Beyond the Post: 10/23/20

Beyond Academics asks to hear your thoughts, comments, and opinions on the topics we’ve covered throughout the week. Let’s keep the conversation about Higher Education going.

BA Is On YouTube!

Beyond Academic has two YouTube channels: Beyond Academics and the recently launched FutureX Podcast.

Watch the latest videos from Beyond Academics, or listen to Joe Abraham on the FutureX podcast as he interviews the top leaders in higher education.

Matt Alex Discusses the Value of Microlearning

Joe Abraham Interviews Dr. Paul J. LeBlanc, President of SNHU

Be sure to subscribe to both of these channels to stay up-to-date with the latest in Higher Ed from Beyond Academics.

Other Posts

“Who Should Take College-Level Courses?” by Elisabeth A. Barnett, Elizabeth Kopko, Dan Cullinan, and Clive R. Belfield for CAPR

Are standardized tests a good way to determine if a student can succeed in college-level Math and English courses?

Virtually all schools use placement test to evaluate if a student is ready for college level math or English courses. 68% of community college students and 40% of students at public four-year colleges take at least one of these developmental courses. Many students are assigned to multiple levels of math and English developmental courses—which further delay their entry into full college work. The more developmental courses they have, the less likely they are to complete their degree.

The  Center for the Analysis of Postsecondary Readiness (CAPR)  completed a study at seven community colleges in the State University of New York System (SUNY) to determine if using a multi-criteria approach to place students in college-level or developmental courses were more likely to complete college-level work. The results were interesting:

  • Using multiple criteria,  placement in college-level English jumped 34 percentage points, from 46 to 80 percent of students.
  • Students who placed into college-level courses because of multiple measures were 8–10% more likely to complete college-level math or English course within three semesters.
  • Students who were placed into developmental courses were 8–10 percentage points less likely to complete college-level math or English course within three semesters.

Read the full post >>>

“Where Are Most International Students? Stranded Here, Needing Colleges’ Help” by Karin Fischer for The Chronicle of Higher Education

There has been a lot of focus on the drop in enrollment of foreign students in American universities. However, according to the Institute of International Education 9 of 10 foreign students who were enrolled in American universities at the time COVID lockdowns started are still in the US, stranded.

BA Bold Thoughts:

  • How can Higher Ed best accommodate and aid these students who are stranded in the US due to the pandemic?
  • What part does Higher Ed play in the national scheme of getting COVID-19 under control and thereby allowing these students to return to their families?

Let us know your thoughts and answers to these questions.

Read the full post >>>

Tell Us Your Thoughts

Comment on this post, reach out on LinkedIn, or submit your take on any of these topics via email. We want to talk with you about the future of Higher Ed.

No comments to show.

The FutureX Podcast: Ep. 02

Embracing the Mindset of Transformation

In this episode, Joe Abraham interviews Dr. Paul J. LeBlanc, President of Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). Forbes Magazine has listed him as one of its 15 “Classroom Revolutionaries” and one of the “most influential people in higher education.” Listen in on their conversation.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/16D0u5nCMGpfgNwWNDiQMI

Joe gets a refreshing perspective from Dr. LeBlanc where they discuss these discussion points and more.

• What Higher Ed’s role is in preparing students for the future of work?
• What does the future of learning look like?
• What role does an entrepreneurial mindset play in Higher Ed?
• How does the word “consensus” fit into times of existential change?

You will leave this episode inspired, intrigued, and optimistic about the future.

About the Podcast

In The FutureX Podcast, host Joe Abraham interviews the best and brightest minds inside and outside higher education. It’s fun, informative, and inspirational. What does the future hold for Higher Ed?

Beyond the Post: 10/9/2020

Beyond Academics asks to hear your thoughts, comments, and opinions on the topics we’ve covered throughout the week. Let’s keep the conversation about Higher Education going.

The FutureX Podcast

Tune in to the second episode of The FutureX Podcast. In this episode, host Joe Abraham interviews Dr. Paul J. LeBlanc, President of Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). Forbes Magazine has listed him as one of its 15 “Classroom Revolutionaries” and one of the “most influential people in higher education.”

What Higher Ed’s role is in preparing students for the future of work? What does the future of learning look like? What role does an entrepreneurial mindset play in Higher Ed? How does the word “consensus” fit into times of existential change?

As always, sound off in the comments or send us an email. We’d love to hear your thoughts.

Other Posts

“4 Steps To Turn Makeshift Digital Transformation Into Long-Term Success” by Tomoko Yokoi for Forbes

This week, Forbes posted an excellent article on how to turn your quick digital response to COVID into long term success.

BA Bold Thoughts:

Institutions need to take these steps:

  • Empower a well-funded team focused on digital transformation. This will shorten the decision cycle and cut through bureaucracy.
  • Set up a process to capture great ideas from within your institution as well as from your students, alumni, and the local community.
  • Create a “Rapid Test and Learn” environment. The mantra “fail fast and fail often” can waste precious time and resources when the life of your institution may be at stake. It is better to create a “test-and-learn” environment that supports hypothesis-driven experiments and tests, coupled with a rapid turnaround of the results.
  • Think about how your short-term response will support you over a long period of time. Ask questions like: “Is the short-term solution flexible enough to accommodate changes in an evolving technical environment?” “What is the purpose of our overall digital transformation?”

Read the full post >>>

“3 Biggest Reasons Why a Company’s Digital Transformation Fails” by Mike Stahnke for The Next Web

This article compliments the above article from Forbes. When transforming to digital, here are some things you should avoid doing.

BA Bold Thoughts:

  • Digital has a connotation of being cold, unfeeling, and not human, but it’s 2020 and that’s not the case.
  • Digital culture is more important than the technicalities of learning online. You have to create campus affinity.
  • Higher education must be willing to make the necessary changes to truly adapt and transform. Ingrained traditions cannot stand in the way of making a successful digital shift.

Read the full post >>>

Tell Us Your Thoughts

Comment on this post, reach out on LinkedIn, or submit your take on any of these topics via email. We want to talk with you about the future of Higher Ed.

No comments to show.

The FutureX Podcast: Ep. 01

The FutureX Podcast Premiere

In The FutureX Podcast, host Joe Abraham interviews the best and brightest minds inside and outside higher education. It’s fun, informative, and inspirational. What does the future hold for Higher Ed?

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4upa0nwVINAYokzUAsxocm

About the Episode

What’s keeping Presidents and senior leaders of higher education institutions up at night these days? Is it any different now than before the pandemic hit? What should leaders in Higher Ed be considering in times of existential change?

These are just a few of the questions we cover in this segment with the CEO of The League For Innovation In The Community College, Dr. Rufus Glasper. Dr. Glasper also shares insight into what questions we need to be asking about our “innovation readiness” and culture within the campus staff.

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