I am excited and pleased today because I am holding my new book, Harnessing America’s Wasted Talent: A New Ecology of Learning (Jossey-Bass, Jan. 2010), in my hands. It lives up to its title, I think, describing how our technology-rich environment, populated with platforms, networks, social sites, and downloads, makes possible a level of access and completion in higher education that has been unattainable up to this point. I illustrate this point with a number of examples. Primary among them is being able to self-assess your experiential learning and then, if you wish, get it reviewed formally for academic credit , all on-line. continue reading

I am sitting at the opening session of the Kaplan University Faculty Retreat in Miami, a biannual event that precedes KU’s graduation ceremonies, listening to my colleague and fellow Rethinking Higher Education blogger Peter Smith talking about his new book, Harnessing America’s Wasted Talent. I am proud to be his colleague and his friend. continue reading

Learning on Demand, the 2009 report on the state of online learning in the United states has been by published by Sloan-C. The news release digests the findings and links to the full report.

More than 25 percent of all college and university students - more than 4.6 million individuals - were taking at least one online class in the Fall 2008 semester. This is a 17 percent increase over Fall 2007. continue reading

On January 7-8, about 100 people, drawn from a wide variety of educational, technical, labor, non-profit, and business backgrounds, gathered at Cavallo Point, a conference center in Sausalito. Sponsored by the Lumina Foundation, the topic was “Envisioning the Future of Higher Education”. For this old warrior, it was a bright moment in time when principles and potential for the future of higher education were expressed clearly and honestly, without regard for whether they would go down easily with the traditional academy. continue reading

Education and educational institutions are central to how and why the United States is what it is the world today - a land of opportunity, a beacon of hope, and a champion for the rule of law. Most believe that education and our educational institutions are critical pieces for the future that we want for our country. Jon Meacham, the Editor of Newsweek, has written a wonderful piece,  In Defense of the Liberal Arts, acknowledging this.

I appreciate the obvious love that he has for his own experience and, as well, his recognition that we need lots of different kinds of programs and institutions to do the work that education must do in our society. He says:

For some the future will be shaped by a Sewanee [Meacham's alma mater], for others by a business course taught online. The unifying theme that connected my own musings among the bishops (living and dead) was straightforward: if the country is to prosper—economically, culturally, morally—we have to trust in the institutions, old and new, that nurture creativity, and then hope for the best.

There’s plenty of work to be done and room for institutions serving a broad spectrum of missions. Here’s to finding common ground rather than focusing what divides us.

If you have not already seen it, check out Hybrid Education 2.0 at Inside Higher Education and then move over to the Open Learning Initiative page on the Carnegie Mellon University site, about which the article reports, to dig deeper into the work they are doing in web-based instruction.

For those of us who are committed to using technology more and better in higher education, there is a lot of good news and hope there as we move into 2010.

Happy New Year to all.

A hat tip to Michael Offerman at The Other 85 Percent for drawing my attention to a report last month from the Center for American Progress entitled Putting the Customer First in College. The report proposes that the United States Department of Education should form or take the lead in the formation of a quasi-independent entity it would call the Office of Consumer Protection in Higher Education.

This entity would, among other things, produce a “College Customer Bill of Rights;” ensure that students had access to full, clear, and accurate information to make decisions about their educations; and serve as an ombudsman for students with various other actors in the education arena. continue reading

Yesterday (December 9), Public Agenda released With Their Whole Lives Ahead of Them, a report funded in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which explores the reasons why college students drop out prior to completing their studies and earning their degrees. There is an interesting YouTube companion piece that presents some personal stories that reflect the report’s themes. continue reading

When I worked at a traditional university, I enjoyed having lunch in the faculty lounge.  The discussions were far ranging and stimulating, sort of like Midwestern weather.  One topic that recycled every month or so was the sleep habits of the undergrads who liked to stay up late and sleep in.  Many students took afternoon naps so they could stay up most of the night.  The university had gradually shifted schedules in response.  For example, many student meetings began at 9 or 10 PM.  Eight AM classes became less and less frequent.  The Registrar lamented that it was difficult to find enough classrooms between 11 AM and 3 PM.  Some faculty members, typically grizzled veterans, refused to accommodate and always scheduled their classes for the 8 AM slot.  Part of their reasoning was that only serious students would register for those classes so they would have a select group of diligent, hard-working students.  It was a form of internal selectivity.

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