OLDaily

14 Predictions for Higher Education in 2022
Dian Schaffhauser, Campus Technology, 2022/01/04

Some of these predictions - like "online education will become the norm rather than the step-sister of "traditional" education" - are a bit ahead of their time. Others - like "forget hyflex" - are well-reasoned and make sense. Still others - like "be ready for the unknown", "build off threads that are here to stay", "we should expect further disruption" and "look for the advantage" - are too vague to qualify as predictions. Others - like "move beyond Zoon into the Metaverse" - aren't realistic. Some - like "The campus leaders who have intentionally put students at the center of organization and system design will reap a great reward" - are no better than astrology. Finally, "integrating a bit of what could happen as well as what should happen" is great but not a prediction.

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The Vanilla JavaScript Repository
Tixie, 2022/01/04

When I get back to coding the gRSShopper user interface, I'll want to be able to refer to this list of 'vanilla' Javascript libraries. These are neat tools - like file uploaders or image editors' that can be integrated into larger applications. Via ProductHunt.

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AI-powered chatbots, designed ethically, can support high-quality university teaching
Scott White, The Conversation, 2022/01/04

The first question I ask when I see a headline like this is, "According to whom?" In this case the answer is "research" and we are pointed to this paper (182 page PDF) that mentions 'chatbots' exactly once (on page 17). Now to be sure, this study, led by Nadia Naffi of Laval, is a teriffic study and recommended reading. But it does not discuss chatbots, and it's misleading to cite it as though it does. Better references are found later, to two review articles surveying recent literature on chatbots. These papers suggest "chatbots are still in the early stages of being implemented in the field of education," which accords with my own experience. As well, "it is clear from the review that some factors, such as ethical, evaluation, user attitude, supervision, and maintenance issues, may have an impact." Scott White's article isn't bad, but there's a disconnect between what it links to and what it says.

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The Humanities May Be Declining at Universities — But They’re Thriving on Zoom
EdSurge, 2022/01/04

This article is about all the things the university could be today, but isn't. In a nutshell: professors are offering classical book reading sessions on Zoom, and they're proving life-changing for participants. Meanwhile, it's a refreshing alternative to the model of the university-to-job pipeline. And it's possible only because the Zoom classes are free, so people don't have to mortgage the house (assuming they have a house) to take them. Of course, you don't have to offer classes on Zoom to have this effect (though it reminded me a lot of my MOOC from last fall). You could blog, participate in discussion lists, write a newsletter, whatever.

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