For the first time in this century other than during the two world wars and the great depression higher education is not a growth industry in terms of the proportion of individuals in the available pool entering the system. While there may still be modest growth, the decades of remarkable growth are behind us and the implications are immediate and far ranging. As long as growth in higher education was a fundamental public policy resources flowed freely into the enterprise. The interest of government in mature industries, however, tends to revolve around regulation and control. Cost, efficiency, productivity and effectiveness are all subject to intense scrutiny.
Accountability is much in demand.
Finally, the focus is shifting from what we do in the classroom to what students take from the classroom - from process to outcomes. Technology will greatly enhance access to information and expedite communication among those involved in the learning process. While it is unlikely that either the printed word or the classroom lecture will succumb to technology, there is likely to be a balance among the three that would have been unpredictable even a few years ago. At least for the foreseeable future it is unlikely that technology will play a significant role in the processes in which students learn to be selective about information, exercise judgment and focus the synergism that arises when working with colleagues. Technology will form the foundation for the next great advance in access to education, circumventing time and place as variables in the access equation.