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On 01/12/2012,
in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, educational games / serious games, emerging technologies, media/film, online media, smart/connected TV, technologies for your home, television,
by Daniel Christian
On 11/30/2011,
in business side of he, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, funding / grants, future of higher education, game-changing environment, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, new business models, United States,
by Daniel Christian
Official calls for urgency on college costs— from the New York Times by Tamar Lewin
Excerpts:
As Occupy movement protests helped push spiraling college costs into the national spotlight, Education Secretary Arne Duncan urged higher-education officials Tuesday to “think more creatively — and with much greater urgency” about ways to contain costs and reduce student debt.
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“Three in four Americans now say that college is too expensive for most people to afford,” Mr. Duncan said. “That belief is even stronger among young adults — three-fourths of whom believe that graduates today have more debt than they can manage.”
Also see:
- Outrage: New York Times Reports that Ohio State’s Football Coach to Earn up to $4 Million a Year — from StraighterLine.com
Addendum later on 11/30/11:
- Our Students Deserve No Less – from ed.gov by Cameron Brenchley
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(Official Department of Education Photo by Joshua Hoover)“My chief message today is a sobering one,” said Secretary Duncan yesterday at the annual Federal Student Aid conference in Las Vegas, Nev. “I want to ask you, and the entire higher education community, to look ahead and start thinking more creatively—and with much greater urgency—about how to contain the spiraling costs of college and reduce the burden of student debt on our nation’s students.”
On 11/20/2011,
in change, corporate / business world, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, disruption, economics, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, global / globalization, higher education, leadership, legislatures / government / legal, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, political science, real-world assignments, society, United States,
by Daniel Christian
As of 11/20/11 (~2:00pm EST)
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As of 8/24/11:
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From DSC:
With the increase in globalization — and from what I’ve seen happening in the financial systems (i.e. how what happens in Europe affects the financial systems in the U.S./Asia/other and vice versa) — it seems clear that we are all in this boat together. If that’s true, what does that mean for:
- Businesses and economies around the world?
- The ability of families and individuals to afford the increasing cost of getting a degree?
- Higher educational systems — and business models — around the world?
- How do we resolve such massive problems?
- What does all of this mean for how we should be educating our students?
Addendum on 11/21/11:
- Debt committee: Why $1.2 trillion isn’t enough — from money.cnn.com by Jeanne Sahadi
Excerpts:
That’s because under the most likely scenario, reducing deficits by $1.2 trillion won’t stop the accumulated debt from growing faster than the economy.
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Thus, to stabilize the debt, Congress would need to pass a debt-reduction plan worth $4 trillion to $6 trillion, budget experts say.
On 11/14/2011,
in Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, career development, corporate / business world, cost of getting a degree, economics, future, pace of change, trends, workplace,
by Daniel Christian
Also see:
- Future of Work Survey Findings: Focusing on the Future? –– from thefutureofwork.net
- How Technology Is Eliminating Higher-Skill Jobs — from NPR.org by Chris Arnold
- Difference Engine: Luddite legacy — from economist.com
Excerpt:
There is a good deal of truth in that. But it misses a crucial change that economists are loth to accept, though technologists have been concerned about it for several years. This is the disturbing thought that, sluggish business cycles aside, America’s current employment woes stem from a precipitous and permanent change caused by not too little technological progress, but too much. The evidence is irrefutable that computerised automation, networks and artificial intelligence (AI)—including machine-learning, language-translation, and speech- and pattern-recognition software—are beginning to render many jobs simply obsolete.
This is unlike the job destruction and creation that has taken place continuously since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, as machines gradually replaced the muscle-power of human labourers and horses. Today, automation is having an impact not just on routine work, but on cognitive and even creative tasks as well. A tipping point seems to have been reached, at which AI-based automation threatens to supplant the brain-power of large swathes of middle-income employees.
Addendum on 11/22/11:
- The Coming Jobs War — by Jim Clifton
- New Data Set Reveals Health of U.S. Economy — from tuck.dartmouth.edu
Professor Matt Slaughter talks about a newly released data set that won’t get much media coverage, and yet paradoxically is one of the most important indicators of the health of the U.S. Economy.
On 11/11/2011,
in distance education, higher education, online learning, strategy, trends, United States,
by Daniel Christian
On 10/03/2011,
in business, corporate / business world, ethics, hearts -- matters of the heart, MBA, motivation, relationships, society, United States, vision/possibilities,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
How is it that corporations are sitting on trillions of dollars (estimates vary) but the unemployment rate continues to be towards the high end of historical unemployment rates? Where’s the love and compassion for one’s fellow man? (Some of Charles Dickens’ writings in The Christmas Carol come to my mind here…)
One has to ask, what’s the state of our hearts these days? Is business just about serving the almighty shareholder? Is that the ultimate goal of our businesses? Seriously…what percentage of Americans is that perspective currently benefiting? (I don’t have the answer/data, but I bet its not a majority of Americans. The lines at the soup kitchens and shelters are getting longer, not shorter.) Corporations have — today — the power to change the situation. But what’s the ultimate vision of our corporations? Who do our corporations ultimately serve?
Some relevant articles:
- Corporate profits at all-time high as recovery stumbles (March, 2011, The HuffingtonPost.com)
NEW YORK — Despite high unemployment and a largely languishing real estate market, U.S. businesses are more profitable than ever, according to federal figures released on Friday. U.S. corporate profits hit an all-time high at the end of 2010, with financial firms showing some of the biggest gains, data from the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis show. Corporations reported an annualized $1.68 trillion in profit in the fourth quarter. The previous record, without being adjusted for inflation, was $1.65 trillion in the third quarter of 2006. Many of the nation’s preeminent companies have posted massive increases in profits this year. General Electric posted worldwide profits of $14.2 billion, while profits at JPMorgan Chase were up 47 percent to $4.8 billion. - Remarks by the President to the Chamber of Commerce — President Barack Obama (February 7, 2011 from U.S. Chamber of Commerce Headquarters, Washington, D.C.)
“So if I’ve got one message, my message is now is the time to invest in America. Now is the time to invest in America. (Applause.) Today, American companies have nearly $2 trillion sitting on their balance sheets. And I know that many of you have told me that you’re waiting for demand to rise before you get off the sidelines and expand, and that with millions of Americans out of work, demand has risen more slowly than any of us would like.” - Hoarding, not hiring – Corporations stockpile mountain of cash (April, 2010, ABCNews.com)
- U.S. firms build up record cash piles (June 2010, WSJ)
- Corporate America sitting on $1 trillion in cash ($2 trillion if you count short-term investments) (Dec. 2010 from JoshuaKennon.com)
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What does that mean? It means that when the fear subsides, and companies are convinced that the world is all sunshine and roses, the turnaround can be rapid. Putting $1 trillion of cash to work in the economy, whether in the form of new product launches, capital expenditures, or even mergers and acquisitions paying off investors for their shares of companies and forcing them to find another use for their newly freed funds, can go a long way to solving the unemployment figures.
Addendum on 10/4/11 to potentially address a part of the other side of the table here:
- Economic Conditions Snapshot, September 2011: McKinsey Global Survey results |SEPTEMBER 2011
Our latest survey shows just how gloomy executives’ economic expectations are. A majority fear the eurozone will splinter; those in emerging markets are most hopeful.
On 09/29/2011,
in 21st century, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, education, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, society, sociology, staying relevant, student-related, traditional / tradition, United States,
by Daniel Christian
An educational system built for another time, another student demographic — by Lloyd Armstrong, University Professor and Provost Emeritus at the University of Southern California
Excerpt:
…This is probably because much of our education system originally was designed around the traditional student and his or her needs, and the leading institutions in the system still serve primarily the traditional student. As a consequence, potential changes in educational approach or organization are most often judged according to whether or not they will benefit those traditional students who enjoy the benefits of residential life and a manageable financial burden. But, as this report describes, times have changed, the composition of the student body has changed, and because many of our institutions have not changed accordingly, the results are not pretty.
In particular, the report focuses on the plight of part time students, and shows that graduation rates for part time students at all levels – certificates, associates, and bachelors – are only about 40% as high as for full time students (if one looks at a time period twice the nominal period required for graduation). Graduation rates for both full time and part time students who are African-American, Hispanic, older, or low income are considerably lower than for the general student body, and the part-time “penalty” is somewhat higher than for the general population.
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All in all, a very important report, with sensible and meaningful recommendations. I can’t give it an A, however, because I think its basic conclusion in not bold enough – and maybe not even correct. The recommendation is basically to fiddle the system to enable part time students to behave more like full time students, assuming that if they can behave more like full time students they will graduate like full time students. That is not a bad idea, of course, but why not start from the premise that the system itself needs to be redesigned so that it focuses on the needs of the part time students? Maybe the problem is not simply the full time/part time divide, but that the system responds or does not respond to the many and highly varied needs of part time (and by extension, non-traditional) students.
From DSC:
Nice report — well done. My only wish here would be that the costs of obtaining an education were discussed more — as one of the causes of this issue but also a potential/significant piece of the solution. I think cost is one of the key factors as to why more students are becoming part-time students — and thus are more likely susceptible to “life getting in the way.”
There was some mention of this in the solution proposed — which was good to see:
4. Restructure programs to fit busy lives. It’s time to face facts: College students today are going to have to work while trying to graduate. What else can they do when college is so expensive? (emphasis DSC)
On 09/21/2011,
in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, business, career development, digital learning, economics, education reform, Microsoft, society, sociology, student-related, surviving, United States, workplace,
by Daniel Christian
Also see:
- Microsoft commits to bringing technology access to 1 million low-income youth — from Microsoft.com
On 09/20/2011,
in 21st century, education reform, education technology, emerging technologies, innovation, K-12 related, legislatures / government / legal, research, United States,
by Daniel Christian
Excerpt:
Digital Promise is an independent 501(c)(3), created through Section 802 of the federal Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008, authorizing a nonprofit corporation known as the National Center for Research in Advanced Information and Digital Technologies (Digital Promise). According to the statute, Digital Promise’s purpose is “to support a comprehensive research and development program to harness the increasing capacity of advanced information and digital technologies to improve all levels of learning and education, formal and informal, in order to provide Americans with the knowledge and skills needed to compete in the global economy.”
Also see:
- White House makes ‘Digital Promise’ to schools — from ecampusnews.com by Dennis Carter
Obama administration officials will draw on expertise of tech industry, higher education to determine how educators can best use technology
On 09/20/2011,
in budgets, business, business side of he, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, economics, higher education, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, student-related, United States,
by Daniel Christian
Addendum on 9-21-11:
- Census: Recession taking toll on young adults — from NPR and The Associated Press
Call it the recession’s lost generation.
On 09/16/2011,
in A/V -- audio/visual, convergence, digital video, Europe, Google, television, United States,
by Daniel Christian
Google spending tons of money turning YouTube into a cable alternative — from dvice.com
Google TV will disrupt television, ready or not — from informitv.com
Excerpt:
Google TV is set to launch in Europe early in 2012, following a reboot in the United States that will help developers to create applications for the platform. Dr Eric Schmidt, the chairman of Google, used his keynote speech at the Edinburgh International Television Festival to call for co-operation with the television industry, between the luvvies and boffins, saying Google seeks to be a friend, not a foe, in addressing an increasingly global opportunity. Yet many in the traditionally territorial television industry may still be wary of geeks bearing gifts, suspiciously viewing Google TV as a Trojan horse at the living room door.