Over the last eight years I have worked in a primarily Distance Education environment and look forward to reviewing this work by MIT.  The passage below caught my eye…

tba:

infoneernet:

Universities must recognize this new way of learning and adapt or risk becoming obsolete. The university model of teaching and learning relies on a hierarchy of expertise, disciplinary divides, restricted admission to those considered worthy, and a focused, solitary area of expertise. However, with participatory learning and digital media, these conventional modes of authority break down.

Today’s learning is interactive and without walls. Individuals learn anywhere, anytime, and with greater ease than ever before. Learning today blurs lines of expertise and tears down barriers to admission. While it has never been confined solely to the academy, today’s opportunities for independent learning have never been easier nor more diverse.

Full PDF Download available from MIT Press

Bill Gates brings an optimistic perspective on how the web can change higher education five years from now…

infoneer-pulse:

“Five years from now on the web for free you’ll be able to find the best lectures in the world,” Gates said at the Techonomy conference in Lake Tahoe, CA today. “It will be better than any single university,” he continued.

He believes that no matter how you came about your knowledge, you should get credit for it. Whether it’s an MIT degree or if you got everything you know from lectures on the web, there needs to be a way to highlight that.

He made sure to say that educational institutions are still vital for children, K-12. He spoke glowingly about charter schools, where kids can spend up to 80% of their time deeply engaged with learning.

But college needs to be less “place-based,” according to Gates. Well, except for the parties, he joked.

» via TechCrunch

It is very exciting to see grant money geared toward Online Education.  I hope Colleges have the resources to take advantage of this opportunity.  It is easy to get bogged down in the bureaucracy of just keeping yourself above water with the every day necessities.

infoneer-pulse:

The education gap facing the nation’s work force is evident in the numbers. Most new jobs will require more than a high school education, yet fewer than half of Americans under 30 have a postsecondary degree of any kind. Recent state budget cuts, education experts agree, promise to make closing that gap even more difficult.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and four nonprofit education organizations are beginning an ambitious initiative to address that challenge by accelerating the development and use of online learning tools.

An initial $20 million round of money, from the Gates Foundation, will be for postsecondary online courses, particularly ones tailored for community colleges and low-income young people. Another round of grants, for high school programs, is scheduled for next year.

» via The New York Times

Very interesting article, however I take issue with the author’s use of the phrase “Computer classes” instead of Online or Distance Education Classes.

I don’t think any of the predictions listed below are particularly surprising, but even I would need some convincing that Physical Education, as the average person would think of it (gym class), should be online. 

DON’T BE SURPRISED IF …

Seven online learning trends to watch in 2011 (and beyond)

1. “Blended” courses, where students spend part of the time with a teacher and part of the time online, become common.

2. The next generation of school buildings will be smaller. Online learning won’t require students to be present all at once.

3. One in four students will be enrolled in classes taught over the Internet within five years.

4. Half of high school classes will be offered through computers by 2019.

5. Rural or small schools expand language, advanced placement and highly specialized elective courses through online networks.

6. Music and physical education classes are offered online in greater frequency.

7. More college students, especially at the graduate level, earn degrees without setting foot on campus.

— Press research