legislatures / government / legal

Digital life in 2025 [PewResearch; Anderson & Rainie]

On 03/15/2014, in 21st century, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, Augmented Reality (AR), digital learning, elearning, emerging technologies, future, global / globalization, internet, leadership, learning ecosystem, legislatures / government / legal, political science, robotics, society, by Daniel Christian

Digital life in 2025 — from by Janna Anderson and Lee Rainie
Experts predict the Internet will become ‘like electricity’ — less visible, yet more deeply embedded in people’s lives for good and ill

Report here.

Excerpts from report:

One striking pattern is that these experts agree to a large extent on the trends that will shape digital technology in the next decade. Among those expected to extend through 2025 are:

A global, immersive, invisible, ambient networked computing environment built through the continued proliferation of smart sensors, cameras, software, databases, and massive data center s in a world-spanning information fabric known as the Internet of Things.
“Augmented reality” enhancements to the real-world input that people perceive through the use of portable/wearable/implantable technologies.
A continuing evolution of artificial intelligence-equipped tools allowing anyone to connect to a globe-spanning information network nearly anywhere, anytime.
Disruption of business models established in the 20th century (most notably impacting finance, entertainment, publishers of all sorts, and education).
Tagging, databasing, and intelligent analytical mapping of the physical and social realms

Also see:

The Rise of the Digital Silhouette — from shift2future.com by Brian Kuhn
Excerpt:
Switching gears for a moment… there are some significant benefits to education systems in the ‘Internet of things’ movement. Imagine that students, wearing various data logging technologies, including Google Glasses, interacting with each other, with ‘text books’, human teachers, each other, and other learning resources, along with a host of educational apps, are continuously digitally documented. Imagine that there are ‘intelligent’ algorithms (think IBM’s Watson but even more advanced) that look for patterns, provide real-time recommendations and coaching that adjust the student’s personalized learning plan, directly interacting with and advising the students like a personal learning coach. Imagine that when a report card is due, the student’s ‘digital learning guide’ automatically produces a summative report card complete with a ‘live’ info graphic on the student’s learning and generates it directly in the student’s online learning portfolio and sends an alert to the parents.

Technology and jobs: Coming to an office near you
The effect of today’s technology on tomorrow’s jobs will be immense—and no country is ready for it — from economist.com by

Excerpts:

INNOVATION, the elixir of progress, has always cost people their jobs. In the Industrial Revolution artisan weavers were swept aside by the mechanical loom. Over the past 30 years the digital revolution has displaced many of the mid-skill jobs that underpinned 20th-century middle-class life. Typists, ticket agents, bank tellers and many production-line jobs have been dispensed with, just as the weavers were.

…

No time to be timid
If this analysis is halfway correct, the social effects will be huge. Many of the jobs most at risk are lower down the ladder (logistics, haulage), whereas the skills that are least vulnerable to automation (creativity, managerial expertise) tend to be higher up, so median wages are likely to remain stagnant for some time and income gaps are likely to widen.

Anger about rising inequality is bound to grow, but politicians will find it hard to address the problem. Shunning progress would be as futile now as the Luddites’ protests against mechanised looms were in the 1810s, because any country that tried to stop would be left behind by competitors eager to embrace new technology. The freedom to raise taxes on the rich to punitive levels will be similarly constrained by the mobility of capital and highly skilled labour.

The main way in which governments can help their people through this dislocation is through education systems. One of the reasons for the improvement in workers’ fortunes in the latter part of the Industrial Revolution was because schools were built to educate them—a dramatic change at the time. Now those schools themselves need to be changed, to foster the creativity that humans will need to set them apart from computers. There should be less rote-learning and more critical thinking. Technology itself will help, whether through MOOCs (massive open online courses) or even video games that simulate the skills needed for work.

Who is going to pay for the now $17+ trillion in national debt? Let’s take care of this so our children don’t have to.

On 01/10/2014, in business, economics, leadership, legislatures / government / legal, United States, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

As of January 10, 2014

From DSC:
Who is going to pay for the now $17+ trillion in national debt? Let’s bite the bullet and whittle this down as quickly as possible — so our children don’t have to (nor their children either).

Be forewarned!!! If you let your eyes and mind take in how fast the debt is increasing, it will amaze — and depress — you. Are we seeing a nation in decline right in front of our faces?

A true or false question for the Econ Students/Faculty out there:

If we don’t get a handle on this, 100% of every dollar will have to be applied towards paying our national debt.

If true, what can we do to turn this around, ASAP?
If false, why is it false and what are the more relevant concerns?
What are the ramifications of this on the American people? On people throughout the world? On education? On healthcare? Other?

2014: Crunch Time! [futureexploration.net]

On 01/08/2014, in 21st century, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, business, collaboration, corporate / business world, disruption, education, future, game-changing environment, legislatures / government / legal, lifelong learning, marketing/social marketing, media/film, trends, workplace, by Daniel Christian

2014: Crunch Time! — from futureexploration.net

Some excerpts:

Many of these presentations will be live streamed at:

Also see:

January 2014: Remote Webcast Locations

Reflections on a solid speech from the President of Hillsdale College entitled, “A Rebirth of Liberty & Learning”

On 12/18/2013, in 21st century, assessment, colleges, cost of getting a degree, Daniel S. Christian, education reform, higher education, leadership, learning, legislatures / government / legal, liberal arts, universities, by Daniel Christian

A Rebirth of Liberty and Learning — from imprimis.hillsdale.edu by Larry Arnn, President, Hillsdale College, with thanks to Mr. Andy Thorburn for this resource

Excerpt:

At Hillsdale College students read a lot of old books, including Plato’s Republic. In the Republic they read the story of Gyges’ ring—a ring that makes the wearer of it invisible. One of Socrates’ interlocutors in the Republic, a young man named Glaucon, raises the question: Why would a man in possession of such a ring not use it to do and obtain whatever he wishes? Why would he not use the ring’s powers, for instance, to become a tyrant? In response, Socrates turns the discussion to another question: What is the right way for a man to live? What is just by nature and what is unjust?

These Socratic questions were once at the center or core of education, and they remain at the center or core of education at Hillsdale College. But in American education as a whole, these questions have been abandoned.

…

Bereft of the kind of questions posed by Socrates in the Republic—or the kind of questions raised in the Bible, or in the plays of Shakespeare—modern education treats students chiefly as factors of production, as people to be trained for productive jobs. And although we all wish productive jobs for our children, as parents we know that they are not chiefly job seekers or factors of production. After all, how many of us, if we were given the choice of our children earning a lot of money and being bad, or struggling economically and being good, would choose the former?

From DSC, a portion of my thoughts back to Andy Thorburn on this were:

A great article, and highly relevant. It’s also timely, as the jury is starting to come in for me re: the Common Core. I’m not a big fan of it, because of how it was created and who developed it (few if any teachers were involved with creating it; I’ve been reading the postings from Anthony Cody for his research on these topics; example here), and the devastating impact it could have on students who are already struggling with school as it is.

Re: K-12 education:
I’m disheartened to see what education has/is becoming — packing people into molds (by age) and not helping students identify and develop their passions, gifts, abilities. I’d like to see us provide students with more choice, and more control over their own learning. We’re all into lifelong learning now, so it seems to me that if someone enjoys learning, they will have a more enjoyable/productive lifetime.

Hal Plotkin, at his keynote speech for the Sloan Consortium, said that we shouldn’t use the term “drop outs.” Instead, we should use the term “pushed outs” as that would help people better understand the dynamics at play.

Re: higher education:
I think the issue we have these days is that the price of education has forced the situation upon students/families that we find ourselves in — i.e. that when you are paying $100K-$250+ for an education, a student these days can’t help but be concerned about what job they are going to get, what vocation they are going into, how they are going to pay off their debt (which as of 2013 averages ~$30,000 per student), etc. If the total price of an education were $10,000, one could take it easier on that front and pursue the type of education Larry Arnn discussed; which is a great education, by the way.

For you students studying Economics out there…what are your thoughts on this one?

On 12/17/2013, in business, economics, legislatures / government / legal, United States, by Daniel Christian

Fed’s $4 trillion in assets draws lawmakers’ scrutiny — from bloomberg.com by Jeff Kearns

Excerpt:

The Federal Reserve’s balance sheet is poised to exceed $4 trillion, prompting warnings its record easing is inflating asset-price bubbles and drawing renewed lawmaker scrutiny just as Janet Yellen prepares to take charge.

From DSC:

What does it mean that the Fed has close to $4 trillion in assets? So what? What implications/effects might that have?
What is easing?
Why is easing good or bad? When does one know when to stop the easing?
Why does Wall Street pay very close attention to what Ben Bernanke says? Is that a good thing or a bad thing?
What do you think…does Main Street know what’s happening as thoroughly as Wall Street does?

US Senate Full Committee Hearing — Accreditation as QA: Meeting the needs of 21st century learning

On 12/13/2013, in 21st century, accreditation, colleges, community colleges, future of higher education, game-changing environment, learning, legislatures / government / legal, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Witnesses/Panel I:

Dr. Arthur Levine , President of the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, Princeton, NJ

Download File
Dr. Ralph Wolff , Former President of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, Alameda, CA

Download File
Dr. Daniel J. Phelan , President of Jackson College, Jackson, MI

Download File
Ms. Laura King , Executive Director of the Council on Education for Public Health, Silver Spring, MD

Download File

Also see/originally saw this at:

Accreditation Agita — from insidehighered.com — by Michael Stratford and Paul Fain

Excerpt:

WASHINGTON — During a hearing Thursday, several Democratic senators mulled whether the federal government should get more involved in the accrediting process. They might have been less enthusiastic if they saw what was happening at another meeting two blocks away.

The federal panel that reviews accreditors, the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, held that gathering. Faculty members and students from the City College of San Francisco, who for the past year have essentially waged war against the accrediting agency that is threatening to revoke the accreditation of their college, pleaded their case to the panel.

Also see:

Senator asks if accreditors have lost focus on quality — from educationdive.com by Daniel Shumski

Recordings available of the 3 keynote addresses from the 19th Annual Sloan Consortium Intl Conf on Online Learning

On 11/25/2013, in cost of getting a degree, Daniel S. Christian, game-changing environment, global / globalization, higher education, learning ecosystem, legislatures / government / legal, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, new business models, online learning, by Daniel Christian

The Role of Online and Technology-Enabled Learning in Meeting President Obama’s 2020 Graduation Goal
November 20, 2013
Lead Presenter: Hal Plotkin (Department of Education, US)

The Online Revolution: Learning without Limits
November 21, 2013
Lead Presenter: Daphne Koller (Coursera, USA)

Reinventing Education
November 22, 2013
Lead Presenter: Anant Agarwal (edX & MIT, USA)

Accreditation on the block as lawmakers look to innovation [EvoLLLution NewsWire]

On 11/08/2013, in accreditation, budgets, business side of he, change, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, entrepreneurship, experimentation, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, innovation, legislatures / government / legal, more voice more choice more control, new business models, by Daniel Christian

Accreditation on the block as lawmakers look to innovation — from EvoLLLution NewsWire

Excerpt:

Accreditation and federal financial aid policies are in line to be overhauled as lawmakers start to debate the possibility of mainstreaming some of higher education’s most recent innovations.

During a recent hearing of the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, numerous federal senators pointed toward competency-based education and hybrid models of online education as examples of strategies that could revolutionize higher education. However, they were concerned by the role of federal financial aid rules and regional accreditation boards in keeping these innovations from reaching the wider higher education marketplace.

It is expected that a number of bills will be introduced in the coming days to overhaul the regulatory systems that govern American postsecondary education. Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) plans to unveil a bill to move accreditation responsibilities from the region to the state. This would allow greater market access to non-institutional education providers, which are typically unaccreditated and cannot compete with traditional institutions on an even footing.

Obama’s Ratings for Higher Ed [Jaschik]

On 08/22/2013, in budgets, business side of he, cost of getting a degree, Daniel S. Christian, disruption, education technology, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, legislatures / government / legal, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, new business models, online learning, by Daniel Christian

Obama’s Ratings for Higher Ed — from insidehighered.com by Scott Jaschik

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

WASHINGTON — President Obama appears to be making good on his vow to propose a “shake-up” for higher education.

Early Thursday, he released a plan that would:

Create a new rating system for colleges in which they would be evaluated based on various outcomes…

Link student aid to these ratings…

Create a new program that would give colleges a “bonus” if they enroll large numbers of students eligible for Pell Grants.

Toughen requirements on students receiving aid.

…

The White House also said President Obama is “challenging” colleges to “adopt one or more” of practices he called “promising” to “offer breakthroughs on cost, quality or both.” Among them: competency-based learning that moves away from seat time, course redesign (including massive open online courses), the use of technology for student services, and more efforts to recognize prior learning.

Also see:

ShakingUpHigherEd-Barack-Obama-August-22-2013

‘Shake Up’ for Higher Ed — from insidehighered.com by Scott Jaschik

Excerpt:

President Obama vowed Wednesday that he would soon unveil a plan to promote significant reform in higher education — with an emphasis on controlling what colleges charge students and families.

“[I]n the coming months, I will lay out an aggressive strategy to shake up the system, tackle rising costs, and improve value for middle-class students and their families. It is critical that we make sure that college is affordable for every single American who’s willing to work for it,” said Obama, in a speech at Knox College.

…

“Families and taxpayers can’t just keep paying more and more and more into an undisciplined system where costs just keep on going up and up and up. We’ll never have enough loan money, we’ll never have enough grant money, to keep up with costs that are going up 5, 6, 7 percent a year. We’ve got to get more out of what we pay for,” Obama said.

From DSC:
At a $175 billion per year support for postsecondary education, if the Federal Government starts redirecting this flow of $$$…I’ll bet we’ll see some change…and rather quickly I might add.

The Walmart of Education (as predicted back in December 2008) is now here, but I don’t think we’ve seen anything yet. To what will we change? At least one major piece of the answer to that question is that we will see the continued — but increasing — use of teams of specialists that will be commissioned to create low-cost, highly-engaging content. Though expensive to create originally, such teams will more than make their money back because of the massive number of students such “courses” will serve.

From the Walmart of Education page on 4/11/09:

…I wanted to offer another idea that might help fund engaging, multimedia-based, online-based learning materials:
(NOTE: The figures I use are not accurate, but rather, they are used for illustration purposes only.)

Let’s reallocate funds towards course development, and then let’s leverage those learning materials throughout the world!

Reallocate funds to course development, and bring costs WAAAAYYYY down and ACCESS WAAAYYY UP!

.

For students: Bring costs waaaayyyyy down and access waaayyy up!

Plus, no more defaulted loans, students could experience richer content, students wouldn’t have to wait as much on financial aid decisions. There would be fewer financial aid headaches; and the resources devoted to figuring out & processing financial aid could be reduced. The issue will be how an institution can differentiate itself in such a new world…but that issue will have to be dealt with in the future anyway.

Alive in the Swamp — from nesta.org.uk by Michael Fullan and Katelyn Donnelly

Excerpt (emphasis and link below from DSC):

The authors argue that we should seek digital innovations that produce at least twice the learning outcome for half the cost of our current tools. To achieve this, three forces need to come together. One is technology, the other pedagogy, and the third is change knowledge, or how to secure transformation across an entire school system.

…

The breakthrough in Alive in the Swamp is the development of an Index that will be of practical assistance to those charged with making these kinds of decisions at school, local and system level. Building on Fullan’s previous work, Stratosphere, the Index sets out the questions policymakers need to ask themselves not just about the technology at any given moment but crucially also about how it can be combined with pedagogy and knowledge about system change. Similarly, the Index should help entrepreneurs and education technology developers to consider particular features to build into their products to drive increased learning and achieve systemic impact.

The future will belong not to those who focus on the technology alone but to those who place it in this wider context and see it as one element of a wider system transformation. Fullan and Donnelly show how this can be done in a practical way.

.

Also see:
.

The Coming Crossroads in Higher Education [U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan]

On 07/16/2013, in 21st century, budgets, business side of he, change, changing business models, education technology, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, innovation, leadership, legislatures / government / legal, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, online learning, strategy, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

The Coming Crossroads in Higher Education: Remarks of U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan to the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association Annual Meeting, July 9, 2013 — from distance-educator.com with thanks going out to Mr. John Shank for Scooping this item.

Excerpts (emphasis DSC):

But I would also make the case to you today that higher education is approaching a crossroads, where leaders will be asked to choose between incremental and transformational change.

…

Polls show that three out of four Americans believe—and I quote—”to get ahead in life these days, it is necessary to get a college education.” At the same time, three in four Americans also believe that college today is too expensive for most people to afford. That fundamental gap—between aspirations and opportunity—is one we must close.

…

I believe that higher education is at a crossroads because our current model of student and institutional aid is ultimately unsustainable. It is incapable of meeting the bipartisan goal that President Obama articulated four years ago—that America will again lead the world in college attainment by 2020.

…

Speaking in broad-brush terms, I believe we will see two ideas take hold in response to these threats to higher education.

The first response is that the system of state and federal institutional grants and loans will start to shift more toward a performance-based and outcomes-based system than is the case today—and one that does more to reward innovation.

…

The federal government currently provides more than $175 billion a year to postsecondary institutions and students through grants, loans, and direct school support. But together we must do a better job of defining and linking aid to satisfactory academic progress, meaningful institutional performance, and student learning outcomes.

We absolutely must continue to invest in higher education. But we must also use taxpayer dollars more wisely.

This shift in the direction of performance-based funding is already underway.

…

Further evidence of the policy shift underway is that many states—including Indiana, Tennessee, Oregon, and Missouri—are moving in bipartisan fashion to incorporate elements of performance-based funding in higher education.

…

Now, if the first response to the challenges of cost, completion, and accountability is likely to be more performance-based funding and new incentives for innovation, a second response is likely to be a leveraging of educational technology to increase student learning as well as institutional performance and productivity.

We still have a lot to learn and perfect about online learning, MOOCs, simulations and gaming, and other uses of educational technology. But there is no question that a digital revolution is already underway in higher education. And its vast potential has only begun to be tapped.

From DSC:
I hear a lot about resistance to change; in fact, as I come from the tech side of the academic house, I experience it on an ongoing basis.

But I do wonder if the pace of change within higher education might accelerate when more of that $175 billion a year starts flowing elsewhere…?

No deal on loans [Nelson]; interest rate hike for federally subsidized student loans doubles on July 1

On 06/28/2013, in budgets, business side of he, game-changing environment, higher education, leadership, legislatures / government / legal, student-related, United States, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

No deal on loans — from insidehighered.com by Libby Nelson

Excerpt:

On Thursday, though, the clock ran out: the Senate’s failure to reach a deal to avert an interest rate hike for federally subsidized student loans means the rate will double Monday.

…

The failure to vote on a plan before the Senate adjourned for its July 4 recess Thursday night means that interest rates on new, federally subsidized loans will double to 6.8 percent Monday.

Learning Ecosystems

Who is going to pay for the now $17+ trillion in national debt? Let’s take care of this so our children don’t have to.

Calvin College’s January Series 2014: Some excellent presentations coming up!

Reflections on a solid speech from the President of Hillsdale College entitled, “A Rebirth of Liberty & Learning”

For you students studying Economics out there…what are your thoughts on this one?

US Senate Full Committee Hearing — Accreditation as QA: Meeting the needs of 21st century learning

Recordings available of the 3 keynote addresses from the 19th Annual Sloan Consortium Intl Conf on Online Learning

Accreditation on the block as lawmakers look to innovation [EvoLLLution NewsWire]

Obama’s Ratings for Higher Ed [Jaschik]

Reflections on ‘Shake Up’ for Higher Ed [Jaschik]

The Coming Crossroads in Higher Education [U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan]

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