Challenges Confronting Higher Education: Prospects for and Obstacles to Innovation

Introduction

The context in which institutions of higher education function has changed dramatically over the last couple of decades as a result of shifts in technology, geopolitical volatility, changes in regulations and public policies, conflicting demands from a myriad of stakeholders, globalization, digitization, widespread resource crunch, evolution of social media which facilitates instant global communication around diverse causes, and demands for increased transparency and accountability. This volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous—VUCA-- (Johansen, 2012) environment is challenging educational institutions to be more agile, adaptable and innovative to maintain viability (Baliga & Santalainen, 2017).

Recent years have also witnessed the rapid development of artificial intelligence and an increase in convergence across disciplines. AI (artificial intelligence) is rapidly replacing personnel, not only in entry level positions but, increasingly, even in positions that call for unstructured decision making (Aoun, 2017). Convergence 1.0 and Convergence 2.0 arising from the intersection of physics & engineering and biology & engineering respectively, are creating a plethora of new products, services and industries such as quantum biology and regenerative medicine (Hockfield, 2019). These developments are raising questions about the appropriateness of current approaches to teaching and learning adopted by institutions of higher education.

Ironically, even as developments in science and technology have become key drivers of economic growth, particularly in OECD countries, we are witnessing increasing hostility to the scientific approach, the cornerstone of higher education. Such hostility is threatening the very essence of higher education, viz., the human capacity to know, to create, to test and to experiment with new ideas. Compounding this is the infiltration of various ideologies -- social justice, diversity, political correctness, gender issues and the like-- in the functioning of colleges and universities (Cabranes, 2019). Medical schools in the US, for example, have become a target for inculcating social policy focusing on issues such as ‘climate change’ at the expense of rigorous training in medical science (Goldfarb, S., 2019). Issues of diversity, in terms of race, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation,are supplanting discussion of ‘excellence’ and ‘rigor’ in academia. Despite lip service, little attention is paid to diversity in terms of intelligence, values and judgment. Diversity also exercises an oversize influence on faculty recruitment and retention which, in turn, affects adaptability and innovation (Kronman, 2019). Concerns with diversity have led to many colleges and universities reducing the importance of standardized tests such as SAT, ACT, GRE and GMAT, in admission decisions.

The notion that higher education is a birth right, at least in the US, has led to the commoditization of higher education. Intellectualism, in Dewey’s terms, as being associated with judgment (Garrison, Neubert & Reich, 2012), is considered passé, except at the most selective institutions, and, even in these, it is coming under stress. It is increasingly ‘uncool’ to be an intellectual. Smart students are bullied for distorting grades and branded as ‘nerds’, ‘dorks’ and ‘geeks’. Consequently, true education—where participants (all stakeholders) learn to think and act differently—is giving way to credentilization and shallow vocational training. Education is becoming increasingly instrumental with a focus on training for jobs and careers rather than humanistic.