COMMENTARY

A New Ecology of Learning

DR. PETER SMITH, Senior Vic President, Kaplan Higher Education

February 26, 2010

America is face-to-face with a new ecology of learning when it comes to access and quality in higher education. As described in The Innovator’s Dilemma by Clayton Christiansen, we are now surrounded by circumstances and technology which are “disruptive” to traditional forms of higher education. They lie outside the status quo and offer entirely new possibilities to successfully educate under-served populations to high standards.  With these new possibilities, and with the continued improvement in the traditional sector, America can meet President Obama’s goal of doubling the number of college graduates by 2020. Without them, it simply will not happen.

The new ecology includes at least nine elements that, taken collectively, define the necessity and the inevitability of dramatically new approaches to teaching and learning in American higher education. READ MORE...

The demand for a university education will continue to grow in Ontario by 118,000 from 379,000 in 2006 to 497,000 in 2021.

SOURCE: OCUFA

THE NEWS

A Canadian educational initiative falls victim to technology
By Rory McGreal, Edmonton Journal
A consortium of Bell and Rogers, known as Inukshuk, is dropping out of its obligation to support education in Canada. Historically, the 2500-2690 MHz wireless bandwidth, was designated for educational use in Canada and is especially useful for downloading data with cellular phones. Industry Canada is now renewing the 10-year licence for this 2500-MHz wireless spectrum, while dropping the carrier's obligation to support education.

Education a crucial election issue
by Arati Sharma, The Hamilton Spectator
The most important issue facing Canadians is education. No, seriously. You might think it is the economy, the environment, the energy crisis, but what Canadians are failing to understand is that the solution to all these issues is education.

Agreement on aboriginal dropout rates reached at 'lightning speed'
By Jamie Komarnicki, Calgary Herald
Federal, provincial and First Nations leaders are promising to work together to tackle Alberta's dismal dropout rates for aboriginal youth as part of a new agreement to help native students succeed in school. The agreement, which was first discussed in meetings last June, was developed with "lightning speed" generally uncharacteristic of such multi-jurisdictional deals.

Quebec court rejects appeal over school course
The Montreal Gazette
A court battle waged by two parents in Drummondville against the ethics and religious culture course taught in Quebec schools has hit another roadblock. The Quebec Court of Appeal has rejected their bid to appeal a judgment that turned down a request to have their sons exempted from the mandatory course. Justice Jean-Guy Dubois ruled in August that their right to freedom of religion was not being violated.

UBC students spend Olympic 'holiday' in inner-city schools
By Janet Stefenhagen, Vancouver Sun 
Over 500 university students traded their "reading week" holiday this month for a chance to work with children in inner-city schools. It's the third year the University of B.C. has teamed up with SAP, a global software company, to bring student volunteers and emerging corporate leaders together to learn from one another and help children in 26 schools with everything from literacy and math to drama and bullying prevention.

As Ottawa prepares to battle deficit, schools fear for research budget
By Elizabeth Church, Globe and Mail
Ottawa earmarked $2-billion for campus bricks-and-mortar projects in last year's budget. That money, together with matching funds from the provinces and other sources, has kick-started 536 projects, ranging from new multimillion-dollar facilities to upgrades of existing buildings. Now, as Ottawa turns its attention to slaying a record deficit, campuses face the prospect that their shining new buildings will not be matched with new research dollars.

How to take the bloat out of universities
By Carson Jerema, Winnipeg Free Press
Universities are money pits. There is little relationship between the funding they receive and the number of students they actually educate. Insulated from both the market and the government, there is little incentive for universities to be accountable to anyone but themselves. That is why it is so refreshing that the University of Manitoba has embarked on two massive projects -- one to address administration, and the other to address academics -- aimed at optimizing resources.

Mind the gap
By Rebecca Attwood, The Times
Widening participation is a site of 'moral panic', marked by uncertainties over data and the efficacy of public funding. Despite all this, the academy is striving to deliver on its promise. Widening participation has been the subject of government targets, ministerial speeches, policy initiatives, newspaper headlines and tens of millions of pounds in state funding. After years of expansion, student places will be cut this autumn, and universities are facing financial penalties of £10 million for recruiting the very students the Government claims it wants.

Private college numbers soar despite regulators' crackdown
By Guy Healy, The Australian
Private college numbers have surged by 20 per cent in the past year, defying the federal government crackdown and prompting a warning the sector is still expanding too fast for regulators to cope. As scores of colleges have collapsed or been wound up in the past two years, another 100 providers have sprung up mainly in key problem states of Victoria and NSW, latest official figures show.

Effecting Change on Default Rates
By Doug Lederman, InsideHigherEd.com
Colleges, unlike leopards, can change their spots (or in this case their default rates), according to a new study by the Education Sector. Lowering Student Loan Default Rates is largely a historical look at how a consortium of historically black colleges and universities, faced with the prospect of federal penalties a decade ago, altered their policies and programs in ways that helped to lower their so-called cohort default rates and keep the colleges out of trouble.