edSurge: Forging Ahead in the Radical Middle
In an edSurge piece titled "Forging Ahead in the Radical Middle," President Carol Quillen explores the tension between the need for technological innovation in higher education and resistance to calls for innovation. How can we get beyond the problems that arise when ed-tech companies and institutions of higher education try to collaborate? Quillen sheds light on the answer: by forging a ‘radical middle,' defined as "those who see the value of continued innovation in education through existing research and the enabling and capacity-building opportunities of corporate partnerships."
Quillen recently attended a conference of scholars, practitioners, entrepreneurs, policy makers and investors at Stanford University, where participants discussed the concept of the radical middle. In her article, she proposes a new model that involves ed-tech companies and higher-ed institutions working together to find a shared purpose.