Predictions For The Future Of Higher Education: What, where, and how will we learn? We cannot living in silo

http://www.fastcoexist.com/3029109/futurist-forum/5-bold-predictions-for-the-future-of-higher-education

1: ACADEMIC CURRICULA WILL BECOME MORE MULTI-DISCIPLINARY

Today’s students demand cross-disciplinary learning and thinking, particularly in science, engineering, and technology. This cross-disciplinary learning demand is manifesting itself in buildings that seek to be academies of tomorrow and entrepreneurial hubs focused on bringing business and creative minds together. Colleges and universities need to think about how these space changes serve as curriculum drivers.

2: EDUCATION LEADERS WILL NEED TO BALANCE MOOCS AND TRADITIONAL LEARNING

It is important to remember higher education institutions don’t need to choose between online learning and traditional learning--they need to find the right balance. Recent research shows a fifth of Chief Academic Officers (CAOs) don’t feel online education is strongly represented in their institutions’ long-term strategies, even though they believe it should be. 

The truth is nature of today’s learning that extends beyond the classroom. Institutions that begin to best leverage an appropriate balance can make better use of time in the classroom and also define tailored approaches to how the professor, student and material work together across the platforms.

3: STUDENT RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION WILL BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER

To best recruit and retain students, universities need to evaluate how they offer a student life experience that prepares students to be healthy and dynamic people in the future.  This is pushing universities to find creative ways to fund new spaces and programming for students. The key here is strategically providing students with key resources that give them more opportunity to make the most of their collegiate life experience.

4: HIGHER EDUCATION NEEDS TO INVEST IN TECHNOLOGY

Today’s students aren’t just bringing their own technology devices to the classroom, they’re also bringing them to the student center, the gym and the dining hall. This increased use places greater demands on a campus IT infrastructure. Universities seeking to solve today’s challenges will need to respond with robust access and bandwidth upgrades. At the same time, institutions needs to respond to the “mobility shift” which allows educators and students to be nimble and engaged from anywhere.

5: HIGHER EDUCATION WILL EXPLORE NEW FUNDING MODELS

The historic practice of providing funding to state institutions based on enrollment is already shifting to performance-based models. These models will redirect educational priorities and investment to help more students succeed while also redefining an institution’s responsibility to its students and its community. While the performance model discussions are more apparent for the state–funded institutions, their impact may extend further as it pertains to incubation, research and corporate support. Already, these systems are gaining momentum and leaders need to be highly involved with their build-out.