Disruptive change always has the potential to create fear or resistance amongst those involved in the changes. But for those of us in academe – many of whom are highlighted in the following articles – I encourage us to meet these challenges with a sense of renewed optimism. We have the potential to bring about fundamental change that will make our institutions and therefore our citizenry stronger.
Here are some of the primary areas of change, and the challenges we face:
The importance of college and career readiness is increasing: Getting into and out of college in as efficient a manner as possible will increase the demand for students who are college ready. States, schools, and universities need to figure out what they must do to improve college readiness and lessen the need for remediation. We have too many students who arrive at the doorsteps of college not ready for academic work; we have even more who get into college but never get out. And an even greater number graduate from high school or college but are not career ready.
College participation rates are increasing, but not enough: If the country is going to demonstrate significant growth, then for-profits must be involved, and public institutions must demonstrate a dedication to significant curricular change. The former aren’t. The latter won’t. An improving economy, however, will enable modest growth. A booming economy needs a better educated workforce.
Privatization is both stalling and taking on new transformations: Congress has again focused its ire on for-profit higher education. Until for-profits can prove their worth, federal and state monies are likely to be withheld or at least not increased. At the same time we are seeing a rise in alternative providers. “Postsecondary institutions,” whether non-profit or for-profit, are no longer the only game in town. These new providers will increase.
The euphoria over MOOCs (and technology) is being tempered: After the initial exuberance that MOOCs will solve all of academe’s problems, the focus has turned to their quality. It’s fine and good that a gizmo can serve 30,000 students but is it any good? Only three percent of college presidents believe MOOCs will improve learning. (Read Dean Gallagher’s opinion on page 14.) About 15 states and a handful of private institutions have signed agreements with outfits likeCoursera but several institutions also have balked at signing such agreements because they are without any knowledge on how to gauge their effectiveness.
Too many of our students remain at risk: The tortured path toward immigration reform has meant that undocumented students have years ahead of them before the country will be able to tap their skills. Only three out of 100 foster care youth who enter ninth grade eventually get a four-year degree. The numbers are similar for those who are homeless. In a country as rich as ours, how comfortable should we be with such numbers? Gandhi once said, “A nation’s greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members.”
These challenges may appear daunting, but with resolve each one presents us with opportunities that might enable the country to be economically stronger and have a more engaged citizenry in the democratic public sphere for the future.
