On 06/04/2012,
in budgets, business side of he, changing business models, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, disruption, education technology, elearning, flipping -- inverted learning, future of higher education, new business models, online learning,
by Daniel Christian
Excerpt:
Is there anything to be done about the rising price of higher education? That was the question posed to John Hennessy, president of Stanford University, and Salman Khan, founder of Khan Academy, a nonprofit online-learning organization. They sat down with The Wall Street Journal’s Walt Mossberg to discuss how technology might be part of the solution.
Here are edited excerpts of their conversation.
Addendum on 6/7/12:
- D10: Stanford, Khan Academy, and the future of higher ed — from techhive.com by Jason Snell
Excerpt:
Though the crushing cost of college education wasn’t a major topic of Khan and Hennessy’s conversation with D10 co-host Walt Mossberg, it’s certainly a major cause of anxiety for parents. But most of the time, the conversation dwelled on the simple issue that technology is going to radically transform education—and right now everyone’s trying to figure out how to manage that change. “There’s a tsunami coming,” Hennessy said. “I don’t know how it’s going to break, but my goal is to try to surf it, not just stand there.” At its simplest form, technology needs to find ways to make education more efficient. That means serving more students, but also teaching them more effectively.
On 05/18/2012,
in career development, game-changing environment, innovation, marketplaces, teachers,
by Daniel Christian
Kindergarten teacher earns $700,000 by selling lesson plans online — from mashable.com by Zoe Fox
Excerpt:
Teaching isn’t known to be a lucrative profession, but online marketplace Teachers Pay Teachers is changing that for some educators.
Deanna Jump, a kindergarten teacher from Georgia, has made $700,000 selling her lesson plans on Teachers Pay Teachers, an ecommerce startup where teachers offer their lesson plans to fellow educators.
From DSC:
I can just see the dust building in the air now — coming from the trails starting to be paved from a new, electronic version of the Gold Rush! 🙂
On 05/14/2012,
in change, disruption, future of higher education, game-changing environment, leadership, strategy,
by Daniel Christian
On 05/07/2012,
in future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education,
by Daniel Christian
College credit without college — from InsideHigherEd.com by Paul Fain (below emphasis per DSC)
Excerpt:
The Internet takes college courses out of the classroom. But prior learning assessment takes college outside of college.
…
But prior learning assessment mostly occurs behind the scenes, partially because colleges avoid loudly advertising that they believe college-level learning can occur before a student ever interacts with faculty members. That low profile is ending, however, as prior learning is poised to break into the mainstream in a big way. The national college completion push and the expanding adult student market are driving the growth. And ramping up to meet this demand are two of the field’s early adopters — the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning and the American Council of Education — which may soon be even bigger players in determining what counts for college credit.
A fractional idea — from InsideHigherEd.com by Kaustuv Basu
Excerpt:
A talented Ph.D. candidate labors for years and ultimately gets a doctoral degree in biology. He fails to find a job as a faculty member at a research university and eventually ends up teaching at a high school. But he still yearns to do scholarly research.
A paper released last week by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a body devoted to entrepreneurial ideas, offers a solution for people who once harbored dreams of conducting quality research, but instead ended up working outside the university system doing little or no research. The authors of the paper, Samuel Arbesman and Jon Wilkins, said these scholars, who tend to be underemployed, could be put to work as researchers under a system called “fractional scholarship.”
New college, new model — from InsideHigherEd.com by Paul Fain
Excerpt:
Not much is truly unique in higher education. The industry is too big, and most experiments have been tried before. But the new Ameritas College sure sounds different.
Ameritas, launched last week, blends for-profit and nonprofit elements and has a singular focus on Latinos who are working adults. It is part of Brandman University, a private, nonprofit institution with 26 campuses in California and Washington. Co-located at four campuses in Southern California’s Inland Empire, Ameritas will offer relatively low-cost, accelerated associate and bachelor degree tracks. Its curriculum is designed to “crack the code” of helping Latinos get to graduation, administrators said.
On 05/02/2012,
in business side of he, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, disruption, education technology, future of higher education, game-changing environment, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, new business models, online learning, reinvent, teaching & learning,
by Daniel Christian
Harvard, MIT to partner in $60 million initiative to offer free online classes to all — from Boston.com by Mary Carmichael and Johanna Kaiser, Globe Staff and Globe Correspondent
Excerpt:
CAMBRIDGE — Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology said today they will team up to launch a $60 million initiative to offer free, online, college-level courses under a joint superbrand known as edX.
The announcement instantly makes the entity a preeminent player in the burgeoning worldwide online education sector, which has seen several major start-ups — including some affiliated with top-tier universities — in recent months.
Also see:
- MIT and Harvard announce edX — from mit.edu
Joint partnership builds on MITx and Harvard distance learning; aims to benefit campus-based education and beyond. - EdX: A platform for more MOOCs and an opportunity for more research about teaching and learning online — from InsideHigherEd.com by Audrey Watters
Excerpt:
At a joint press conference today, Harvard University President Drew Faust and MIT President Susan Hockfield announced a new nonprofit partnership, edX, that would offer free open online courses. If the “X” sounds familiar when paired with MIT, it’s because the Massachusetts Institute of Technology unveiled its plans for MITx late last year, its online learning initiative that would allow anyone with an Internet connection to take an online class from the university and receive a certificate upon successful completion. The first class, 6.002x Circuits and Electronics, is currently underway. - EdX: The Future of Online Education is Now
- Harvard and MIT launch edX to offer free online classes — from CNN.com by James O’Toole
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Always wanted to take a Harvard class? Soon you’ll be able to do so from the comfort of your own home. -
Massive Courses, Massive Data — from InsideHigherEd.com by Steve Kolowich
Harvard joins MT in platform to offer massive online courses
On 05/01/2012,
in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, change, changing business models, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, emerging technologies, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, learner profiles, online learning, organizational change, personalized/customized learning, United States,
by Daniel Christian
Excerpt from the preface:
Digital technology has already changed the way colleges and universities function, but no matter how significant those changes feel today, real transformation is just beginning. Every day, a new program in online learning is announced, and on the horizon is the promise of using new adaptive learning technologies —or what we have come to call Interactive Learning Online—to educate more students than ever before at lower cost and with similar or even better learning outcomes.
This Ithaka S+R report is the first in a series that will provide leaders in higher education insight into what has been learned from online learning efforts to date and new research to help them move forward with the development and deployment of more advanced systems in the future.
Many of the lessons in this report can readily be applied locally; that is, they will help leaders make sound decisions for their own institutions. We have also identified two critical issues that if addressed at a system-level, will lead to better outcomes for all: the need for open, shared data on student learning and performance tracked through interactive online learning systems, and the need for investment in the creation of sustainable and customizable platforms for delivering interactive online learning instruction. We hope this report will help to stimulate discussion and planning among leaders on these important topics.
Also see:
- Tempering the Rise of the Machines— from insidehighered.com by Steve Kolowich
Excerpt (emphasis DSC):
The report, called “Barriers to Adoption of Online Learning Systems in U.S. Higher Education,” was co-written by Lawrence S. Bacow and William G. Bowen, the former presidents of Tufts and Princeton Universities, respectively, along with several Ithaka analysts. It was bankrolled by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The report contained little advocacy one way or another; rather, the authors appeared to strive for a dispassionate analysis driven by a general sense that the rise of machine learning is inevitable and universities should be prepared. Their findings were based on interviews with senior administrators at 25 public and private, four-year and two-year colleges, including “deep dive” analyses at five of them.
On 04/09/2012,
in 21st century, accreditation, business side of he, change, changing business models, colleges, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, innovation, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, new business models, organizational change, reinvent, staying relevant, surviving, TVs, universities,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC: First, some articles that caused these reflections
Discounting heads — from insidehighered.com by Kevin Kiley
Excerpt:
Despite spending nearly 43 percent of their gross tuition revenue from first-time, full-time freshmen on institutional aid for those students, many private colleges and universities had a harder time enrolling students last year, with almost half seeing no growth or a decline in enrollment for 2011, according to survey results released today by the National Association of College and University Business Officers.
From DSC:
It seems to me that it’s highly-possible that the higher ed bubble has started to pop — at least at private colleges and universities. So why doesn’t change occur? See the next article for several reasons.
Failure to change — from insidehighered.com by Robert J. Sternberg
Excerpts:
Universities teach about the importance of societal and organizational change, but often have trouble changing themselves in any but the most superficial ways. As a psychology professor interested in both individual and organizational modifiability, I have studied organizations, including universities, and why it is so difficult for them to change. Meaningful organizational change requires five elements, and unless all five of them are present, the organization — whether a department, school, college, or university — remains static.
…
Change is not always for the better, of course. But a college or university that is static will inevitably fall behind more dynamic, positively changing institutions. And like any institution that fails to compete, it is on the path to stagnation or death. A dynamic institution will change and, if the change proves to be in the wrong direction, will redirect itself until it finds a sustainable path.
From DSC:
As a relevant aside, it’s not just the “younger folk” who are struggling with student loans either:
Student loans saddle both kinds of seniors: graduates and grandparents — from the Washington Post by Michelle Singletary
Excerpt:
Using data from Equifax credit reports, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that people 50 and older are carrying nearly $135 billion in student-loan debt. Those 60 or older have student-loan balances of more than $36 billion.
It’s these types of dynamics and trends that are catalysts for what I call:
“Learning from the Living Room”
Though 2-5 years away, signs point to it coming to fruition (my prediction is that this movement will really gain traction when Apple’s Connected/Smart TV hits the market and as more people get fed up with the current, unresponsive accredidation monopolies within higher ed). Some example/recent articles:
- The Evolution of the Digital Living Room — from digitalvideospace.blogspot.com by Chuck Parker
Excerpt:
Apple with its iPad, Apple TV and iCloud for movies and TV shows has delivered a seamless ecosystem to the consumer’s digital living room for owning and watching content from multiple devices in the home. The rest of the industry (SmartTVs, connected devices, Android tablets) struggles to create a similar experience when they are a single-brand ecosystem and fail miserably when there are devices from multiple manufacturers in the household.
. - Google and Microsoft’s new battleground: Your living room — from ComputerWorld by Preston Gralla
The upshot will have surprising implications for IT
. - Why the future of Shazam is TV, not music — from readwriteweb.com by Richard MacManus
Excerpt:
Shazam is in the midst of a major pivot. Currently it earns most of its revenue off advertising from the music app. But within two years, the company told ReadWriteWeb, TV will provide the majority of Shazam’s revenue. Just how big an opportunity is TV for Shazam? According to statistics from the company, it is already outpacing both Facebook and Twitter in second screen user engagement.
“The Forthcoming Walmart of Education” …which is already happening, but far more significant changes will come in the next 1-5 years as people look for more affordable alternatives. A graphic I created back in 2008 states what I see developing and will be a piece of the higher ed landscape in the future:
.
.
Besides the items mentioned above (i.e. changes in price and delivery mechanisms),
what might some of these innovations look like? Here are some ideas/articles/examples:
- Be more responsive to real-world/market needs
Example:
12 college majors we hope to see soon — from bestcollegesonline.com
While some college majors have been around for decades or even centuries, others are relatively new and some are still waiting on the horizon to be added to college programs around the world as new technologies and demands shape the needs of modern students. While a host of degree programs have been added over the past 10 or 20 years, many related to computers and other forms of technology, many more will be needed in the future to keep up with a world that is rapidly changing.
. - Introduce more innovations and be willing to experiment with different models
Examples besides MITx, Udemy, U of People, iTunes U, YouTube Edu, etc.:
ANGELS, a new European research project, a gateway to the future.
ANGELS project (Augmented Reality Network Generating Learning on Safety), is the training system that will revolutionize education and learning on safety and health at work, particularly in the hospital facilities. This tool aims at innovating in terms of training on health and safety at work with the use of augmented reality (computer system that can superimpose 3D image on a real image to combine real and virtual). ANGELS introduces 4 key innovations: A practice adapted to an innovative new technology, a realistic assessment in tune with the XXIst century in the area of education and training, a large field of application in the health care facilities and the creation of a starter kit for public and private organizations, training centers and academic centers.
. - …and bring the prices WAAAY down!!!
On 04/03/2012,
in business side of he, change, changing business models, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, innovation, leadership, reinvent, staying relevant, strategy, surviving,
by Daniel Christian
Rethinking higher education business models — from americanprogress.org by Robert Sheets, Stephen Crawford, Louis Soares
Excerpt:
The theory of “disruptive innovation“—the notion that certain innovation can improve a product or service in such a way that it creates new markets that displace existing ones—was developed and advanced by Christensen in the 1990s. According to Christensen, who has studied the evolution of many industries, disruptive innovation occurs when sophisticated technologies are used to create more simplified and more accessible solutions to customers’ problems—solutions that are often less high performing than previous technologies but whose price and convenience attract whole new categories of consumers. The first generations of transistor radios, desktop computers, and MP3 players are examples. These new solutions—innovations to existing technologies deployed through new business models—gradually improved to the point where they displaced the previously dominant solutions. Christensen’s key point, however, is that new technologies like these cannot achieve their transformative potential without compatible changes in their industry’s business models and value networks, which in turn may require shifts in the standards and regulatory environment.
From DSC:
Given the current rumblings of massive changes that are about to take place (if they haven’t already) within the higher education landscape, each person within higher education that has key strategic and leadership responsibilities should be required to read the two books mentioned below. I assert this because these world-class researchers and authors have discovered and documented phenomenon that is affecting all of higher education at this point in time. Understanding the concepts in these books will help your college or university not only survive — but thrive — in the future.
- The Innovator’s Dilemma — by Clayton M. Christensen
Clayton M. Christensen is the Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School. Christensen is also co-founder of Innosight, a management consultancy; Rose Park Advisors, an investment firm; and Innosight Institute, a non-profit think tank. He is the author or coauthor of five books including the New York Times bestsellers The Innovator’s Dilemma, The Innovator’s Solution and most recently, Disrupting Class.
. - Disrupting class, expanded edition: How disruptive innovation will change the way the world learns — by Clayton Christensen, Curtis W. Johnson, Michael B. Horn.
.
Also:
- Crudbasher relayed a highly-relevant article that illustrates innovative thinking/new business models:
.
No financial aid, no problem. For-profit university sets $199-a-month tuition for online courses — from The Chronicle by Marc Parry
From DSC:
That article reminds me of a posting on my archived site from 4/11/09:
Let’s reallocate funds towards course development, and then let’s leverage those learning materials throughout the world!
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.
On 03/22/2012,
in change, changing business models, dangers of the status quo, disruption, future of higher education, game-changing environment,
by Daniel Christian
The higher education monopoly is crumbling as we speak — from The New Republic by Kevin Carey
Excerpt:
In the last few months, however, that monopoly has begun to crumble. New organizations are being created to offer new kinds of degrees, in a manner and at a price that could completely disrupt the enduring college business model. The question is: Which colleges and universities will be the G.E. of the twenty-first century, and which will be as forgotten as U.S. Leather?
On 03/22/2012,
in budgets, business side of he, changing business models, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, disruption, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, innovation, leadership, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, new business models, reinvent, staying relevant, student-related, surviving, trends, United States, vision/possibilities,
by Daniel Christian
Student-loan debt tops $1 trillion — from WSJ.com by Josh Mitchell and Maya Jackson-Randall
Excerpt:
The amount Americans owe on student loans is far higher than earlier estimates and could lead some consumers to postpone buying homes, potentially slowing the housing recovery, U.S. officials said Wednesday.
Total student debt outstanding appears to have surpassed $1 trillion late last year, said officials at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a federal agency created in the wake of the financial crisis. That would be roughly 16% higher than an estimate earlier this year by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
From DSC:
Phrases/words that come to my mind include (which many readers of this blog and my archived website will instantly recognize:
- Reinventing ourselves
- Staying relevant /addressing our customers’ needs
- Innovation
- Strategy
- Leadership
- Vision
- The business side of higher ed / new business models
- Game-changing environment
- Disruption
- Dangers of the status quo
- Student-related
- Future of higher education
- The Walmart of Education
- Learning from the Living Room
Addendum on 3/23/12:
- Student loan debt hits $1 trillion, deemed ‘too big to fail’ by one federal agency — from The Huffington Post by Bonnie Kavoussi
- For have-nots, the rockier road to a college degree increases the appeal of alternatives — from The Chronicle by Jeff Selingo
- From DSC: On the other side of the coin see:
Colleges slashing tuition, offering 3-year degrees — from Money.CNN.com by Blake Ellis
On 03/16/2012,
in Canada, disruption, education, emerging technologies, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, India, learning ecosystem, open courseware and systems, UK, United States,
by Daniel Christian
