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ERIC Number: EJ1017385
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013
Pages: 9
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1527-6619
EISSN: N/A
Bigfoot, Goldilocks, and Moonshots. A Report from the Frontiers of Personalized Learning
Jarrett, Josh
EDUCAUSE Review, v48 n2 p30-34, 36-38, 40 Mar-Apr 2013
In 2009, the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education and Public Agenda, reported that "In the view of many college and university presidents, the three main factors in higher education--cost, quality, and access--exist in what we call an iron triangle." In other words, every positive improvement comes with an equal, but negative, trade-off. Unfortunately, that "iron triangle" remains strong, encapsulating a challenge that continues to face higher education today. The first angle of the "iron triangle" is access, "Bigfoot," who represents the search for a way to produce undeniably better learning outcomes at consistently lower cost. The second angle of the "iron triangle" is quality, "Goldilocks." She wants everything "just right." In higher education, this means structured pathways to graduation with some choices--but not too many--for students. The third angle of the "iron triangle" is cost, "Moonshots." We choose to provide high-quality, affordable education at scale in this decade, not because it is easy, but because it is hard. This article concludes that while the challenges of Bigfoot, Goldilocks, and Moonshots represent the three leading groups of innovative strategies: (1) growing evidence that we are finding ways to consistently deliver better learning outcomes at lower costs; (2) "just right" structured pathways to help students reach their goals while balancing student choices with intrusive advising; and (3) entire programs that are shooting for the moon with fundamentally different delivery and cost structures. Institutes of higher education can use these strategies to break the "iron triangle" of cost, quality, and access, and can use technology to improve learning and student outcomes. Doing so will require a grand partnership between those who are focused on changing the finance side of higher education and those who are focused on improving what happens in the classroom.
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A