Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eCampus News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

21 ways to empower students, innovators, and institutions

Higher education is long overdue for a refresh–and that refresh could be achieved by moving to empower students, institutions, and innovators, according to a new whitepaper.

In the face of increasing costs and deeper questions about higher ed’s purpose, the Department of Education in December issued a whitepaper outlining student-centered reform goals pertaining to a variety of issues, including academic and career mobility, constructing accountability measures, and expanding student aid.

The DoE is looking for institutions, innovators, entrepreneurs, educators, and students who can create and advance student-centered reforms that empower students and other key stakeholder groups.…Read More

#8: Predicting the next 20 years in higher ed reveals 5 major themes

[Editor’s note: This story, originally published on October 2nd of this year, was our #8 most popular story of the year. Happy holidays, and thank you for tuning into our 2017 countdown!]

Higher education in the U.S. is facing unprecedented challenges. Long viewed as an engine for success, recent surveys show a partisan erosion in that faith in higher ed. This erosion of trust, coupled with significant demographic shifts and growing costs, are fueling national debates over the purpose, value, and funding of higher education.

In an effort to understand what the next 20 years will hold for higher ed, Blackboard recently released Future Forward: The Next Twenty Years of Higher Education, a series of interviews with American higher education leaders. We asked these leaders to reflect on the last 20 years of U.S. higher education and consider what the next 20 years might hold.…Read More

6 characteristics of an innovative university

Just like 2016’s improvement trends, academic program creation and evaluation was top-of-mind with institutions. However, this year colleges and universities looked to diversify their program portfolios, either through offering online or blended learning offerings, through offering micro-credentials, or by placing their bets on emerging programs.

This is just one of the trends highlighted in Hanover Research’s 2017 Industry Trend Report, which studies the impact of these improvement trends across the 800 research projects commissioned by over 300 higher education clients (Hanover’s client list includes Georgetown University, Gonzaga, Johns Hopkins, Texas A&M, and Wake Forest to name a few). Hanover’s research work spans all institutional type—four-year, community college, business schools, law schools—as well as departments like marketing, academic affairs and finance/operations.

What’s also noteworthy this year is that Hanover has gone a step further in identifying the overarching improvement trend of academic program creation and review by including a list of the top high-growth and emerging programs in higher ed at the moment.…Read More

Predicting the next 20 years in higher ed reveals 5 major themes

Higher education in the U.S. is facing unprecedented challenges. Long viewed as an engine for success, recent surveys show a partisan erosion in that faith in higher ed. This erosion of trust, coupled with significant demographic shifts and growing costs, are fueling national debates over the purpose, value, and funding of higher education.

In an effort to understand what the next 20 years will hold for higher ed, Blackboard recently released Future Forward: The Next Twenty Years of Higher Education, a series of interviews with American higher education leaders. We asked these leaders to reflect on the last 20 years of U.S. higher education and consider what the next 20 years might hold.

Across the interviews, five themes repeatedly emerged:…Read More

3 nontraditional pathways taking over higher ed

It’s an increasingly popular trend among the young crowd: opting out of a traditional 4-year college experience immediately after high school graduation to pursue nontraditional pathways to postsecondary education.

According to a brief from Coding Dojo (a coding bootcamp), Noodle (an ed website aimed at helping parents and students make better learning decisions), and UnCollege (a program aimed to equip young adults with skills to succeed both personally and professionally post-high school), there are three distinctive nontraditional pathways students seem most inclined to pursue…and for good reason.

“College costs keep growing and student debt is over one trillion dollars,” explained Richard Wang, CEO at Coding Dojo in a statement. “These alternative education options can help keep student debt under control, while providing individuals with real-world experience and skills employers are looking for in job candidates.”…Read More

4 major changes our colleges should undergo right now

The information age and development of the internet have changed every aspect of human life from dating to journalism. Education did not escape this revolution. From 100 percent online courses to interactive lecture styles, the college experience has changed dramatically in the last couple decades, but some believe that the structure of higher education needs more drastic changes in the near future.

Faculty and staff at Southern New Hampshire University embrace this idea with their Sandbox Collaborative. This program works on pitching and developing ideas to revolutionize education. Some areas in the system that need change are outlined below.

1. Changing General Education Class Delivery…Read More

6 improvement trends spreading like fire across all colleges and universities

Just like 2016’s improvement trends, academic program creation and evaluation is top-of-mind with institutions. However, this year colleges and universities are looking to diversify their program portfolios, either through offering online or blended learning offerings, through offering micro-credentials, or by placing their bets on emerging programs.

This is just one of the trends highlighted in Hanover Research’s 2017 Industry Trend Report, which studies the impact of these improvement trends across the 800 research projects commissioned by over 300 higher education clients (Hanover’s client list includes Georgetown University, Gonzaga, Johns Hopkins, Texas A&M, and Wake Forest to name a few). Hanover’s research work spans all institutional type—four-year, community college, business schools, law schools—as well as departments like marketing, academic affairs and finance/operations.

What’s also noteworthy this year is that Hanover has gone a step further in identifying the overarching improvement trend of academic program creation and review by including a list of the top high-growth and emerging programs in higher ed at the moment.…Read More

5 things higher ed can learn from the food truck phenomenon

Unless you have been hiding out in the remote hills of the Appalachians, you have probably noticed the onslaught and popularity of food trucks over the last several years. Although street food is anything but new, almost every suburban and metropolitan area now has a plethora of food trucks serving everything from fusion to comfort food.

In my own town, we have several special events based on food trucks, as well as several new bars or pubs that allow food trucks to serve as their mobile kitchen. And even though they are using a familiar idea, why have food trucks become so popular? And better yet, what could institutions and educators learn from the phenomenon?

…Read More

5 revelations about higher ed based on their research projects

Hanover Research pulls together comprehensive trends report based on college and university research projects; forecasts higher ed’s reinvented future.

It doesn’t matter what type of institution you’re a part of or what department you belong to; according to a new industry trends report, every college and university in the country is tailoring its research projects on academic program management—but why, and what does it mean for higher ed’s direction in the future?

“Facing greater market saturation and heightened scrutiny from state and federal governments, higher education institutions now pursue competitive advantages by specializing their program portfolios and thinking more critically about their longevity,” explains the report produced by Hanover Research, part of its Insight Series.

According to Hanover, over 1,000 research reports commissioned by more than 300 higher education clients (Hanover’s client list includes Georgetown University, Gonzaga, Johns Hopkins, Texas A&M, and Wake Forest to name a few) have dealt with program management; specifically, new program development.…Read More

Why traditional institutions must assess or be assessed

Purdue University scholar discusses what standardized assessments for institutions may look like, what they should incorporate.

It’s a debate that’s spreading across the country: should colleges and universities have standardized assessments to measure student performance metrics? The Obama administration says yes, while most campus faculty and students say no. What should be done?

According to Fredrik deBoer, a scholar and lecturer at Purdue University, it’s only a matter of time before institutions are forced to assess student performance in a standardized way, so they might as well get ahead of the curve in order to retain control of those assessments.

“Every conversation that’s taking place about higher education today ultimately ends up around assessments,” said Kevin Carey, New America’s education policy program director, during a recent New America panel hosted in Washington, D.C.  “Whenever there’s talk about price, value, outcomes, accreditation, innovation implementation, et cetera, it always comes down to proving student learning somehow. And weirdly enough, there’s very little solid research on student learning at the individual student- and department-level.”…Read More