New President of Yale Peter Salovey on a Digital Strategy, Online Education and MOOCs!

Dear Commons Community,

Yale University said Thursday that Peter Salovey, a celebrated scholar of psychology who has been its provost for the past four years, would be its new president.  In his first interview since being named, he indicated that he will have a number if challenges.  One issue he sees as critical is accessibility.

“That means figuring out ways for deserving students to wind up on this campus,” he said, “but it also means a digital strategy that makes more of Yale’s treasure — whether it’s scholarship or pedagogy or collections — available online. Moving from a collection of opportunities to a deliberate strategy for giving the riches of Yale, the wealth of Yale, away.”

That includes online education, a field which many universities are now struggling to navigate.

“I think the excitement about MOOCs” — massive online open courses — “is fine,” Dr. Salovey said, “but it’s really only one part of what online tools can provide, and it may in the end not be the most important part.”

A potentially larger question, he said, is how to adapt the old teaching model for students who have grown up online.

By way of experimentation, in the seminar he teaches this semester, called Great Big Ideas, students watch the course’s lectures online, leaving classroom time entirely free for interactive discussion.”

Good luck to President Salovey and may he lead Yale well!

Tony

 

Californians Approve Tax Increases for Education!

Dear Commons Community,

Californians showed amazing good sense by voting to  approve temporary tax increases to raise $6 billion a year to shore up the state’s tattered public schools and university system. The New York Times editorial (see below) reviews the importance of this referendum,  In essence, there were voters in these hard times agreeing to be taxed despite the “no new taxes” mantra of simplistic conservative politicians.

Good for California!

Tony

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New York Times Editorial

11/9/12

Californians Say Yes to Taxes

Of all the state election results across the nation, few can top the shocking good sense of California voters in approving temporary tax increases to raise $6 billion a year to shore up the state’s tattered public schools and university system. That’s right: There were voters in these hard times agreeing to be taxed despite the “no new taxes” mantra of simplistic conservative politicians.

The ballot measure, Proposition 30, was an audacious gamble by Gov. Jerry Brown. It was thoroughly derided by a well-financed opposition led by antitax conservative groups with undisclosed donors. It raises the state sales tax by one-fourth of 1 percent for four years and increases income taxes for seven years on those making more than $250,000 a year.

California’s serial budget crises over many years have resulted in increased class sizes in schools, reduced instruction time and layoffs of thousands of teachers across the state. Meanwhile, students in the state’s public colleges and universities have faced rising tuition, fewer campus resources and shrinking chances for enrollment. Officials say the ballot measure’s approval will mean that public school systems will not have to reduce the length of school years and colleges will not have to raise tuition. It will also allow community colleges to restore thousands of classes and add 20,000 students.

As is so often the case in California, where the 1978 property tax revolt led by Howard Jarvis became the stuff of political folklore, a new and unpredictable chapter may be opening. This week, voters also gave the Democrats, led by Governor Brown, two-third majorities in both houses of the State Legislature. This means that they will have “supermajority” control and the ability to raise taxes and pass other measures without Republican approval.

Mr. Brown, aware that single-party control can lead to trouble, quickly promised no new “spending binges.” Keeping that promise will require vigilance from voters. It will be interesting to see if in raising taxes for education, California will initiate another national movement.

 

 

Campus Leaders Speak Out on Value of Keeping Tech Accessible!

Dear Commons Community,

This was passed onto me by my colleague, Janet Poley at the University of Nebraska.  The 15-minute video, “IT Accessibility: What Campus Leaders Have to Say,” features university leaders and campus-technology staff members speaking about the importance of using technology to make college campuses more accessible. The AccessComputing project, run by the department of computer science and engineering and the Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology Center at the University of Washington, produced the video with funds from the National Science Foundation.

Worth a look!

Tony