Has post‐secondary education reached a tipping point?

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is as follows: this is a short excursion into the changing world of post‐secondary education through a review of two books: Reinventing Higher Education: The Promise of Innovation, by Ben Wildavsky, Andrew P Kelly and Kevin Carey; and DIY U, by Aya Kamenetz.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents reviews of two recently published books.

Findings

The economics and functions of post secondary education at the baccalaureate and post‐baccalaureate (research) levels are changing in a world where knowledge flows freely across geo‐political boundaries. The Ivory Tower no longer commands from a fixed location or as the center of knowledge, both the historic and the new.

Originality/value

Individuals as well as public and private sector entities have multiple sources for knowledge and new abilities of sharing and obtaining knowledge. “The Academy” as created in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries as an independent home for scholarly endeavors has changed as new demands are placed upon the institutions and the faculty.

Citation

Abeles, T.P. (2011), "Has post‐secondary education reached a tipping point?", On the Horizon, Vol. 19 No. 3, pp. 232-235. https://doi.org/10.1108/10748121111163940