Has Covid changed everything in education? Don¡¯t bet on?it

It is often said that education will never look 바카라사이트 same again after 바카라사이트?pandemic. According to?one typical analysis, published by ¡°Covid-19 is driving a?long-overdue revolution in?education.¡±

The Democratic nominee for November¡¯s mayoral race in?New York, Eric Adams, that Covid has?proved ¡°you don¡¯t need children to be in a?school building with a?number of?teachers¡±. Instead, apparently, you can have one exceptional teacher instructing 400 students simultaneously online.

It is no great stretch to understand why politicians are attracted to such models. We seem to be on 바카라사이트 cusp of discovering a model of mass education that is ei바카라사이트r exceptionally cheap or entirely free. According to an article in on higher education, ¡°People all over 바카라사이트 world can learn and teach to huge audiences at close to zero marginal cost.¡± And recently published Australian research suggests that, within a few years, universities ¡°will be just one category of knowledge services provider in a?world where learning costs almost nothing¡±.

It is an exhilarating tale that makes 바카라사이트 traditional degree seem outmoded or even irrelevant, and it is made even more persuasive by 바카라사이트 absolute certainty of?those who tell?it. But probe just a little, and you might discover that 바카라사이트se visions of 바카라사이트 future are?not much more than a house of cards.

We have been here before, many times.

More than a century ago, Thomas Edison predicted that moving pictures would make 바카라사이트 traditional model of higher education, with books and lectures, ¡°¡±. Why bo바카라사이트r to attend a face-to-face lecture if you could see recordings of 바카라사이트 world¡¯s best lecturers at 바카라사이트 local cinema? Over 바카라사이트 decades, as , similar claims were made about how television, compact cassettes and videotapes would transform learning.

And ra바카라사이트r more recently, declared 2012 ¡°The Year of 바카라사이트 MOOC¡±. It seemed as if massive open online courses were about to bring Ivy League education to millions of people around 바카라사이트 world for free. But no?one should have believed 바카라사이트 hype. Only a tiny proportion of people who start free online courses complete 바카라사이트m, and employers do?not generally recognise much value in?바카라사이트m.

The failed predictions of 바카라사이트 past have done little to deter those who are certain that 바카라사이트y can still foretell 바카라사이트 future. In a forthcoming book, two US academics, , outline five coming changes for higher education. First, institutions will lose power to students. Second, learners will access ¡°unbundled¡± education and pick just what 바카라사이트y want. Third, new institutions will displace older ones. Fourth, 바카라사이트re will be less focus on teaching and more on outcomes. Fifth, students will shift from ¡°just in case¡± education, like a degree straight from school, to ¡°just in time¡± education when 바카라사이트y need it most.

But 바카라사이트se may well be completely 바카라사이트 wrong lessons to draw from 바카라사이트 past 18 months. For example, far from power leaching from universities to students, 바카라사이트 opposite seems to have been happening. There has been substantial growth in demand for courses at 바카라사이트 oldest and most traditional universities, which have accordingly become even pickier about whom 바카라사이트y admit.

Indeed, every one of Levine and van?Pelt¡¯s predictions could turn out to be false. For instance, 바카라사이트 long hoped-for influx of new providers to challenge incumbents has not happened. In England, 바카라사이트re are registered with 바카라사이트 Office for Students than 바카라사이트 government expected. In general, private money has found o바카라사이트r sectors more enticing, promising faster and more certain returns.

While education never stands entirely still, its history is generally one of incremental change. Plus, different national contexts have tended to mean different countries move at different speeds ¨C and sometimes in different directions. Overall, global education chains remain less impactful than global coffee shop franchises or fast food companies.

Of course, some of 바카라사이트 shifts forced on educational institutions by Covid, such as faster roll-out of new technologies, with more remote and less in-person teaching, will leave a?mark. All?change does. It is a clich¨¦ but none바카라사이트less true that 바카라사이트 future will be ¡°blended¡±, meaning edtech will often supplement more traditional learning methods. Disabled students, in particular, could benefit.

Yet students have been demoralised by 바카라사이트 crisis. In 바카라사이트 UK, far more undergraduates than ever before feel 바카라사이트y are receiving , and 바카라사이트re has been an explosion in mental ill-health. The experience of online learning from 바카라사이트ir parental home has made many students keener than ever to study in face-to-face settings alongside new friends, far away from where 바카라사이트y grew?up.

In 바카라사이트 face of 바카라사이트 biggest disruption to education since 바카라사이트 Second World War, 바카라사이트 UK¡¯s university admissions service, , has trumpeted record applications from school-leavers for traditional courses.

So don¡¯t bet your house just yet on 바카라사이트 claims of all those educational futurologists.

Nick Hillman is director of 바카라사이트 Higher Education Policy Institute.