AI in education: institutions lag behind in strategy development

My latest piece in Forbes dives into how #highered is struggling to meet exploding demand for #online education—a complete 180 turn from just 20 years ago when the "50% rule" actually limited how much education could go digital. Based on new data from QM Quality Matters, Eduventures, and EDUCAUSE, three key findings emerged from their lastest research report CHLOE 10: 🎯 The Capacity Paradox: Public four-year institutions plan aggressive online expansion, but community colleges—serving our most vulnerable populations—can barely keep pace. Only 1 in 5 community colleges plan significant online growth despite serving students who need flexible education most. 🤖 AI Strategy Fragmentation: While 77% of online learning officers say #AI will be crucial within two years, nearly 10% of institutions have NO AI strategy. As Joshua Jones from QuantHub told me: "We're watching history repeat itself—institutions without coherent AI strategies aren't just falling behind, they're failing to prepare students for a fundamentally transformed workforce." 👩🏫 Faculty Development Stagnation: Only 28% of institutions report #faculty are fully prepared for online course design. Meanwhile, adjuncts teach 47% of online courses with minimal institutional support. The behavioral economics are fascinating too: Traditional undergrads increasingly choose digital courses despite preferring in-person learning. As Dr. Mark David Milliron from National University describes them, today's online learners are the "and-ers"—working adults, caregivers and veterans who need education to fit their lives, not the other way around. Dr. Bethany Simunich, PhD from QM Quality Matters notes: "Online learning has moved from the margins to the mainstream. The real story isn't just the demand; it's whether colleges can adapt fast enough to keep pace." Read my full piece: https://lnkd.in/gqyUPJ-d #HigherEducation #OnlineLearning #EdTech #DigitalTransformation #StudentSuccess #AI #CommunityColleges #FacultyDevelopment

My latest piece in Forbes dives into how #highered is struggling to meet exploding demand for #online education—a complete 180 turn from just 20 years ago when the "50% rule" actually limited how much education could go digital. Based on new data from QM Quality Matters, Eduventures, and EDUCAUSE, three key findings emerged from their lastest research report CHLOE 10: 🎯 The Capacity Paradox: Public four-year institutions plan aggressive online expansion, but community colleges—serving our most vulnerable populations—can barely keep pace. Only 1 in 5 community colleges plan significant online growth despite serving students who need flexible education most. 🤖 AI Strategy Fragmentation: While 77% of online learning officers say #AI will be crucial within two years, nearly 10% of institutions have NO AI strategy. As Joshua Jones from QuantHub told me: "We're watching history repeat itself—institutions without coherent AI strategies aren't just falling behind, they're failing to prepare students for a fundamentally transformed workforce." 👩🏫 Faculty Development Stagnation: Only 28% of institutions report #faculty are fully prepared for online course design. Meanwhile, adjuncts teach 47% of online courses with minimal institutional support. The behavioral economics are fascinating too: Traditional undergrads increasingly choose digital courses despite preferring in-person learning. As Dr. Mark David Milliron from National University describes them, today's online learners are the "and-ers"—working adults, caregivers and veterans who need education to fit their lives, not the other way around. Dr. Bethany Simunich, PhD from QM Quality Matters notes: "Online learning has moved from the margins to the mainstream. The real story isn't just the demand; it's whether colleges can adapt fast enough to keep pace." Read my full piece: https://lnkd.in/gqyUPJ-d #HigherEducation #OnlineLearning #EdTech #DigitalTransformation #StudentSuccess #AI #CommunityColleges #FacultyDevelopment

The way most of us were educated wasn’t designed for how humans truly learn. The traditional classroom model - one teacher, many students, standardized content, fixed pace - was built for scale, not personalization. And for over 2 centuries, that model did something remarkable: it democratized education. By systematising learning, we were able to reach millions. Children who might never have seen a book gained access to knowledge, to opportunity, to a future. That’s something we should never take for granted. But the same model that gave us scale also came with trade-offs. It wasn’t built for the individual student. It wasn’t built for curiosity, exploration, or flexibility. It was built to deliver the same content, in the same way, to every learner - regardless of who they are or how they learn. And here’s what we’ve long known: that approach has limits. Benjamin Bloom’s well-known 2 sigma study made it clear - when students receive one-on-one tutoring, their learning outcomes dramatically improve - 2 standard deviations. That’s the difference between average performance and the top 2%. But for decades, the challenge has remained: how do you scale something as personal as a tutor? Now, we may finally have an answer. AI gives us a new set of possibilities. Not to replace teachers - but to enhance what’s possible in learning. We’re seeing the emergence of intelligent systems that can adapt in real time to a learner’s pace, knowledge gaps, and style. Systems that don’t just deliver content, but respond to the learner. This isn’t a theoretical promise - it's already happening, in pockets, around the world. But here’s where we need to pause and think. Technology, on its own, doesn’t guarantee progress. We’ve seen tools introduced in education before that promised a revolution and delivered little more than digital worksheets. The opportunity with AI is different - but only if we make it different. So we have to ask: Will we prioritize human connection, or erode it? Will this new era of learning be accessible to all - or only to the privileged? Will we use AI to replicate an outdated system faster? Or to build something fundamentally better? The classroom gave us access. AI can give us agency. Because were not entering a new phase of educational reform. We’re at the threshold of a transformation. Let’s build it with thought. Let’s build it with care. And above all, let’s build it with learners and not systems at the center. #ai #education #futureoflearning #edtech

The way most of us were educated wasn’t designed for how humans truly learn. The traditional classroom model - one teacher, many students, standardized content, fixed pace - was built for scale, not personalization. And for over 2 centuries, that model did something remarkable: it democratized education. By systematising learning, we were able to reach millions. Children who might never have seen a book gained access to knowledge, to opportunity, to a future. That’s something we should never take for granted. But the same model that gave us scale also came with trade-offs. It wasn’t built for the individual student. It wasn’t built for curiosity, exploration, or flexibility. It was built to deliver the same content, in the same way, to every learner - regardless of who they are or how they learn. And here’s what we’ve long known: that approach has limits. Benjamin Bloom’s well-known 2 sigma study made it clear - when students receive one-on-one tutoring, their learning outcomes dramatically improve - 2 standard deviations. That’s the difference between average performance and the top 2%. But for decades, the challenge has remained: how do you scale something as personal as a tutor? Now, we may finally have an answer. AI gives us a new set of possibilities. Not to replace teachers - but to enhance what’s possible in learning. We’re seeing the emergence of intelligent systems that can adapt in real time to a learner’s pace, knowledge gaps, and style. Systems that don’t just deliver content, but respond to the learner. This isn’t a theoretical promise - it's already happening, in pockets, around the world. But here’s where we need to pause and think. Technology, on its own, doesn’t guarantee progress. We’ve seen tools introduced in education before that promised a revolution and delivered little more than digital worksheets. The opportunity with AI is different - but only if we make it different. So we have to ask: Will we prioritize human connection, or erode it? Will this new era of learning be accessible to all - or only to the privileged? Will we use AI to replicate an outdated system faster? Or to build something fundamentally better? The classroom gave us access. AI can give us agency. Because were not entering a new phase of educational reform. We’re at the threshold of a transformation. Let’s build it with thought. Let’s build it with care. And above all, let’s build it with learners and not systems at the center. #ai #education #futureoflearning #edtech