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Disruption with Online Education

January 13, 2012 By drbexl Leave a Comment

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A really interesting article in this weeks Times Higher Education which considers how the US system (and probably those of us who end up echoing their systems) is about to face turbulent times with higher and higher fees causing ‘disruption’ as students look for other ways to engage:

This disruption, they say, will force down costs, lure prospective students away from traditional “core” universities, transform the way academics work, and spell the end for the traditional scholarly calendar based around face-to-face teaching

….

Online education will bring a shift by opening higher education to a new middle group in the concentric circles, they argue.

“We use the word ‘disruptive’ not because it is a breakthrough improvement for that middle group, but because it transforms the product or service into something that is so much more affordable and simple that a whole new population can afford it and find that it is accessible to them,” Christensen says.

The book asserts that until now, unlike other industries, higher education has not had a “disruptive innovation” that has forced the sector to drive down costs. The result, says Christensen, has been “sustained and difficult price increases”

….

“Almost invariably, the [established] leaders find it impossible to lead the industry in disruption,” he says. “It’s not technology per se that keeps them in the middle, but the very fact that it is affordable and accessible makes it almost impossible for the [sector's traditional] leaders to address.”

Christensen suggests that instead it will be new institutions and providers that will lead the way in online learning innovations. “What you will see is that online learning will take root in this larger population: people who, either because of the nature of their life or their situation, can’t go to a campus but can do it online.

This is a challenging piece, and one worth a read, as I’m sure the questions will be asked in the UK shortly.

Filed Under Academic Research, Times Higher Education Tagged With Distance Learning, Online Education, University

‘Invest £100m’ to seize cyber-market

January 27, 2011 By drbexl Leave a Comment

Put resources into international online learning, task force recommends. Rebecca Attwood reports

Universities should seize the rapidly growing international market in online learning, but doing so will require investment, a panel of experts has said.

The final report from the government’s Online Learning Task Force, which includes experts from Microsoft, Apple and Pearson, calls for an injection of £100 million over five years to expand the UK’s online provision and boost its brand.

It warns that private providers are moving into the international online market “quickly and aggressively”.

Meanwhile, the growing use of IT in schools is changing students’ expectations of the technology that will be available at university, and the introduction of higher tuition fees could open up a new domestic market as more students consider studying online.

“The higher education sector has been talking about the potential of online learning for well over 10 years. The moment has come if we wish to remain and grow as a major international player in higher education,” says Dame Lynne Brindley, chair of the task force and head of the British Library, in the introduction to the report, Collaborate to Compete: Seizing the Opportunity of Online Learning for UK Higher Education.

Read full story.

Filed Under Times Higher Education Tagged With Distance Learning, Online Learning

Distance Learning: Must Focus on the Learning, Not the Technology

January 21, 2010 By drbexl Leave a Comment

“To maintain the UK’s position in distance learning, we have to focus on education, not technology, argues Helen Lentell

Distance learning in higher education is enjoying a propitious moment, despite – perhaps even because of – the hard times facing the sector.

At last week’s Learning and Technology World Forum in London, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said that the UK could become a “global education superpower”, with e-learning as one of its fastest-growing exports.

E-learning could also solve problems at home: as pressure continues to mount on the academy’s resources, flexible distance learning may become an increasingly attractive solution.

First Secretary Lord Mandelson no doubt had this in mind when announcing the creation of an online distance learning task force last year, backed by a £20 million matched-funding scheme to support centres of excellence. The terms of reference for this group focus on exploring ways of using online distance learning to attract more domestic and international students and increase collaboration between universities and colleges.”

Read the full story.

Universities say they already police compliance and infringements effectively. Matthew Reisz writes

Major concerns have been raised about the impact of the Digital Economy Bill on universities, which fear it is likely to result in a “bureaucratic burden and muddle”.

A central aim of the Bill, which is currently before the House of Lords, is to tackle online copyright infringement – something that Toby Bainton, secretary of the Society of College, National and University Libraries, said “everybody supports”.

However, there are fears that universities, which will be held responsible for the activities of their students, could be unduly affected by the proposals.

Mr Bainton said it appeared that “the position of higher education has not been clearly thought through”, adding that the sector “already has good systems in place that ought to be recognised and worked with”.

Filed Under Academic Research, Learning Tagged With Distance Learning, E-Learning, pedagogy, Times Higher Education