Info

Ten with Ken (Video)

Ken Steele is Canada's most trusted higher ed monitor and futurist, and in this webcast he rounds up emerging trends, research data, best practices and innovative new ideas for higher education. (For HD version see YouTube, DailyMotion, Vimeo or Facebook. Audio only podcast version available separately.)
RSS Feed Subscribe in Apple Podcasts
2023
December
July
June
May


2020
September
May


2019
December
October
September
June
May
April
March
February
January


2018
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
February


2017
December
November
October
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2016
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
April
March
February
January


2015
December
November
October
September
July
May
April


Categories

All Episodes
Archives
Categories
Now displaying: January, 2017

For more information about Ken Steele's speaking and facilitation services, an archive of articles and white papers, and a database of bright ideas, please visit www.eduvation.ca

This podcast is also available on iTunes or on YouTube. For exclusive early access to future episodes, please subscribe to our free email newsletter, the Eduvation Loop

Jan 27, 2017

Ken Steele's 10th annual higher ed "year in review" continues with part 2, a look back at populism, protectionism and post-truth in 2016. (Check out part 1 at https://youtu.be/CZ6nuznRV_I ).

There were some significant, and even terrifying, political events last year:

3) POST-TRUTH

Oxford Dictionaries have declared “post-truth” the word of 2016. It was used 200 times more than any year previous, mostly because of the US election and UK referendum. Thanks to social media, deliberate misinformation and the layoff of journalists and editors, many people no longer know what to believe. Russian hackers and trolls waged cyberwarfare last year to influence elections and destabilize NATO. Propaganda and “fake news” has proliferated. George Orwell’s dystopian vision (from his novel 1984) was set just a few decades too early.

Britain, we heard last year, has “had enough of experts.”
https://youtu.be/GGgiGtJk7MA

Widespread support for Brexit, Donald Trump, Rob Ford and “Boaty McBoatface” exemplifies the anti-intellectualism that is rampant. Universities will be popular targets in this “post-truth” era. President-elect Trump has said emphatically how he "loves the poorly-educated": https://youtu.be/Vpdt7omPoa0

4) NATIONALISM

Across Europe and the US, populist movements have spread anxiety about immigration and led to tougher border enforcement, racist hate crimes, and plenty of xenophobic rhetoric. (From “poisoned skittles” to “extreme vetting.”) Trump campaigned for president on a platform of literally building a wall: https://youtu.be/ZGSAhNZnisk

It is estimated that Brexit will cost UK universities £3.7 billion, and 34,000 jobs. It also led to a 36% decline in international student interest.

A survey conducted prior to the US election found that 60% of international students would be less inclined to study in the US under a Trump presidency. On election night, 200,000 Americans tried to access the Citizenship & Immigration Canada website simultaneously, crashing it for 10 hours. The next day, American Google searches and web hits to Canadian colleges and universities tripled or quintupled!

The US brand for international student recruitment has shifted, and Canada, Australia and New Zealand may be well positioned to gain market share over the coming years.

5) SAUDI

In international education, several other major shifts in 2016 focused on Saudi Arabia. Plummeting oil prices have impacted the Kingdom’s budget, and inevitably the King Abdullah Scholarship program, which has sent more than 200,000 students abroad. Enrolments in US language schools showed the first drop, but overall Saudi students in the US have declined 20%. Universities not ranked in the world’s top 200 can expect Saudi enrolments to drop to virtually zero. And in Ontario, we saw significant controversy last year over gender segregated college campuses operated in Saudi Arabia by Niagara and Algonquin College, sparked by the premier’s declaration that they are “unacceptable.” In the end the controversy dissipated, but the lasting effect came from financial troubles. Algonquin College announced that, after losing about $1.5 million on its Saudi campus, it was pulling out.


Next time, in part 3, we'll look at the pivot in the fortunes of for-profit higher education, triggered by the US election. The policy positions of president-elect Trump and his proposed Education Secretary will pave the way for some interesting years ahead!

Stay tuned until after the closing credits for some bloopers!

Jan 21, 2017

Ken Steele's 10th annual higher ed "year in review" looks back at 2016 and sums up the major news and trends shaping the postsecondary landscape in just 6 words.

In part 1, he reviews the many tragedies of 2016, from the loss of famous celebrities and great thinkers to Zika and Brangelina. 2016 was a year that left many feeling adrift, and the surge towards populism gave us Brexit, Trump, and Boaty McBoatface.

Plenty of trends we identified in previous years continued in 2016, from gender equity and sexual assault protocols to political correctness, indigenous content and "peak campus". But in this episode, we look at a major disaster and an emerging trend that defined the year that was:

1) FIRE!

The biggest news story in Canada was unquestionably the Fort MacMurray wildfire, which swept through 1.5 million acres in northern Alberta. It caused the emergency evacuation of all 88,000 residents in town, destroyed 2,400 homes, and caused about $9 billion in damage. Keyano College was fortunate, in that its campuses escaped structural damage, but smoke remediation still cost about $15 million. Canada is still feeling the economic and labour market impacts of the disaster.

2) FREE!

Momentum towards free tuition programs has been building across North America for several years. In 2014, the "Tennessee Promise" offered students 2 years of community college for zero tuition. In 2015, President Obama proposed a $60 billion "American College Promise" program, and Minnesota and Oregon approved plans of their own. In 2016, Kentucky followed suit, and Bernie Sanders pushed for free university tuition as well.

Obama - https://youtu.be/nFWhzdQcwnk
Sanders - https://youtu.be/c4I2dbTxpqU

In Canada, Quebec CÉGEPs have been offering free tuition for 50 years now, but in 2016 Ontario and New Brunswick launched new programs. The Canadian Federation of Students published a report calling for "education justice," and calculating that it would cost the federal government $10.2 billion. CFS staged a day of protest in early November.

Charlatan - https://youtu.be/5PUQ3L8zBQI

Next time, in part 2, we'll look at the global shift towards populism, protectionism, and a post-truth distrust of intellectuals. The trends pose major challenges, and some opportunities, to higher education.

Stay tuned until after the closing credits for some bloopers!

1