In June 2014, Zogby Analytics published its 2014 Global Survey of Students. The company polled a total of 20,876 students in 21 countries as part of a survey conducted for Laureate Education, Inc., which is the leading global network of higher education institutions and includes more than 75 institutions worldwide in 29 countries.

Most of the respondents were members of the Millennial generation, characterized as being “tech-savvy” multitasking experts who rely on social networking services and have a broad global outlook that includes politically progressive views and high expectations for the future.

The results of the survey indicated that the students envision a university of the future that has four salient characteristics:

Accessible   Almost half of the students surveyed (43%) believe that the university of future will:

• offer free online content for most courses
• maintain free online libraries containing books, course materials, and references for students to use (68%)
• include social media platforms that students use to learn and teach other students (59%)

Flexible  Over half (52%) of the students surveyed believe that courses offered by the university of the future will:

• be open 24/7 all day and night
• offer open-ended scheduling so students can establish their timeframe preferences (44%)
• issue specialized certifications over the course of the students’ academic career, allowing students to set their own pace rather than graduating within 2 – 4 year time spans

Innovative  More than half (54%) expect that the university of the future will:

• place more emphasis on innovative approaches that stress increased collaboration among students through group projects
• offer personalized and tutorial instruction online

Job-Focused   Sixty-one percent believed that the university of the future will:

• enhance training for jobs through courses designed by industry experts
• offer courses that will be in multiple languages (64%)
• teach career-oriented skills in addition to subject matter courses

A limited job market has forced students in the West into what has been termed a “gig economy” (O’Neil, 2014, p. A1) in which money is earned through gigs and short-term projects rather than through long-term careers. As a result, the traditional goal of obtaining a degree has shifted in favor of lifelong learning.  In a recent blog post, Richardson (2014, September 10) cited  a Harvard Business School survey of businesses in which almost half of the firms surveyed reported that they “prefer to invest in new technology to perform work rather than hire or retain employees” (para 2).  Further, almost half of the firms also reported that they “prefer to rely on vendors that can be outsourced rather than hire additional employees” (para 3).

Recommendations:

1. As part of their long-term strategy, universities need to consider career-oriented certificate programs, refresher courses, and online mentoring that would be geared to students’ schedules.
2. Universities would benefit from establishing online training programs in affiliation with businesses and entrepreneurs – the “job creators and enablers” (p. 4) of the future
   

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   In her TED talk, Daphne Koller (2012) maintains that universities could benefit from offering free online courses as a means of gaining more insight about how people learn.

References

Koller, D. (2012, August 1). What we’re learning from online education. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6FvJ6jMGHU

O’Neil, L. (2014, August 31).  Surviving the gig economy.  The Boston Globe, p. A1.  Retrieved from  http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2014/08/30/surviving-gig-economy/kNnzDGxgu7nvju8JhdAKVN/story.html

Richardson, W. (2014, September 10). The ‘coming gig economy’ is already here [Web blog post]. Retrieved from http://willrichardson.com/?wref=bif

Zogby, J. & Zogby, J. (2014). 2014 global survey of students. Retrieved from http://www.laureate.net/~/media/Files/LGG/Documents/About/Zogby%20Executive%20Summary.ashx

In “Teachers in the Age of Digital Instruction,” The Fordham Institute (2011) presented a policy statement regarding how technology will impact the teaching profession.  In the digital age, effective teachers will be those who are capable of leveraging technology to produce outstanding learning outcomes among massive numbers of students.  As a result of this transformation, a hierarchy will emerge, and the nation will require fewer teachers.  Effective teachers  will be retained through increased pay and career opportunities.  Average teachers will be relieved of duties involving “complex tasks” (p. 2) and will be used to personalize instruction to students in traditional classrooms.  Their working hours will be reduced, along with pay.  Ineffective teachers will work as tutors, monitor online learning labs, or be replaced by candidates who are more qualified.  Teacher training programs will appeal to “digital natives” (p. 7), those who have grown up using digital tools, as opposed to “digital immigrants” (p. 7),  those who were not born into the digital age but who adapted to and sometimes adopted technology (Prensky, 2001).  Great teachers will become “media-genic super-instructors” who reach “boundless number of students” (p. 5).

What’s wrong with this picture? 

Any number of things, as pointed out by Luis A. Huerta in an article entitled “Review of Teachers in the Age of Digital Instruction” (2012).   The Fordham Institute report lacks empirical research evidence to support its assertion that the digital technologies will improve education.  According to Huerta, it presents a utopian vision that is untenable in guiding future policy and practice.  Although teachers do need to “harness technology to optimize learning” (Derbel, 2013, p. 94), the process will likely unfold gradually in slow pedagogical transitions.  While teachers may not enthusiastically embrace digital tools, as depicted in The Fordham Institute report, online roles will certainly encompass more complex tasks.  Derbel (2013) identified three roles that will need to be adopted:  an instructional design role, a managerial role, and a social role that includes humanistic teaching that draws on best practices in face-to-face instruction.  Effective instructors will therefore require a mixture of skills in order to facilitate and mediate within online communities in the future.

Recommendation:  Take “Contemporary Teaching and Learning Concepts,” offered in the DHSc program at A.T. Still University, to find out more about distance education.

References

Derbel, F. (2013). Facilitation of learning in electronic environments: Reconfiguring the teacher’s role. Proceedings of The International Conference On E-Learning, 94-100.

Hassel, B. C., & Hassel, E. A.  (2011).  Teachers in the age of digital instruction.  Thomas B. Fordham Institute.  Retrieved from http://edex.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/publication/pdfs/20111116_TeachersintheAgeofDigitalInstruction_7.pdf

Huerta, L. A.  (2012).  Review of ‘teachers in the age of digital instruction’. National Education Policy Center.  Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED530732.pdf

Prensky, M.  (2001).  Digital natives, digital immigrants.  On the Horizon, 9(5), 1 – 6.