Online and Professional Continuing Education News
See below for a listing of curated news articles of the day brought to you by Ray Schroeder, Senior Fellow at UPCEA.
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- College Leaders Are Using A.I. Students Call It Hypocrisy. - Mark Arsenault and Alan Blinder, NY TimesCollege professors and administrators have been busting students for cheating with artificial intelligence for several years. Now, the professors and administrators are getting in trouble, too. Dartmouth College last week announced it was investigating its provost, Santiago Schnell, after the college’s student-run newspaper found that some of his published writing appeared written by A.I. Dr. […]
- Career Prep When No One Knows What’s Next - Colleen Flaherty, Inside Higher EdCameron Sublett, senior director of innovation and incubation at FoundationCCC, which supports California’s community colleges, explained that job forecasting—with its direct implications for the postsecondary mission—has “always been a mad science,” and that AI disruption has added “so many more layers of complexity, confusion and noise.” Citing the economist David Autor, Sublett said that society […]
- Can GenAI actually help build better learning modules? - Toni Jones, et al; RMIT AustraliaBuilding a high-quality online learning module is a substantial undertaking that involves a range of tasks, such as writing and organising content, developing activities, sourcing multimedia, structuring pages for accessibility, and aligning it all with learning outcomes. At GAILE, we've been curious about where Gen AI might help in that process, and where it does […]
- From AGI to ASI - Tim Genewein, et al; arXivAfter characterizing ASI, the report discusses four potential pathways from AGI to ASI: scaling AGI, AI paradigm shifts, recursive improvement, and ASI emerging from large-scale multi-agent collectives. The report then discusses possible frictions and bottlenecks along these pathways. Determining whether the impact of these frictions will be negligible or substantial raises a number of concrete […]
- How one president is creating new pathways for older students - Alcino Donadel, University BusinessThe Western New Mexico University president has a personal stake in this mission. A GED graduate, Coll was a firefighter and Marine before he entered college. His work portfolio and community college certificates helped him earn his associate degree, a critical moment that propelled him into higher education leadership. “I see my own lived experience […]
- Friendship is built over time, through ordinary moments – I teach lonely college students to notice them - Justin Vaughn, the ConversationMany new students want close relationships, but feel anxious about initiating them and have had little practice sustaining them.I realized that my students rarely spoke to one another, and went entire semesters without learning their classmates’ names. Many students seemed unsure how to cross the few feet between them and their peers and make the […]
- Education agents are coming. Prepare now for international recruitment’s new chapter. - David King, University BusinessU.S. universities and colleges, however, have chosen to go it alone. Many build international recruitment infrastructure themselves, relying on international travel, admissions staff and direct marketing. This stance is the result of a number of factors: regulatory history, institutional caution, and a belief that their brand strength alone is sufficient. Here’s the thing. Many international […]
- The Students Crowdfunding for Tuition - Johanna Alonso, Inside Higher EdGoFundMe, the largest crowdfunding site, has seen an over 20 percent increase in fundraisers for tuition and related expenses over the past year, according to data the company shared with Inside Higher Ed. That rise comes as Americans have reckoned with rising costs under the Trump administration and declines in social services like food assistance […]
- Stanford apologizes, saying AI-altered photo that changed student’s gender and race violated policy -Minyvonne Burke, NBCStanford University said the use of artificial intelligence to alter the race and appearance of students in a promotional photo violated its policy and was “a serious error in judgment.” The controversy centers on an image of three students posing in front of Star Ginger in the university’s dining hall, according to The Stanford Review, […]
- University of Phoenix study finds GenAI use among online adult learners associated with academic performance and technology confidence - University of PhoenixUniversity of Phoenix scholars have published new peer-reviewed research examining how non-traditional undergraduate students use generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in online higher education. The study found that more frequent GenAI use was significantly associated with higher academic performance and stronger confidence in technology skills, while lower confidence in reading, writing and math and greater time […]
- When Nontraditional Students Become the Norm - Joshua Bay, Inside Higher EdAdult learners, working students, student parents, transfer students and first-generation students are often grouped under the broad umbrella of “nontraditional” students. While their experiences differ, they also highlight the various ways higher education is, or isn’t, designed around the realities of students’ lives. Many of these students are navigating similar pressures: balancing college with work […]
- Andreessen Horowitz launches AI school as college alternative - Megan Cerullo, CBS NewsVenture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz announced on Tuesday that it is launching an academy, billed as a college alternative, for aspiring AI and other technology entrepreneurs. The unaccredited program, called the Horowitz Andreessen Academy, will focus its curriculum on teaching people how to build products and services from the ground up using AI. Specifically, the […]
- How to stay smart in the age of AI: the science of critical thinking - Helen Pearson, NatureEarlier this year, education researcher Lixiang Yan realized that students could outsource all of their work for his university course to artificial intelligence. In praise of human teachers: universities must resist outsourcing everything to AI. Yan, who teaches at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China, was using an agentic AI called Codex to set up an […]
- Two years of OpenAI Academy - OpenAITo ensure the benefits of AI are broadly shared, people need the skills and confidence to use it in their everyday lives. Since launching in September 2024, OpenAI Academy has helped people build those skills through practical training for tasks ranging from teaching and running a small business to developing software. Over the past two […]
- U of Kentucky Online recognizes faculty, staff for excellence in online teaching - Lindsey Piercy, UKnowThree faculty members and four staff members were honored Sept. 16 during the University of Kentucky Online Awards ceremony, which featured the inaugural presentation of the UK Online Teaching Award. Now in its second year, the UKO Advocate recognition expands the UKO Excellence Awards by giving UK Online staff an opportunity to nominate faculty or staff […]
- The next AI divide is between learning and earning - Taha Bawa and Michele Malejki, World Economic ForumYoung people are rapidly adopting artificial intelligence (AI) but knowing how to use AI does not automatically translate into jobs or income. Training should extend to hands-on projects, such as internships and apprenticeships, so young people can hone their skills. A lack of access to devices, connectivity and professional networks can prevent young people from […]
- Small Moves, Big Impact: Building a Positive Climate in Online Classes - Amie Cieminski, Faculty FocusOne of the challenges that online instructors face is creating a sense of connectedness in which students feel present, “seen,” heard, and part of the learning community. We know student engagement and learning are enhanced when students feel connected—students to the content, students to the instructor, and students to each other. In online environments, social […]
- The economics of AI - McKinsey QuarterlyAI is getting more expensive for companies. As rising token usage and workflow complexity make costs harder to predict, leaders need new ways to manage AI economics. Even with token prices falling, AI operating costs keep rising. Companies that get it right understand the six drivers behind this gap.https://www.mckinsey.com/quarterly/the-five-fifty/five-fifty-the-economics-of-ai
- Recursive Self-Improvement of AI Without Comprehensive Review and Alignment - Ray Schroeder, Inside Higher EdIn the high-tech, high-competition AI field, we are seeing new versions of models rolled out by the frontier companies (OpenAI, Google and Anthropic) every month and a half. I included a Release Cadence Breakdown report by Google Gemini in the “Online: Trending Now” column just a few weeks ago. The speed and intensity of the […]
- 5 Ways AI Is Reshaping Student Success - Joshua Bay, Inside Higher EdRecent initiatives and research show the technology influencing how colleges identify students who may need additional help, where young people turn for emotional support, how students learn and experiment, and the skills they’ll need after graduation. At the same time, students themselves have expressed concerns about their dependence on AI and how well their institutions […]
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News from UPCEA:
2020 UPCEA Benchmarking Research Agenda
Did you know that each year, UPCEA members receive benchmarking data from the Center for Research and Strategy, directed by Jim Fong? UPCEA benchmarking research is not just the industry standard—it is also a nonprofit service designed for institutions like yours. Look out for these…
Gen Z Takeover: Could online colleges gain traction with young students? (Education Dive)
Four-year universities have long encouraged students coming straight from high school to enroll in their campus-based programs while guiding older learners to their online divisions, creating a divide between the two groups. But Generation Z, whose members were born in 1997 or later, may prove…
Online Education Advocacy Group Launches as Dept. of Ed Proposes Loosening Regulations (EdSurge)
To advocate for and on behalf of effective online teaching and learning practices, four organizations are joining forces to establish the National Council for Online Education. The partnership linking the Online Learning Consortium, Quality Matters, University Professional and Continuing Education Association and WICHE Cooperative for Educational…
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