Yay! It’s May! Commencement is here! That means everything slows down and you can take it easy as…. oh, who are we trying to kid? The days of summers being peaceful and quiet on college campuses are long over. So before some professor comes and dumps a project on your desk and leaves for the summer on their research mission to Fiji, we offer a few diversions from the world of technology and education:
Online Degrees Changing the World?
Forbes Magazine loves the idea of online degrees so much it put 2tor on its list of 10 startups that are changing the world, alongside the likes of Instagram, Pinterest and Zappos. The Landover, Md.-based company has brought online degree programs to Georgetown, North Carolina, and USC among others. Forbes says, “With $96 million raised in venture capital and clear success cases to date, 2tor has emerged as the market leader in the rapidly evolving School-as-a-Service sector.” Are these sorts of efforts really the future in higher ed? It will be interesting to see if in challenging budget times more schools turn to this kind of model.
Get Government More Involved?
Speaking of investments, author and scholar Mariko Chang argued last week in The Huffington Post that government needs to make more investments in higher ed, not fewer. The idea of raising interest on student loans “could not come at a worse time” she writes.
“While some may believe that the government cannot afford to help invest in the higher education of its citizens, we can’t afford not to. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that jobs requiring some type of post-secondary education will grow the fastest during the 2010-20 decade. The highest growth (22 percent) is expected to be in jobs requiring a master’s degree, followed by a doctoral or professional degree (20 percent),” she writes.
Instagram. You Won’t be Able to escape it.
You’ve no doubt heard that Instagram is finally available on Android. The photo app has built up some enviable momentum in recent months. There’s an infographic making the rounds now urging higher ed to embrace the app. Developed by Online Colleges the graphic notes that 58 photos are being uploaded every second to Instagram and says professors would do well to highlight projects and work being done in their classes to show students what college is really like. The graphic also suggests using contests and silly staff photos to build community. (Hey… are you calling our staff silly?) Official college Instagram accounts seem to be popping up regularly now. Is your school using the app? How’s the response?