Educause has released its top IT issues for 2021, explored via three possible scenarios for how colleges and universities "might emerge" from the pandemic next year.
Parents are more comfortable than students with the virus response undertaken by colleges and universities. A recent survey from online bill payment company ACI found that while 57 percent of parents thought campus precautions were satisfactory, just 46 percent of students said the same.
On the horizon for 2021, 10G offers the promise of delivering 10 times the current most prevalent maximum speeds offered to consumers.
Now that there's more data to analyze, the college enrollment news is even worse than projected. About a month into the fall 2020 semester, undergraduate enrollment is now running 4 percent below last year's level.
When asked about the most pressing issue on their campuses, college and university presidents in a recent ACE survey deemed the mental health of students their top concern.
In a recent survey, three-quarters of U.S.-based students, faculty and administrators reported that COVID-19 has negatively affected student engagement. Nearly as many (73 percent) said the pandemic has damaged their work and career readiness. And seven in 10 (70 percent) said they believed that more students are falling behind in their studies as a result of COVID-19.
A three-page brief from thinktank MDRC recapped a number of "rapid adaptations" educators are making to address the unique challenges faced by rural populations — especially now, when schools are delivering courses remotely.
A recent report from Every Learner Everywhere and Tyton Partners recommended five key actions institutions can take to ensure they are delivering high-quality digital learning experiences for all students.
Faculty feel ready to teach online this fall, either partially or fully. In a recent survey produced by Bay View Analytics in partnership with four online learning organizations and underwritten by Cengage, 49 percent "strongly" agreed that they're prepared, while 35 percent said they "somewhat" agreed.
According to a preliminary study from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, overall enrollments across the United States are running 2.5 percent below last year's level (compared to a 1.7 percent drop in fall 2019 from the previous year).
