Enhancing Higher Education Accessibility Through Open Education And Prior Learning

Institutions of higher learning are providing access to free and low-cost open resources to support students with prior college-level learning during every step of their educational journey. This unconventional approach to education removes traditional barriers to college credit by placing learners in an open environment, which encourages accessibility to higher education and fosters independent and critical thinking. By providing learners with free resources, more learners have the resources needed to be successful in college. Prior learning assessment is an excellent way for students to demonstrate the skills and knowledge gained throughout the course of their lives. By developing a portfolio of artifacts that support prior learning outside of the classroom, learners reduce the time and money needed to complete a degree. Open educational resources, prior learning assessment, and competency-based learning offer the potential to provide access to higher education to those who may not have the opportunity to earn a college degree. As the costs of higher education continue to rise, these flexible, open approaches to learning can bridge the equity gap and provide more opportunity to earn a college degree. Enhancing Higher Education Accessibility Through Open Education and Prior Learning provides a comprehensive resource book on open resources and prior learning in order to provide access and equity to higher education. The chapters pull together resources and case studies that exemplify alternative means to higher education. Highlighted topics within this book include remote e-learning, online fundraising, smart learning and assessments, effective learning, and faculty mentorship. This book is essential for curriculum designers; administrators; policymakers; government executives; professors and instructors in higher education; students; researchers in adult education, competency-based education, social justice, and open educational resources; and practitioners interested in open educational resources and accessibility in higher education.

The rising cost of tuition, increasing competition, and mounting student loan debt has caused educational leaders to rethink degree programs and resources for learners. As such, open educational resources, prior learning assessment, open degree plans, and competency-based learning have gained popularity in the field of higher education. Enhancing Education Through Open Degree Programs and Prior Learning Assessment is a critical scholarly resource that examines teaching and learning materials that learners may freely use and reuse without charge. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics such as open educational resources, prior learning assessment, and competency-based learning, this book is geared towards educations, professionals, school administrators, researchers, academicians, librarians, and students seeking current research on equity and access to higher education for all learners across the globe.

With the increasing share of adult and non-traditional students in the higher education student body, higher education faculty and administrators must ensure that the design of programs, courses, and student services support the success of all students. The needs and wants of these adult and non-traditional learners will differ, and it is important that research helps advance the understanding of these students to increase their success, acclimation, and experience in institutions. Ensuring Adult and Non-Traditional Learners’ Success With Technology, Design, and Structure is designed to provide higher education professionals with current research and research-based best practices for ensuring student success for adult learners and non-traditional students. The research presented in this book will help ensure that programs, courses, and student services are designed and implemented in a manner that supports student success for all learners in the institution. Chapters include research on student motivation, program design, educational technology, student engagement, and more. This book is intended for post-secondary administrators, faculty, teachers, administrators, teacher educators, practitioners, stakeholders, researchers, academicians, and students interested in relevant educational services for adult learners and non-traditional students.

Higher education has changed significantly over the past 50 years, and the individuals who provide leadership for these institutions has similarly changed. The pathway to the college presidency, once the domain of academic administration, has diversified as an increasing number of development officers, student affairs and enrollment management professionals, and even politicians have become common in the role. It is important to understand who the presidents are in the current environment and the challenges they face. Challenges such as dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, enrollment shortfalls, Title IX, and athletic scandals have risen to the forefront and have contributed to the issues and role of college and university leadership. The Handbook of Research on the Changing Role of College and University Leadership provides important research on the topic of college and university leadership, especially focusing on the changing role of the college president. The chapters discuss college leadership as it is now and how it will evolve into the future. Topics included are the role of the president at various types of universities, their involvement within university functions and activities, and the duties they must carry out and challenges they face. This book is ideal for professionals and researchers working in higher education, including faculty members who specialize in education, public administration, the social sciences, and management, along with teachers, administrators, teacher educators, practitioners, researchers, academicians, and students who are interested in college and university leadership and how this role is transforming.

Community colleges are essential in preparing the 21st century workforce. Research has indicated that there is a shortage of individuals prepared for skilled workforce opportunities, such as plumbers, electricians, and many others. In fact, while college is essential in workforce development, it is not the only route that can lead to a successful livelihood. Developing a skill that transfers into an essential trade is a route less taken. Community colleges are ideally situated to respond to the shortage of a prepared workforce by providing an array of programs that reach a wide range of individuals with talents that may not include a college degree. Community Colleges and Workforce Preparation in the 21st Century: Emerging Research and Opportunities is a comprehensive reference source that covers the essential role of community colleges in developing a skilled workforce via varying educational opportunities that include degree completion, workforce development, and skill enhancement. Readers will benefit from the book’s ability to advocate for the need for individuals with skillful trade options, provide different areas to consider as trade options, discuss the role of community colleges in preparing a workforce, examine the challenges that can arise for individuals with a trade, and present a global outlook on the workforce of the 21st century. Covering topics that include career pathways and STEM programs, the book is especially valuable for academic institutions that are looking to provide options for talent expansion. Leadership and education scholars, leadership practitioners within community college and university settings, leaders within workforce development sectors, researchers, and students will also find this reference useful for developing a skilled and competent workforce.

Upon completion of a doctoral degree, how does the newly-minted doctoral completer move forward with their career? Without a plan, or even a mentor as a guide, the path forward may be filled with a variety of professional and personal challenges to overcome. Navigating Post-Doctoral Career Placement, Research, and Professionalism is a collection of innovative research on the methods and applications of navigating the post-doc, professional environment while also handling the personal anxieties that accompany this navigation. While highlighting topics including self-care, graduate education, and professional planning, this book is ideally designed for doctoral candidates, program directors, recruitment officers, and postgraduate retention specialists.

Universal Design in Higher Education looks at the design of physical and technological environments at institutions of higher education; at issues pertaining to curriculum and instruction; and at the full array of student services. Universal Design in Higher Education is a comprehensive guide for researchers and practitioners on creating fully accessible college and university programs. It is founded upon, and contributes to, theories of universal design in education that have been gaining increasingly wide attention in recent years. As greater numbers of students with disabilities attend postsecondary educational institutions, administrators have expressed increased interest in making their programs accessible to all students. This book provides both theoretical and practical guidance for schools as they work to turn this admirable goal into a reality. It addresses a comprehensive range of topics on universal design for higher education institutions, thus making a crucial contribution to the growing body of literature on special education and universal design. This book will be of unique value to university and college administrators, and to special education researchers, practitioners, and activists.

Teachers in their first few years of their teaching career require high quality, structured support to begin the journey towards becoming experts. Establishing research-based best practices and working habits set up early career teachers for a fulfilling and successful career. The requirements of teachers are constantly changing, and teachers need to continually adapt their knowledge and practices to fit schools’ changing demographics. Having a toolbox of research-based best practices to draw upon can support early career teachers as they move from theory to practical application when the learning curve is the steepest. Strengthening the system of support includes increasing teachers’ influence over their day-to-day work and developing positive and supportive cultures of learning. Supporting Early Career Teachers With Research-Based Practices presents both theoretical and practical research to support the conceptual understanding of educational praxis for common areas with which early career educators may require additional expertise or support. This book is intended to be a valuable contribution to the body of literature in the field of education by supplying research-based teaching practices for modern education. Primary topics covered include professional learning, classroom management, student-teacher relationships, teaching diverse students and inclusive educational practices, and teacher self-care strategies. This book is a valuable reference tool for early career teachers of all subject areas and grade levels, school administrators, teacher mentors and guides, education faculty in higher education, educational researchers, curriculum developers, instructional facilitators, practicing teachers, pre-service teachers, professional development coordinators, teacher educators, researchers, academicians, and students interested in teaching practices and support for the early career teacher.