1. Cultural Factors Shaping Crisis Conversations in U.S. Higher Education Sean Johnson Andrews Assistant Professor of Cultural Studies Columbia College Chicago

2. CRISIS! 3. CRISIS! Tuition rising 4. CRISIS! Tuition rising Public funding falling 5. CRISIS! Tuition rising Public funding falling Student Loans at an all time high ($1 trillion in aggregate) 6. CRISIS! Tuition rising Public funding falling Student Loans at an all time high ($1 trillion in aggregate) Unemployment for college grads at an all time high 7. CRISIS! Tuition rising Public funding falling Student Loans at an all time high ($1 trillion in aggregate) Unemployment for college grads at an all time high BA Premium is still high 8. CRISIS! Tuition rising Public funding falling Student Loans at an all time high ($1 trillion in aggregate) Unemployment for college grads at an all time high BA Premium is still high Department of Labor predicts leading jobs of 2020 will requireno more than an Associate 9. CRISIS! Tuition rising Public funding falling Student Loans at an all time high ($1 trillion in aggregate) Unemployment for college grads at an all time high BA Premium is still high Department of Labor predicts leading jobs of 2020 will requireno more than an Associate College Learning Assessment questions value of degree Academically Adrift 10. CRISIS! Tuition rising Public funding falling Student Loans at an all time high ($1 trillion in aggregate) Unemployment for college grads at an all time high BA Premium is still high Department of Labor predicts leading jobs of 2020 will requireno more than an Associate College Learning Assessment questions value of degree Academically Adrift Disruption (a la Christensen) 11. Disruption Christensen discusses college degree as a commodity Disk drive, steam shovel, milkshakes, BA 12. Disruption Christensen discusses college degree as a commodity Disk drive, steam shovel, milkshakes, BA Disruption occurs when a seemingly inferior productaccording to the dominant market meets the demands of a niche market that doesnt care about those qualities. 13. Disruption Christensen discusses college degree as a commodity Disk drive, steam shovel, milkshakes, BA Disruption occurs when a seemingly inferior productaccording to the dominant market meets the demands of a niche market that doesnt care about those qualities. In meeting this niche market, the disruptive industry ends up developing a successor to the dominant product, eventually positioning itself to meet a significant portion of the dominant demand, thereby unseating the incumbent producers. 14. MOOC Mania 15. MOOC Mania edX press release: "single biggest change in education sincethe printing press." 16. MOOC Mania edX press release: "single biggest change in education sincethe printing press." Thomas Friedman: the college education revolution. 17. MOOC Mania edX press release: "single biggest change in education sincethe printing press." Thomas Friedman: the college education revolution. David Brooks: The campus tsunami. 18. MOOC Mania edX press release: "single biggest change in education sincethe printing press." Thomas Friedman: the college education revolution. David Brooks: The campus tsunami. UVA President dismissed by board in favor of a leader who could institute a much faster pace of change. 19. MOOC Mania edX press release: "single biggest change in education sincethe printing press." Thomas Friedman: the college education revolution. David Brooks: The campus tsunami. UVA President dismissed by board in favor of a leader who could institute a much faster pace of change. Less than two months after Coursera launched 20. MOOC Mania edX press release: "single biggest change in education sincethe printing press." Thomas Friedman: the college education revolution. David Brooks: The campus tsunami. UVA President dismissed by board in favor of a leader who could institute a much faster pace of change. Less than two months after Coursera launched Shortly after she was reinstated, they discovered there werealready professors working with Coursera @UVA 21. MOOC Mania edX press release: "single biggest change in education sincethe printing press." Thomas Friedman: the college education revolution. David Brooks: The campus tsunami. UVA President dismissed by board in favor of a leader who could institute a much faster pace of change. Less than two months after Coursera launched Shortly after she was reinstated, they discovered there werealready professors working with Coursera @UVA Etc.. 22. MOOCs mentioned several times aspositive development 23. MOOCs mentioned several times aspositive development Coursera specifically mentioned, twice 24. MOOCs mentioned several times aspositive development Coursera specifically mentioned, twice More important: change in how credits areawarded learning not seat time. 25. MOOCs mentioned several times aspositive development Coursera specifically mentioned, twice More important: change in how credits areawarded learning not seat time. Abandon the Carnegie credits Datapalooza Like Obamas electionteam. 26. MOOCs mentioned several times aspositive development Coursera specifically mentioned, twice More important: change in how credits areawarded learning not seat time. Abandon the Carnegie credits Datapalooza Like Obamas electionteam. In line with Race to the Top 27. MOOCs mentioned several times as positivedevelopment Coursera specifically mentioned, twice More important: change in how credits areawarded learning not seat time. Abandon the Carnegie credits Datapalooza Like Obamas election team. In line with Race to the Top As Diane Ravitch notes, The first time in historythat the U.S. Department of Education designed programs with the intent of stimulating investors to create for-profit ventures in American Education. 28. Connection to K-12, Venture Capital projects 29. Connection to K-12, Venture Capital projects Florida - Now mandatory that all students must take at leastone class online before graduating high school. 30. Connection to K-12, Venture Capital projects Florida - Now mandatory that all students must take at leastone class online before graduating high school. Led by Jeb Bush 31. Connection to K-12, Venture Capital projects Florida - Now mandatory that all students must take at leastone class online before graduating high school. Led by Jeb Bush Supporter of Academic Partnerships 32. Connection to K-12, Venture Capital projects Florida - Now mandatory that all students must take at leastone class online before graduating high school. Led by Jeb Bush Supporter of Academic Partnerships Virtual Charter systems in FL, Colorado, Virginia, and Texasamong other states. 33. Connection to K-12, Venture Capital projects Florida - Now mandatory that all students must take at leastone class online before graduating high school. Led by Jeb Bush Supporter of Academic Partnerships Virtual Charter systems in FL, Colorado, Virginia, and Texasamong other states. Teacher:student can be as high as 1:137 34. Connection to K-12, Venture Capital projects Florida - Now mandatory that all students must take at leastone class online before graduating high school. Led by Jeb Bush Supporter of Academic Partnerships Virtual Charter systems in FL, Colorado, Virginia, and Texasamong other states. Teacher:student can be as high as 1:137 Widespread graft, little oversight. 35. Datapalooza! 36. Competency based learning Southern New Hamshire University Predicted to make $200 million in 2013-2014 Fully online Governors State University Amendment written in 2005 allowing them to grant degreebased on competency instead of credit hour. 37. The key question, about technological response to a need, is less a question about the need itself than about its place in an existing social formation. A need which corresponds with the priorities of the real decisionmaking groups will, obviously, more quickly attract the investment of resources and the official permission, approval or encouragement on which a working technology, as distinct from available technical devices, depends. Raymond Williams, Television:Technology and Cultural Form 38. Solutionism An unhealthy preoccupation with sexy,monumental, and narrow-minded solutions [. . .] to problems that are extremely complex, fluid, and contentious. How problems are composed matters every bit as how they are solved. 39. Social Needs : Social Formation 40. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) 41. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism 42. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism What are the social needs? 43. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism What are the social needs? How do these relate to the broader social formation? 44. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism What are the social needs? How do these relate to the broader social formation? Broader contextCRISIS! 45. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism What are the social needs? How do these relate to the broader social formation? Broader contextCRISIS! the real decision-making groups 46. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism What are the social needs? How do these relate to the broader social formation? Broader contextCRISIS! the real decision-making groups Politicians: President Obama, Governors of California, Florida, etc. 47. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism What are the social needs? How do these relate to the broader social formation? Broader contextCRISIS! the real decision-making groups Politicians: President Obama, Governors of California, Florida, etc. Foundations: Especially Gates, Mellon, and MacArthur 48. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism What are the social needs? How do these relate to the broader social formation? Broader contextCRISIS! the real decision-making groups Politicians: President Obama, Governors of California, Florida, etc. Foundations: Especially Gates, Mellon, and MacArthur Venture Capitalists: Largely silicon valley outfits 49. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism What are the social needs? How do these relate to the broader social formation? Broader contextCRISIS! the real decision-making groups Politicians: President Obama, Governors of California, Florida, etc. Foundations: Especially Gates, Mellon, and MacArthur Venture Capitalists: Largely silicon valley outfits Ed tech corporations: Pearson, Kaplan, etc. 50. Social Needs : Social Formation Myth of the technological sublime (topic of previousseminars) Evgeny Morozov calls this Solutionism What are the social needs? How do these relate to the broader social formation? Broader contextCRISIS! the real decision-making groups Politicians: President Obama, Governors of California, Florida, etc. Foundations: Especially Gates, Mellon, and MacArthur Venture Capitalists: Largely silicon valley outfits Ed tech corporations: Pearson, Kaplan, etc. LOTS of TAXPAYER money subsidizing higher ed. 51. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education 52. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education Place where we develop critical, engaged citizens of theworld. 53. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education Place where we develop critical, engaged citizens of theworld. One of the few common rights of passage for middle class 54. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education Place where we develop critical, engaged citizens of theworld. One of the few common rights of passage for middle class Ideological support for the meritocracy (State of the Union) 55. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education Place where we develop critical, engaged citizens of theworld. One of the few common rights of passage for middle class Ideological support for the meritocracy (State of the Union) Institutions authorized with credentialing middle class workers and skilled labor force. 56. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education Place where we develop critical, engaged citizens of theworld. One of the few common rights of passage for middle class Ideological support for the meritocracy (State of the Union) Institutions authorized with credentialing middle class workers and skilled labor force. Accreditation makes it possible for students to get Federallysubsidized student loans, Pell Grants, etc. . 57. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education Place where we develop critical, engaged citizens of theworld. One of the few common rights of passage for middle class Ideological support for the meritocracy (State of the Union) Institutions authorized with credentialing middle class workers and skilled labor force. Accreditation makes it possible for students to get Federallysubsidized student loans, Pell Grants, etc. Is a place where most of the basic research is done whichfuels technological innovation (e.g. MOOCs, Google, etc.) 58. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education Place where we develop critical, engaged citizens of the world. One of the few common rights of passage for middle class Ideological support for the meritocracy (State of the Union) Institutions authorized with credentialing middle class workersand skilled labor force. Accreditation makes it possible for students to get Federallysubsidized student loans, Pell Grants, etc. Is a place where most of the basic research is done which fuelstechnological innovation (e.g. MOOCs, Google, etc.) An efficient way of delivering the support resources needed for legally and legitimately accomplishing both of the above. UNBUNDLING only buying the parts you want. 59. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education Place where we develop critical, engaged citizens of theworld. One of the few common rights of passage for middle class Ideological support for the meritocracy (State of the Union) Institutions authorized with credentialing middle class workers and skilled labor force. Accreditation makes it possible for students to get Federallysubsidized student loans, Pell Grants, etc. Is a place where most of the basic research is done whichfuels technological innovation (e.g. MOOCs, Google, etc.) 60. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education Place where we develop critical, engaged citizens of theworld. One of the few common rights of passage for middle class Ideological support for the meritocracy (State of the Union) Institutions authorized with credentialing middle class workers and skilled labor force. Accreditation makes it possible for students to get Federallysubsidized student loans, Pell Grants, etc. 61. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education One of the few common rights of passage for middle class Ideological support for the meritocracy (State of the Union) Institutions authorized with credentialing middle classworkers and skilled labor force. Accreditation makes it possible for students to get Federallysubsidized student loans, Pell Grants, etc. 62. MOOCs as Solutionism The quick fixes it peddles do not exist in a political vacuum. In promising almost immediate and much cheaper results, they can easily undermine support for more ambitious, more intellectually stimulating, but also more demanding reform projects. 63. Which problems? 64. Wages stagnantmore loans 65. Taxes vs. inequality 66. The Social Needs fulfilled by Higher Education One of the few common rights of passage for middle class Ideological support for the meritocracy (State of the Union) Institutions authorized with credentialing middle classworkers and skilled labor force. Accreditation makes it possible for students to get Federallysubsidized student loans, Pell Grants, etc. 67. Middle Class Rite of Passage of relatively recent vintage. 68. Middle Class rite of passage alarming evidence in the1860s that college enrollments were in decline in the United States 69. Middle Class rite of passage alarming evidence in the1860s that college enrollments were in decline in the United States the existence of an easy professional school option was one of the reasons why 70. Middle Class rite of passage alarming evidence in the1860s that college enrollments were in decline in the United States the existence of an easy professional school option was one of the reasons why bachelors degree was not required for admission to the Harvard Medical School until 1900. 71. Charles William Eliot 72. Charles William Eliot T.S. Eliots cousin 73. Charles William Eliot T.S. Eliots cousin President of Harvard from1869-1909 74. Charles William Eliot T.S. Eliots cousin President of Harvard from1869-1909 Instituted admissions standards and requirements for schools of Medicine, Law, Divinity and Science 75. Charles William Eliot T.S. Eliots cousin President of Harvard from1869-1909 Instituted admissions standards and requirements for schools of Medicine, Law, Divinity and Science Erected a hurdle on what had been a fairly smooth path, compelling future doctors and lawyers to commit to four years of liberal arts education before entering what are, essentially, professional certification programs. 76. Effect 77. Effect More than doubled college enrollment in 30 years. 78. Effect More than doubled college enrollment in 30 years. In 1870, one out of every sixty men between eighteen andtwenty-one years old was a college student; by 1900, one out of every twenty-five was in college 79. Effect More than doubled college enrollment in 30 years. In 1870, one out of every sixty men between eighteen andtwenty-one years old was a college student; by 1900, one out of every twenty-five was in college 80. Effect More than doubled college enrollment in 30 years. In 1870, one out of every sixty men between eighteen andtwenty-one years old was a college student; by 1900, one out of every twenty-five was in college Separated liberal arts from vocational post-graduateschools 81. Effect More than doubled college enrollment in 30 years. In 1870, one out of every sixty men between eighteen andtwenty-one years old was a college student; by 1900, one out of every twenty-five was in college Separated liberal arts from vocational post-graduateschools Made BA a rite of passage for all professionals 82. Effect More than doubled college enrollment in 30 years. In 1870, one out of every sixty men between eighteen andtwenty-one years old was a college student; by 1900, one out of every twenty-five was in college Separated liberal arts from vocational post-graduateschools Made BA a rite of passage for all professionals Set the stage for the Golden Age of college/university expansion 83. Golden Age 1945-1975 84. Golden Age 1945-1975 500% increase in # of Undergraduate Students 85. Golden Age 1945-1975 500% increase in # of Undergraduate Students 900% increase in # of Graduate Students 86. Golden Age 1945-1975 500% increase in # of Undergraduate Students 900% increase in # of Graduate Students Primary role for PhDs is to produce Undergraduates 87. Golden Age 1945-1975 500% increase in # of Undergraduate Students 900% increase in # of Graduate Students Primary role for PhDs is to produce Undergraduates In the sixties alone, undergraduate enrollments more thandoubled, from 3.5 million to just under 8 million; the number of doctorates awarded every year tripled; and more faculty were hired than had been hired in the entire 325 years of American higher education prior to 1960.7 At the height of the expansion, between 1965 and 1972, new community college campuses were opening in the United States at the rate of one every week. 88. Taxes vs. inequality vs. Public EdMassive expansion of Higher Ed 89. 1975-present 90. 1975-present Not much growth (1%/year) but more diversity 91. 1975-present Not much growth (1%/year) but more diversity Male 92. 1975-present Not much growth (1%/year) but more diversity Male 1947 = 71% of college students 93. 1975-present Not much growth (1%/year) but more diversity Male 1947 = 71% of college students 2010 = 42% 94. 1975-present Not much growth (1%/year) but more diversity Male 1947 = 71% of college students 2010 = 42% White 95. 1975-present Not much growth (1%/year) but more diversity Male 1947 = 71% of college students 2010 = 42% White 1965 = 94% 96. 1975-present Not much growth (1%/year) but more diversity Male 1947 = 71% of college students 2010 = 42% White 1965 = 94% 2010 = 66% In the decade between 1984 and 1994, the total enrollmentin American colleges and universities increased by 2 million, but not one of those 2 million new students was a white American-born male. They were all non-whites, women, and foreign students. 97. For-profit education flooded the market only after the state began to abandon its responsibility to create sufficient institutional capacity in the public system. The problem is not government action, but inaction. As the government gave up its Master Plan responsibility to educate California students, the for-profit sector expanded to fill the demand. 98. The real crisis: For-profit solution #1 For profits mining public dollars efficiently by exploitingunderserved students who qualify for higher Pell grants not technological political economic Spend< 25% of funds on education More on marketing, recruiting, debt peonage 10% of ed market, 25% of federal aid In some cases 85% of income from tax $$ http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CPRT-112SPRT74931/pdf/CPRT-112SPRT74931.pdf 99. The real crisis: For-profit solution #1 For profits mining public dollars efficiently by exploitingunderserved students who qualify for higher Pell grants 100. The real crisis: For-profit solution #1 For profits mining public dollars efficiently by exploitingunderserved students who qualify for higher Pell grants 101. The real crisis: For-profit solution #1 For profits mining public dollars efficiently by exploitingunderserved students who qualify for higher Pell grants not technological political economic 102. The real crisis: For-profit solution #1 For profits mining public dollars efficiently by exploitingunderserved students who qualify for higher Pell grants not technological political economic Spend< 25% of funds on education 103. The real crisis: For-profit solution #1 For profits mining public dollars efficiently by exploitingunderserved students who qualify for higher Pell grants not technological political economic Spend< 25% of funds on education More on marketing, recruiting, debt peonage 104. The real crisis: For-profit solution #1 For profits mining public dollars efficiently by exploitingunderserved students who qualify for higher Pell grants not technological political economic Spend< 25% of funds on education More on marketing, recruiting, debt peonage 10% of ed market, 25% of federal aid 105. The real crisis: For-profit solution #1 For profits mining public dollars efficiently by exploitingunderserved students who qualify for higher Pell grants not technological political economic Spend< 25% of funds on education More on marketing, recruiting, debt peonage 10% of ed market, 25% of federal aid In some cases 85% of income from tax $$ http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CPRT-112SPRT74931/pdf/CPRT-112SPRT74931.pdf 106. Institutions authorized with credentialing middle class workers and skilled labor force. 107. As the share of enrollment in the for-profit sector increased from 6% in fall 2001 to 12% in fall 2010, the share of Pell Grant funds going to students in this sector increased from 14% to 25%. In fall 2011, for-profit enrollments remained at 12% of FTE students, and the sectors share of Pell Grants declined to 21%. 108. Pell helps colleges poach middle class payments more than one-third of public colleges and nearly two-thirdsof private colleges engage in gapping providing lowerincome students with aid packages that dont come close to meeting their financial need. In the parlance of enrollment management, this is often called admit-deny, in which schools deliberately underfund financially needy students in order to discourage them from enrolling. http://public.tableausoftware.com/views/pellprivates_test /Sheet1?:embed=y&:display_count=no 109. Udacitys pivot 110. Student Debtmostly for advanced degrees. 111. Ideological support for the meritocracy Education = Employment 112. Tuition risingpublic funding falling 113. Tuition risingpublic funding falling 114. Unemploymentno jobs investment 115. Bruce Bartlett, in NYT many corporations are holding vast amounts of cash andother liquid assets, using them neither for investment nor to benefit shareholders. These assets are largely earned and held overseas, and not subject to American taxes until the money is brought home. As of the third quarter of 2012 nonfinancial corporations in the United States held $1.7 trillion of liquid assets 116. Savings, not investment 117. Tech companies as tax dodgers Apple deferred taxes on over $35.4 billion in offshoreincome between 2009 and 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/04/business/an-inquiry-into-tech-giants-tax-strategies-nears-an-end.html?_r=0 Google Inc. avoided about $2 billion in worldwide incometaxes in 2011 by shifting $9.8 billion in revenues into a Bermuda shell company, almost double the total from three years before, filings show. http://breakingculture.tumblr.com/post/37718667423/google-is-a-u-s-tax-deadbeat 118. In short Ideological support is not backed by actual public dollars orpost-grad jobs. Points to a larger social crisis But this doesnt mean there isnt a buck to be made 119. Audrey Watters, Hacked Education None of this is inevitable -- not MOOCs, not funding cuts,not the death of the giant brick-and-mortar research university or the death of the small liberal arts college, no matter how gleefully the libertarians in Silicon Valley rub their hands as they craft their hyperbolic narratives about the end of the university and the promise of education technology.