A new research study by HGA examines the evolving impact of online and in-person higher education learning models.
Before the pandemic, many campuses were facing declining enrollment of traditional college-age students, potentially leading to increased competition for students and tuition revenue. For public universities particularly, these challenges had been exacerbated by long-declining state funding.
One bright spot has been the growth of online learning, accelerated by the stay-at-home shutdown in March 2020. Yet contrary to popular belief, emergency remote learning is not the same as online learning. Emergency remote learning provides temporary access to courses during a crisis, while online learning intentionally plans and designs courses to be delivered online from the start.
A growing number of higher education institutions have been considering how online learning could assist in overcoming enrollment and financial shortfalls. After the 2019-2020 school year, online learning has clearly become an important part of making higher education accessible, equitable, and affordable.
Download Reimagining Higher Education in a Hybrid Learning Landscape
To understand these differences, HGA conducted an exploratory research study examining the impact of remote and in-person learning in a hybrid landscape.
Our interdisciplinary team partnered with five different higher education types—from community colleges to public universities to private four-year colleges—to gain a cross section of viewpoints. Our team then applied a variety of research tools to gather, interpret, and present data, including qualitative interviews with campus facility leaders; secondary literature research; design thinking workshops to assess the findings; and follow-up feedback sessions with the original interview participants.
This study revealed the key to reimagining the learning experience in a hybrid landscape starts with understanding the human experience. The following results examine experiential insights on navigating platforms, equity in learning, and social connection, what it might mean for campuses, and key questions to consider for future campus planning.
For more information, download Reimagining Higher Education in a Hybrid Learning Landscape.
Contributors
- Rebecca Celis, AIA — Principal & Market Sector Leader, Arts & Culture
- Cristianne Peschard, AIA — Project Manager
- Adaheid Mestad, MA — Design Anthropologist
- Kara Freihoefer, PhD, NCIDQ, EDAC, LEED AP — Director of Research
- Lou Ann Bunker-Hellmich, PhD, EDAC — Design Researcher
- Naz Bilgic — Research Support