Inside Higher Ed Archives - Wally Boston
Home Tag "Inside Higher Ed"
Some Thoughts on Inside Higher Ed’s 2013 Survey of Parents
This article is part 2 of a 2 part series reviewing the results of Inside Higher Ed’s most recently-released surveys. The first survey took the pulse of higher education from the perspective of college and university presidents. The second survey asked largely similar questions of parents of students in grades 5 through 12. While both offer insightful glimpses into the ways in which each group views the current trends in online education, there are notable differences in how respondents of the two surveys view the higher educational situation in America today.
You can’t read a recent issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education or Inside Higher Ed without seeing an article discussing the disruption that technology or MOOCs (Massively Open Online Course) are having or will have on the higher education sector. Because of the publicity, I receive questions from colleagues at conferences and other events asking me for my opinion about the potential for higher education disruption, the roadmap that it will take, and who will survive.
Ithaka S+R recently published a report funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and titled, “Barriers to Adoption of Online Learning Systems in U.S. Higher Education.” I have written extensively on this blog about the economic constraints facing institutions of higher education, issues of student persistence and retention, and the litany of other issues daunting the American higher education system today.
The U.S. Department of Education released the findings of a meta-analysis conducted by its Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development on Friday that confirm what online educators have known for years: “on average, students in online learning conditions performed better than those receiving face-to-face instruction.”
Online education has gained tremendous momentum in the last several years.