Title: "Futures of Formal Postsecondary Education in a Net-infused World: The Next 10 Years"

Day: Thursday, June 2, 2005

Time: 13:30-15:00

Location: A03

Chair: Paul Kirschner

Panelists: Terry Anderson, Sharon Derry, Cindy Hmelo, Naomi Miyake

Abstract:
Panelists from different disciplines and different continents give their views on the futures of formal postsecondary education in a net-infused world for the next 10 years. The goal of this panel is not only to present “expert” ideas, but also to solicit lively discussion both among the presenters themselves (debate) as well as the floor participants (plenary free-for-all). The goal is to explore future possibilities for successful formal postsecondary education worldwide in a net-infused world.

Even though we have come to understand the values and design principles for collaborative learning in higher education, we still see highly collaborative programs with paced courses and cohorts, somewhat antithetical to both a CSCL- and a community philosophy. Many higher education courses – often set up and made available by traditional institutions looking to solve perceived problems or trying to expand their market – come from a tradition of independent study with their specific paradigms, techniques and dogmas, so when the technology allows collaboration, it is regarded as a disruption. We need better understanding of topics and answers to questions like:

• Is good learning necessarily collaborative?

• How should issues like off-task behavior and privacy management be handled in networked courses (or do these issues really exist?)?

• What sort of pedagogical philosophy do we need other than constructivism (or is constructivism even the philosophy to use)?

• Can formal institutions survive learning opportunity abundance?

• How should we build community beyond the course: Can we create more spontaneous communities of learners that support learner-paced formal learning models?

• Can blending F2F and campus-based interaction be more beneficial than either separately?

Each panelist will address one or more of the issues, giving both pros and cons as (s)he has evidence from research. The audience is invited to take part. After this first round, the audience will be asked which issue(s) – maximally 2 – they would like to discuss in depth (via a hand count). The remaining time will be used for immediate deeper interaction on the issue(s).

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