Study Shows Universities Need to Embrace the 'New Media'

Universities and higher learning centers are falling behind in the race for information, a University of Illinois expert cautions. Michael A. Peters, a professor of educational policy studies at the university's College of Education, says that, in today's hyper-connected world, universities and similar institutions run the risk of becoming obsolete and old-fashioned if they do not adapt to the times. The expert is especially talking about the fact that these institutions need to embrace online networks, social media, and the openness that characterizes the online environment of today, where information is free for all.

Peters, who is also the co-author of a new book called Creativity and the Global Knowledge Economy, shares that social media and an increased inter-connectivity around the globe have already penetrated and changed government institutions and agencies, as well as businesses, and even the old-fashioned media itself.

“Schools are built on industrial models whose logic often lags behind what underwrites new media, social networks and the creative economy. Now, we're living in a radically networked age, and higher education hasn't quite come to terms yet with what these new forms of the learning economy are, or how to adapt to them,” Peters explains.

“When the scholarly ideas and information contained in a PDF file can be downloaded, viewed and shared by hundreds of millions of people worldwide in a matter of minutes while an ink-and-paper version languishes on a dusty library shelf, what that does is radically de-center forms of educational authority. It also flattens the academic playing field, and puts a greater emphasis on the social aspect of learning,” the expert adds, saying that the Internet and the social networks seem to quickly displace the “old-fashioned” learning model, where knowledge is shared on paper.

Peters also tells that, “One of the critical concepts we in higher education have to come to grips with in this era of transformation is openness, and the diffuse, decentralized availability of information that's available for free. Openness sets up all new knowledge ecologies, especially in a networked environment, and these new ways of communication are based on social principles and cultural logic. As professional educators, we need to think about how our curriculum can be rebooted so they fit better into a networked environment.”

“You already have people in the sciences doing this voluntarily, where experts and amateurs will collaborate on a time-intensive subject such as astronomy. But that's the exception to the rule, not the norm. How do we redesign our schools to make use of the new logics. How do we begin to refocus these institutions to promote the kinds of innovation that businesses and governments around the world are trying to encourage?” he concludes.