Emerging Technologies Consulting

The two week gap in this blog was due in part to my participation in Faculty Academy at University of Mary Washington.  Webcasts of many of the presentations are slowly but surely going online.  I love when conferences do this, put videos of the presentations online after the fact.  Conferecnes are expensive ventures these days (though this one isn’t!), and with tight budgets, many people can’t attend, so it’s great to be able to see some of the material.  I’ve been able to do this for a number of conferences, including ELI, and it’s so important to me to be able to keep up with the latest discussions in the field. I highly recommend watching both of the webcasts that are up on the FA site.  James Boyle’s talk was about how the University needs to be more open, and the debate between Jim Groom and John St. Clair is about open web tools for courses vs. closed systems like Blackboard.  It’s entertaining and informative.

Most of the news these last few days has focused on the AIG bonuses and other bailout problems.  Very little is being said in the mainstream media about the impact the economy is having on colleges.  Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle, are, of course, reporting on some of these issues, but even they are mostly quiet as colleges slash budgets and lay off staff and faculty.  In part, I think this is because many colleges don’t yet know what impact the economy is really going to have.  Although many have seen their endowments drop, prompting some budget cuts and layoffs, most don’t know what their enrollments will look like in the fall, numbers that may make a huge difference in their economic outlook.  Obama mentioned in his address the other day that parents were struggling to figure out how to send their kids to college, reminding all of us of the distinct possibility that fewer students will go to college next year.   This will affect some colleges more than others.  Many are suggesting that community colleges and 4-year public colleges may, in fact, see an increase as people return to college for job training purposes and those who might have attended a more expensive private college decide the cost isn’t worth it.  In addition to the possibility that the economy will affect enrollments in some schools, many states are seeing a decrease in high-school graduates, mostly because of the fading of the baby boom generation.  Such trends are not just problematic for the individual colleges and universities the downturn might affect, but are also problematic for the country as a whole as baby boomers retire and no qualified replacements stand ready to take over their jobs.  At the K-12 level, of course, states and municipalities are seeing a decline in the tax base and are also cutting budgets.  Some places are thinking about eliminating “extras” like art and music.  Some are eliminating language instruction.

At both the college level and the K-12 level, when budgets are tight, technology often starts to look like an extra.  I understand that mentality.  Certainly computers, servers, and software are all expensive, more expensive than paper and pencils.  On the other hand, I would argue that rather than getting rid of technology, to be more smart about it.  Now might be the time to consider open source software.  Instead of paying Microsoft a fortune for sitewide licensing of programs, consider using Linux and Open Office products.  This is especially useful for K-8, where the exact program is less important than simply learning how to use a word processor or spreadsheet effectively.  Another option is to use Googles Education Apps.  That might eliminate not just the cost of productivity apps, but also the cost of email services.  Course management could also be shifted to Open Source products such as Moodle or Sakai.  In terms of equipment, one could consider using less expensive machines, like netbooks that are portable from one class to another rather than using full-size laptops or desktops.

Shifting to less expensive or open source products isn’t going to solve all the budget problems in the world, but it’s certainly a way to keep technology in the curriculum in a way that’s fiscally responsible.  Technology may also be used to help students find affordable colleges, scholarships and other resources that can help assure that they can attend college at all.  And for colleges, social networking and a good web presence, might help bring in a larger class for the fall.   I think many educational institutions are waiting for the other shoe to drop when it comes to the economy.  Given that technology is increasingly important for learning, research, and future job prospects, I hope those institutions don’t have a knee-jerk reaction and make deep cuts in their technology budgets that will be difficult to recover from.

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