apprentices to earn a salary as they learn alongside senior-level developers.

See Workers as Workers, Not as a College Credential — an opinion item out at nytimes.com (paywall)

In one of the richest nations on earth, the path to prosperity has narrowed significantly in recent decades — especially for those without a college education. More than 62 percent of Americans ages 25 and up do not hold bachelor’s degrees, and the earnings gapbetween those with a college education and those without one has never been wider.

Virtual Exam Case Primes Privacy Fight Over College Room Scans [Witley]

On 01/31/2023, in assessment, colleges, community colleges, education technology, higher education, instructional design, IT in HE, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, policy, tools, United States, universities, vendors, videoconferencing, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

Virtual Exam Case Primes Privacy Fight Over College Room Scans — from news.bloomberglaw.com by Skye Witley

Cleveland State case centers on remote proctoring software
Fourth Amendment protections in question before Sixth Circuit

Excerpt:

A legal dispute over a university’s use of exam proctoring software that allegedly scanned students’ rooms is set to shape the scope of Fourth Amendment and privacy protections for online college tests.

Cleveland State University last week asked a federal appeals court in Cincinnati to review a district court finding that the “room scans” were unconstitutional searches. The case could influence how other students litigate their privacy rights and change how universities virtually monitor their students during exams, attorneys said.

Learning Ecosystems

Accessibility Do’s and Don’ts for Website Navigation [boia.org]

Tech Titans: The crossroads of humanity and technology [Nadhan] + item from Mary Grush

Virtual Exam Case Primes Privacy Fight Over College Room Scans [Witley]

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