We hope universities will learn from the lockdowns

Like many businesses, universities are struggling with how to reopen and are adopting a range of strategies. For example, the University of Cambridge in the UK has announced that its lectures will be online-only until at least the summer of 2021. Others, including Stanford University, are offering a mix of in-person and online classes as well as spreading out their academic year so that fewer students will be on campus at any time.

Make no mistake, Covid-19 represents a massive economic hit to higher education. Dorm rooms are unoccupied, sports stadiums remain empty and students are pushing back against paying full tuition fees. For many colleges and universities, the drop in revenue from foreign students, especially Chinese students, is likely to be painful; numerous smaller and less-endowed schools may close.

Even top universities face challenges. The University of Michigan anticipates a pandemic-induced loss of up to $1-billion by the end of 2020, while Harvard University is projecting a $750-million revenue shortfall for 2021.

But will the Covid-19 shock ultimately help to bring about better education for more people at lower cost? The answer will depend partly on whether universities push technology aside as the pandemic fades, or instead look for the best ways to harness it. This is not an easy challenge, given the importance of interactions among professors, graduate students, and undergraduates, both inside and outside of class.

When I was a graduate student 40 years ago, I was convinced that video learning (the technology of the day), would reshape university teaching. After all, I thought, why shouldn’t students around the world have access to the best lecturers and materials, particularly given that on-campus lectures to 200 students or more offer extremely limited scope for personal interaction anyway?

To be sure, in-class teaching would still have an important role to play. Professors would still curate materials and answer questions. And I did not envisage recorded lectures substituting for smaller classes (although taped materials can, of course, work in that setting, too). But while it is thrilling to watch a great class in person, surely a good taped lecture is better than a mediocre in-person one?

Virtually everyone agrees that broadening access to higher education is one of the best ways to mitigate inequality and that it can help to make society fairer and more productive. It is also essential in a world where technology and globalisation (or nowadays perhaps deglobalisation), require greater adaptability and possibly retraining to meet shifting labour-market demand.