The Work Simulator Model

Here is a proposal to address the issue of work readiness and the relevance of the campus in the future of higher education. I’ve just been to a presentation where one single unit is spending $5.5M to fit out 400 study spaces, and that’s not including the actual building costs, just the fit out. Considering a university that has 50,000 students, at $14K/student these fit outs would cost $700M+ to scale up for all students, and then there are the lecture theater refurbishment costs on top.

Now consider that we know that employers prefer graduates with work experience, yet the actual percentage in some disciplines is extremely low, as low as 3% for natural and physical sciences graduates in 2014 Australia for instance. The current preferred model is placements but that approach is hard to achieve as it depends on significant industry cooperation, and has quality control challenges.

An alternative is to progressively build a simulated work environment at Universities, to reduce duplication of student space (lecture theatre seat + tute seat + Library seat), and to improve the quality of study spaces, but also to prepare students for their work lives.

We already know that we want to move away from the traditional lecture format, because a) its too far from a real work environment, and b) it originated 400 years ago when knowledge was only available from someone at the front of a theater. Lets also assume that the ideas of an early undergraduate (first year) student learning online from home is not a realistic or desirable because a) its too much of a leap from the high school experience, and b) it is poor preparation for the modern work environment, which despite all the experiments with telecommuting is largely based on physical collocation.

We also know that libraries have largely replaced most book shelves with study spaces, and educational designers are replacing tiered lecture theatres with flat adaptable collaboration spaces for active learning. We also have some specialty spaces like engineering workshops, biology labs, and others.

So what can we do that is scalable to all students, and higher quality than the old study hutch, that bridges the gap between the high school environment and the office. What would this look like? Well some universities are already delivering most of their lectures over web conferencing systems like Zoom, even though they have great campuses. At these universities students can attend class from anywhere: in person, or from the library, or from home, or from the recording if they like. Using that technology we could:

• Create standardised affordable study spaces for students that replicate typical physical work environments. Often this may be open plan offices, with breakout rooms.
• Deliver most live lecturer interactions over web conferencing systems like Zoom, noting that a lot of learning content will actually be pre-recorded.
• Increasingly ask students work in cohorts on projects that apply learning, at the highest level of Bloom's taxonomy.
• Provide 'live-in' tutor supervision of students in these environments, modeled on real work supervision, with activities designed to be as close to real work as possible, potentially with deadlines that are not semester based but perhaps multiple per year (e.g. 6 not 2) to allow more flexibility around start dates. 
• Use this model for first or second year students only, before sending students out on full time placements, swapping them to external mode learning consumed in the work place, delivered on the same virtual classroom tools, potentially complimented with intensive mode active learning experiences.

Key Advantages?

• Large dollar saving from not duplicating fit out and construction costs for lecture theatres, tute rooms, and Library study spaces.
• Greatly improves the quality and availability of study spaces for students: "If I don't get to uni by 9:00am I have to go home because there is not enough space".
• Creates full flexibility for learners in terms of where they consume their classes.
• No more room booking nightmares.
• Way more agile for expanding and contracting study programs and student numbers- because just moving students around generic spaces
• Work ready students.
• If the third year is increasingly converted to external mode the space cost saving would be enormous.
• Its compatible with a sticky campus strategy that also offers cultural, sporting and entertainment experiences, right outside.

Eventually you could take this model a step further combining with the fragmented model for higher education, where the campus itself becomes a service that can be used for students studying at multiple education providers. The campus service provides:

• access to special purpose labs and equipment required for completion of some programs,
• a high quality personal study space,
• a place to find group work collaboration partners,
• a place for intensive model active learning,
• a simulation of the future work environment, and a bridge from high school,
• support,
• culture,
• sporting facilities.

Thoughts?
Simon Collyer