Higher education leaders want to bring lifelong learning opportunities to students and alumni seeking career-based skills that fit the rapidly changing workforce, suggests a new survey from Instructure, an educational software company. Learning management systems may be a key tool in this high-priority effort.
Nearly all (95%) higher education respondents report using an LMS to centralize resources and streamline communication. Industry partnerships can improve this tool: 81% of higher education respondents noted that such collaboration provides students with critical employability skills.
“Training programs should be based on industry standards, built on strong learning goals and objectives, presented in multiple formats and offered routinely,” said an anonymous professional learning survey respondent.
To better support learners beyond their degrees, 72% of higher education leaders said continuing education programs could be a solution. Professionals who participated in the survey recommended assessing industry partnerships by:
- longevity and renewal of partnerships (59%)
- learner satisfaction (57%)
- feedback from educational institutions (55%)
But only 38% of respondents said their institutions provide opportunities for students to engage in extensive lifelong learning activities outside the classroom. The top challenges for creating lifelong learning modalities, according to surveyed higher education respondents, included:
- institutions only focus on immediate-term goals
- lack of student motivation
- administration possess a limited understanding of lifelong learning benefits
Instructure surveyed a total of 1,011 respondents: 547 from higher education, 91 from professional learning partners and 373 in K12. The sample represented stakeholders across most U.S. states.
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