Some of the Challenges facing Education
Educational institutions do not exist in a vacuum. They are
influenced by the societal events constantly occurring around
them. Recently several developments in the workplace,
changes in student demographics, and the economic trends are
forcing educational institutions to change.
Developments in the Workplace
- Employers are seeking employees who are technology and
information literate.
- The education of new knowledge workers requires emphasis on
information access, problem solving, analysis, evaluation, and
decision making.
- Rapid change and uncertainty in the workplace encourages employers to seek
individuals who already have the required skills.
- Learners need frequent short-term updating as required skills change.
- The increasing number of part-time workers require more
flexible acess to education.
- The growth of knowledge in any field is rapidly outstripping any individual's ability to remain
current. Knowing how to access information rather than memorizing
information is central to coping with this rapid change.
Demographics
- Trends show decreasing numbers of younger students and
increasing numbers of older students.
- Older students have more outside-school obligations that need to
be considered in academic delivery.
- Growing numbers of students are working part-time while enrolled
in full-time programs. Current educational delivery systems do
not meet their unique needs.
Economic Pressures
- Each year enrollment and operating costs increase, while
funding decreases.
- Classroom space within colleges is fully utilized despite the
fact that enrollments are expected to increase. There is little
or no money for expansion.
- The faculty are already working as hard as they can. Trying to
get the faculty to work harder will not produce greater
efficiency.
- There is a limit to how high tuition can be raised before
students begin to seek less expensive alternatives.
Competition
- Private business has begun to see profit potential in
offering short, inexpensive market-specific training that appears
to be highly relevant to students. This training directly
competes with traditional college programs.
- Access to the Internet allows learners to take courses virtually
anywhere in the world (accreditation is still a major
consideration). There are currently hundreds of courses available
from accredited North American colleges in all academic
disciplines. Geographic location is no longer relevant. We are in
global competition with all other educational providers on the
Net.
Conclusions
- Educational institutions must recognize that the world has
changed. Employers and students have needs that our current
delivery system is not meeting. We face financial constraints
that will not quickly disappear, as well as both global and
private competition. Doing more of what we are currently doing
will not solve these problems. To survive these challenges, we
must find new ways to deliver education to our students. The use
of academic computing can contribute to solving some of
these problems. Over the next five years the use of technology
combined with other measures will dramatically change the nature
of the teaching/learning process.
Forward: Some Web Approaches to these Challenges
Back: The Web Interface to the Internet