1. Digital Technology in Higher Education
Chuck Elliott, M.S., M.P.A.

2. Digital Technology in Higher Education
Definitions
Contexts
Six Trajectories
Digital Transformation
Attributions

3. Definitions
Digital technology creates, stores, transmits, reads, and plays or presents information that exists as zeroes and ones
Digital technology is a type of transfer that involves breaking a message or form of communication between two machines down into binary code. Binary code consists of all ones and zeros and can be reassembled upon being read by another piece of equipment that utilizes digital technology. (

4. Contexts
Two primary contexts for digital technology in higher education
Academic Computing which is primarily teaching and learning
Administrative Computing which can be thought of as everything else

5. Six Trajectories http://er. educause
Device Ownership and Mobile-First
The Textbook and Open Educational Resources (OER)
Adaptive Learning Technology
Learning Spaces
The Next-Generation Learning Management System (LMS)
Learning Analytics and Integrated Planning and Advising Services (IPAS)

6. Device Ownership and Mobile-First
The digital divide has not been fully resolved.
Student ownership of smartphones is probably above 90%, tablets at 60%
Many institutions adopting a mobile-first approach
Unprecedented independence from campus IT departments

7. The Textbook and Open Educational Resources (OER)
Textbook costs skyrocketing
Corresponding decline in textbook purchasing, made possible by OER
According to the ECAR 2013 student study, 71 percent of students used OER in 2013 (up from 25 percent in 2010)

8. Adaptive Learning Technology
Adaptive learning is an educational method which uses computers as interactive teaching devices, and to orchestrate the allocation of human and mediated resources according to the unique needs of each learner. (
Publishers and universities are investing in adaptive learning (MyLab, ALEKS)
Allows students to take a non-linear approach to learning, think “playlists” which include all forms of media

9. Learning Spaces
Physical spaces such as classrooms, computer labs, collaboration rooms, and makerspaces
Evolving toward places of discovery and construction

10. The Next-Generation Learning Management System (LMS)
Ninety nine percent of institutions have an LMS. Vast majority of faculty use it.
Approx 15% of institutions looking to replace their LMS
LMS 2.0? See Malcolm Brown, Joanne Dehoney, and Nancy Millichap, "What's Next for the LMS?" EDUCAUSE Review 50, no. 4 (July/August 2015).
Consortium for next-generation LMS at

11. Learning Analytics and Integrated Planning and Advising Services (IPAS)
Analytics are intended to promote student success. Many LMS vendors provide an analytics module. $$$
Analytics are part of IPAS
“Education planning (identifying the degree and the best path to its achievement)
Progress tracking (asking whether the learner is on course toward degree completion)
Advising and counseling (offering services such as mentoring and tutoring)
Early-alert systems (initiating proactive intervention with at-risk students)”
This trajectory shows growing adoption

12. Digital Transformation
DX refers to Digital Transformation
Think of your own institution. How much of the information created, stored, taught, etc. is NOT digital?
A. fewer than 5 % of companies have made a full DX (1)
Higher Ed is a subset of the 5%
Is a full DX even possible in higher education?

13. Attributions
(1)
(2)
(3)
Recommended Reading:

14. Thank You!
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