How Will the Pandemic Change Higher Education – The global pandemic negative effects on higher education cannot be overemphasized as up to 1.4 million students who were registered students at the college dropped out of school going by the National Student Clearinghouse reports.
Not to talk of the even more disturbing rapidly increasing number of Americans who have been awarded some college credits but has no degree to boast of. In the year 2020, that is also applied to 36 million of the students in these bracket; and in the space of two short years, the figure has risen to up to 39 million with a bigger percentage of more than 16% of these students residing in California. This should not be too shocking since the state has the vast population of college students when it comes to all States of the U.S. ( up to 2.6 million – or more potential graduates are actively enrolled.
It had also been noted that the pandemic changed the character of higher learning in America, it changed the culture we use to know, its role in society and the role of higher education economy, as well as the solid business models that sustain the process.
The pandemic is doing a lot in the higher education system and the system adopted different strategies to function optimally. This article discusses in full the different ways that the global pandemic changed higher education , so kindly read on to get more details!
The degree gap has been narrowed
When the pandemic was rampant, the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU) implemented measure to ensure that they are progressing in closing the degree gap. They did this by reducing a projected shortage of up to 1.1 million highly educated workers in the State (California). Worth noting at the last two years, a good numbers of students are still earning bachelor’s degrees. Notwithstanding, applications remained top-notch throughout the UC system and even in the majority of CSU campuses. This might have been an effect of the elimination of standardized testing and it has helped in increasing and diversifying the millions of applicants.
Additionally, student persistence and completion has been on an improving end. Both systems are keeping by the goals that was set by PPIC to make sure that there is adequate employment of college graduates for the state’s economy. This has brought progress which is crucial to achieving the governor’s freshly proclaimed goal of 70% degree & credential attainment before the end of 2030.
Community colleges witnessed ranges of challenges and successes.
Community college students seem to have less economic resources than most of the college students and they were more likely said to have been the most affected (negatively ) by the pandemic.
- Enrollment declines were more among students that were not well represented among college graduates ( the like of Black students, Native American students, and Latino students.
- Career education that is the vocational education enrollments : it fell the most by up to 25%, in comparison with the 12% figure among the students applying for transfers.
This decline that we find in career education, hints to the particular challenges which were caused by the pandemic—and judging from historical findings, we have seen community college enrollment on the rise during economic downturns, but presently,the tight labor market seems to offers better opportunities than in the past. Not to talk of the wages for workers who are not in hold of a college education degree which have also increased dramatically, making these opportunities more appealing to young people as better plan-Bs to community college.
Moreover, better understanding and response to enrollment is on the less at the community colleges, the state’s biggest provider of higher education, is actually the most important agents to finding manners to re-engage students. The bright area is that recent reforms have proven to be successful in rising student access to and conclusion of the introductory English courses as well as Mathematics courses which are needed to transfer to a four-year college.
Even at that, the rates of persistence beyond those courses are still too low. Getting details about institutional reforms and identifying student supports (which includes; articulation agreements, guided pathways, as well as student aid) to assist students meet their academic goals is important.
Financial aid options for students has increased .
For the past 2 years, colleges and students have been awarded up to $10 billion in emergency aid , sourced from the federal government accounts and the governor’s budget proposes extra funding opportunities for the state’s public institutions of higher education. These resources are geared towards addressing persistent fiscal problems which resulted due to the lost revenues and increased expenses that came up due to the pandemic.
Also, because of the pandemic’s uneven economic impacts, efforts are now been made to simplify, target, and to spread the state’s financial aid programs to expand to students who are with the most financial need – which is very essential. For the present year cycle, all high schools in California will be prompted to specify that their graduating seniors have either concluded an application form into a state or federal financial aid program or they have signified to opt out from the potential additional resources to be provided to students and this has increased college enrollment cost of the low-income students and the cost of study for students of color.
Additionally, new initiatives have been put in place ( dual admission) and this would give access to a seamless transfer to UC or to CSU upon the completion of your lower-division coursework at any community college. Above all, it could offer cost-effective ways for a good number of students to get college degrees.
There is progress in cradle-to-career data system .
The pandemic starred the need to analyze how students are actually faring across education systems. For the past 2 years, California has implemented measure to make progress on creating a data system that will possibly link ;
- pre-K,
- K–12,
- higher education,
- workforce and social services data.
Moving on a high speed to create a usable data system which would possibly provide tools for answering policy questions that are crucial to the recovery of higher education from the pandemic, especially when it comes to college access and success.
Online Learning dramatically Improved for the better .
The largest effect and one of the most immediate measures that was put in place during the pandemic was the migration to online learning. Pacing on a forward direction, remote instruction is actually working to take on a much larger role in the system of higher education when compared to the past. Then choosing the best methods and circumstances for tendering online instruction are the central focus if an institution want to go forward.
Keeping in touch with students and making sure they have the resources they need (which includes full access to technology) is very vital. Other educational policy and program are changing, as students are now getting used to flexible scheduling . These online student services are providing better support.
Conclusion
Asides the effects of the pandemic discussed in this article, It is no secret that the mental health of college students and college staff as well has been drastically strained during the pandemic, with about 20% (say 1 in 5 ) students considering suicide. There is more to this, Please stay tuned!
Frequently Asked Questions
How did COVID-19 Impact Research?
A larger 58% of reporters complained that COVID-19 had made it impossible to do the research they planned. More than 1/2 reported that COVID-19 restrictions affected other work activities, including teaching and administrative activities which lessened their time for research
What are the negative effects of COVID-19?
It is no secret that the mental health of college students and college staff as well has been drastically strained during the pandemic, with about 20% (say 1 in 5 ) students considering suicide.
What are the positive aspects of COVID-19?
Migration to online learning. Pacing on a forward direction, remote instruction is actually working to take on a much larger role in the system of higher education when compared to the past.
How does the COVID-19 pandemic affect the educational system?
The educational system and institutions are badly affected by the issue because physical classroom activities are stopped as a result of nationwide closure.
How has the response to the COVID-19 pandemic shaped the experience of university student?
A good number of students reported the possibility of abandoning their studies due to the pandemic. Majority of these students reported the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on protective factors for the overall student well-being, including socialising, exercise, hobbies as well as leisure activities, etc.
Reference
- Gse.harvard.edu – Will the Pandemic Change Higher Education for Good?
- Chronicle.com – How Will the Pandemic Change Higher Education?
- PPIC.org – The Pandemic’s Effects on Higher Education
- Future-ed.org – How the Pandemic Changed Higher Education
- Latimes.com – Op-Ed: How the pandemic is changing higher education for the better
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