Thanks for sending this along Mike. I actually read the report and the authors fully acknowledge that they don't know for sure that an avalanche is coming but make the sensible point that it is important that universities adjust to changes in technology and globalization. On the issue of technology the question is not sure much about online learning per se (as Tipsters note, that has been going on for decades) but how universities should go about assessing quality and learning (also ongoing issues) and credit transfer (also an ongoing issue) and how instructors can use MOOCs effectively (e.g., let students watch the lectures from other professors online and spend class time in discussion). They also note that you can't be everything to everyone so niche universities play an important role (they actually specifically mention liberal arts colleges as a specific niche).
After reading the report I'm not sure I really see an avalanche. Marie Marie Helweg-Larsen, Ph.D. Associate Professor l Department of Psychology Kaufman 168 l Dickinson College Phone 717.245.1562 l Fax 717.245.1971 Office hours: Monday 10:30-11:30, Tuesday and Wednesday 2:00-3:30 PM http://users.dickinson.edu/~helwegm/index.html -----Original Message----- From: Mike Palij [mailto:m...@nyu.edu] Sent: Tuesday, March 12, 2013 7:56 AM To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) Cc: Michael Palij Subject: [tips] I've Seen The Future, And You're Not In It On another list, a poster provided a link to a new "report" on the future of college education. The Foreword is written by Larry Summer of Harvard fame and former advisor to the Obama administration (and both of those worked out well for him and us). The authors of the report appear to be management types at Pearson (unclear whether this is the publishing company or something different). Anyway, here is the link to the report: http://www.ippr.org/images/media/files/publication/2013/03/avalanche-is-coming_Mar2013_10432.pdf And on the homepage of the IPPR, a British thinktank that sponsored the report, is here: http://www.ippr.org/ There's a video of one of the author's talking about the future of education -- click on the tab "Future HE" above the video screen. Bottom line, there will be superstar teachers, MOOCs, and reconceptualization of what teachers do and what students will be. The metaphor being used is that educational change will come like an avalanche, that is, they say that an avalanche seem to be solidly in place until it falls -- change is dramatic and unexpected and that is what will happen in higher education. But in a world suffering from global warming, will there be any avalanches when the snow is gone from the mountains? Anyway, hope that you retire before the avalanche comes. If it comes. -Mike Palij New York University m...@nyu.edu --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: helw...@dickinson.edu. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13234.b0e864a6eccfc779c8119f5a4468797f&n=T&l=tips&o=24280 or send a blank email to leave-24280-13234.b0e864a6eccfc779c8119f5a44687...@fsulist.frostburg.edu --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: arch...@jab.org. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=24368 or send a blank email to leave-24368-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
