Plunging Into Online: Swimming With Icebergs

Education Dive recently cited an article by Robert Ubell from NYU in which he encourages small private colleges to pursue online programs to avoid “going under.”  Although I agree with Ubell’s exhortation, his motivation is shortsighted.  The Dive analysis of the article rightly points out that education leaders in general need to “take the plunge” and get on board with online. Again, a worthy admonition, but it lacks resolve. Both of these assessments miss a basic point:  Online isn’t something that higher education SHOULD be looking into.  It is something that higher education MUST pursue if it is to remain relevant.

The Dive analysis notes that higher participation in online initiatives is reported by faculty and institutions, and that “experiments” with “modest investments” in technology have produced promising financial results. It is suggested that sustained success will depend on things like faculty buy-in and coordination with IT services, since the prevailing attitude in higher education is that online instruction goes against traditional norms.

Eureka!  This is the heart of the matter.  Outside of higher education, online IS the norm. Major parts of American society are already infused with technology.   Retail and finance are good examples.  And knowledge (read: information, data) apart from the structure of higher education is now readily available from multiple sources with a few keystrokes.  Yet our monolithic higher education structure continues to pretend (and even insist) that knowledge resides solely on campuses and with faculty.

In a recent post I noted The Chronicle of Higher Education’s Beckie Supiano’s report concerning faculty push back over new online programs at Eastern Michigan University and elsewhere.   The issues identified regarding faculty resistance involve unions, ownership of program development, and faculty’s general distrust of the efficacy of online education.  These elements of resistance are not uncommon. They have pervaded much of higher education for decades, with little movement.


But more ominously, these issues may also be harbingers of an unpleasant road ahead. Articles like Ubell’s and Supiano’s are accurate and timely.  They are also increasingly redundant as they report the same issues that continue to plague higher education while the rest of society marches on.  Small private institutions are the tip of the iceberg.  The rest of higher education is not far below the water line.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Purging the Past by Punishing the Present

The following item appeared recently under Quick Hits in The Chronicle of Higher Education’s Daily Briefing: Descendants of slaves are  calling for restitution  from Georgetown University based on the profits it made from a sale of 272 slaves in 1838. Apparently the university has apologized, is determining how best to make amends, and is engaging in a long-term dialogue with descendants of slaves who demand restitution.   This entire situation is a primary example of the BS that is making a mockery of higher education in America.   Christian Smith opened the can of bullshit in his piece entitled “Higher Education is Drowning in BS,” published on January 9 in CHE.   It is a scathingly accurate introduction to the silliness that pervades the higher education community, silliness that undercuts the very credibility of higher education and obviates its ability to address major societal concerns.   I have my own list of gripes, some of which appear ...
Read more

Adult Students, Non-Traditional Students, Post-Traditional Students, and Other Redundancies

Breaking news:   There is an enormous population of underserved adult students.   They are older than high school graduates; they work, have families and have limited access to higher education opportunities. Higher education needs to take action! Oh, wait, you already knew that?    Apparently so does everyone else except higher education. Higher education insiders (read: faculty, administration, researchers, and the education media) keep making this discovery almost daily.   Well, to be fair, they are making different discoveries.   One study reveals the plight of “adult students.”   Another provides a profile of “non-traditional” students.   Yet another gives us the details of “post-traditional” students (my favorite).   As a former insider, I am both embarrassed and insulted. In a recent piece in The Chronicle of Higher Education, Christian Smith cites a variety of examples of BS in higher education.   Among the more prominen...
Read more

The Basics: Where Are We and How Did We Get Here?

Yogi Berra is quoted as having said,   “If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else.”   That’s what this blog is all about.   It is a blend of observations, commentary, and opinion gained over forty years of experience in higher education that will provide perspectives on where higher education is today, where it is going, and how it will get to wherever it is that it is going.   A recent survey conducted by Washington-based think tank New America contends that Americans see value in higher education, but may not be happy with it. The Introduction to the report puts it succinctly: “Americans believe in the tremendous potential of higher education—but they also feel that higher education is falling short of that promise.   New America’s inaugural survey reveals a stark expectations gap between what higher education could-- and should—be and where higher education currently is.”   OK, we know where we are and we don’t li...
Read more