Why Unbundling Matters: Unpacking Competing Languages of Persuasion

1. Why Unbundling Matters: Unpacking Competing Languages of Persuasion Professor Mark Brown, Dr Tom Farrelly & Dr Mairéad Nic Giolla Mhichíl Cork, Ireland 21st April 2017
2. Liverpool Hut, Mt Aspiring
3. Knowledge Economy • Threat • Unbundling • Re-imagination Crisis • Disruption • Democratization • TWO MAJOR PERSPECTIVES Mark Brown, 2016
4. “Frankly, all the computers and software and Internet connections in the world won’t do much good if young people don’t understand that access to new technology means… access to the new economy” (President Bill Clinton; cited in Cuban, 2001, p.18).
5. Knowledge Economy Learning Society Mark Brown, 2016 TWO MAJOR PERSPECTIVES • Threat • Unbundling • Re-imagination Crisis • Disruption • Democratization •
6. “Higher education has a crucial role to play in laying the foundations of a society that is more inclusive, participatory and equal...” The President said “…the role of the university in enabling citizens to develop the tools to address the great challenges of our time – global poverty, climate change and sustainability – was vital.
7. ReconceptualizingDeschooling ReschoolingReproducing • Just society • Lifelong learning • Pillars of learning • Education for change • Democratic • Opening access • Micro credentials • New learning pathways Learning Society Knowledge Economy Mark Brown, 2016 • Sifting agent • Human capital • Cultural heritage • Education as commodity • Competencies • Entrepreneurship • Technology as progress • Increased market competition TWO MAJOR PERSPECTIVES • Threat • Unbundling • Re-imagination Crisis • Disruption • Democratization •
8. Different interest groups and stakeholders are borrowing the same ‘languages of persuasion’ to legitimize very different agenda In the post-digital era…
9. • Content • Services • Credential • Clock • Mode • Border
10. 1. Clock http://www.straighterline.com
11. 2. Mode
12. Off Campus in Class Off Campus out of Class On Campus in Class Acquisition Participation On Campus out of Class Leakage The New Learning Ecology Physical Virtual 2. Mode
13. Allen, E., & Seaman, J., with Poulin, R., & Taylor Straut, T. (2016). Online report card: Tracking online education in the United States. Babson Survey Research Group and Quahog Research Group. 2% 3. Border
14. (Heinlein, 2015) 71% outside 3. Border
15. 4. Content
16. 4. Content
17. 5. Services
18. 5. Services
19. 6. Credential
20. 6. Credential
21. 6. Credential https://www.edsurge.com/news/2016-05-12-what-blockchain-means-for-higher-education
22. Learning is Earning!
23. The research questions… • What forms of unbundling contribute to better educational outcomes? • What system-level responses to the unbundling movement are most effective? • What methodologies are required to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of unbundling?
24. Go raibh maith agaibh!

Editor's Notes

Put simply, the traditional degree is higher education's version of the bundle. As Ryan Craig (2015) points out bundling has been central to the higher education business model for centuries. Institutions combine content and a wide range of products and services into a single package, which generates revenue.

However, this is a simplistic view as unbundling has many different faces. In this brief presentation, I will touch on six of these that have particular relevance to Irish higher education.
Imagine two people are standing on opposing hilltops looking into the valley below. One sees sunshine; the other, shadow. Both are right. Accordingly this talk invites you to think about the light and DARK sides of the unbundling debate.
Extending the metaphor by looking more deeply through the lens of a telescope we can better understand some of competing and co-existing drivers for the re-bundling of higher education.
This framework illustrates that there are two overarching perspectives influencing the debate: the tradition of the Learning Society and the influence of the Knowledge Economy. It is fair to say that a strong Knowledge Economy discourse is imbued in the languages of persuasion surrounding the unbundling movement.
This framework illustrates that there are two overarching perspectives influencing the debate: the tradition of the Learning Society and the influence of the Knowledge Economy. It is fair to say that a strong Knowledge Economy discourse is imbued in the languages of persuasion surrounding the unbundling movement.
Borrowing the words of President Michael Higgins, from this perspective higher education has a role in promoting more inclusive, participatory, equitable and sustainable futures for all.
The Reconceptualising Discourse builds on the original UNESCO pillars of learning—learning to be, learning to do, learning to know and learning to live together. It promotes life-long learning and skills and knowledge beyond mere preparation for work. The focus is on active participation in all aspects of society.
Extending the metaphor by looking more deeply through the lens of a telescope we can better understand the grand narratives and some of the competing and co-existing discourses of persuasion surrounding the MOOC movement and online learning more generally.
In this section we will briefly take a look at some different examples of unbundling in higher education—for better and worse.
The first is the clock—that is, traditional measures of credit hours, study time and course length.

In the United States, for example, Straighterline allows students to complete their degree online through over 100 accredited colleges with flexible start and stop times. It offers the opportunity for first year students to embark on study without the expensive risk of attending College in person, with the option to transfer in the future.
The modern higher education institution can no longer be seen as a bounded, stable place – a static container within which education takes place.
As this diagram shows the modern learning ecology goes beyond the confines of the traditional classroom.

Of course, despite exponential growth in the number of online students globally, the stimulus in Ireland for new innovative models of online learning is severely restricted by the current funding model.
The unbundling movement is redefining the nature of international education. Only 2% of those doing formal online qualifications live outside the US.
Yet, over 70% of EdX’s learners live outside of the United States.
Although OER movement is poorly understood, the emergence of national open textbook initiatives in countries like Canada demonstrate how the unbundling of content can result in significant savings at the same time as supporting more engaging learning experiences.
The unbundling movement has contributed to new types of digital content, which go beyond the current MOOC. In many respects second generation MOOCs are becoming a hybrid form of a guided non-fiction book, as evidenced by new paid short courses and subscription models targeting a wider market.
The unbundling of student support services has potential to enhance efficiencies and effectiveness. For example, Tutor.com and Smart Thinking from Pearson allow students from anywhere in the world to pre-submit written assignments and receive feedback on any aspect within 24 hours.
In Ireland, ‘Write My Assignments’ is a relatively new initiative providing a range of services targeting individual modules.
Notwithstanding the previous examples of unbundling, arguably the traditional degree is the sonic barrier that the unbundling movement has yet to break through (EdX, 2016). However, there are signs of this happening with nano-degrees and micro-masters from reputable universities such as MIT.
And the advent of digital badging is also challenging the status of traditional degrees. A more agile "just-in-time" and “just enough” education is emerging through byte size courses and competence frameworks which issue badges for soft skills and work ready capabilities increasingly expected by employers. That said, arguably, digital badging is a visible example of how neo-liberal principles promoting education as a personal commodity, disguised in hegemonic language, infuses the unbundling movement.
The “block chain” is arguably the next BIG THING in the unbundling movement. Here’s an example in this video of the thinking the block chain makes possible…
The ideas in this video are potentially scary! As Professor George Siemens, a widely respected thought leader, tweets…
The question is how do Irish educators get around the table in an emerging unbundled world in order to shape our own future?
This question gets us thinking more deeply about the types of research questions we need to be asking and investigating. For example…

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