In this episode of the Future U. Campus Tour, Michael Horn and Jeff Selingo visit Western Governors University (WGU) to explore its innovative approaches to higher education, with a spotlight on the university’s rapidly expanding School of Education. They speak with President Scott Pulsipher and Provost Courtney Hills McBeth about the university’s expansion of work-based learning initiatives, delve into the drivers behind the School of Education’s growth with Dean Stacey Ludwig Johnson, and hear firsthand from Madelyn Hurst, a WGU student and 4th-grade teacher, about how the college’s competency-based approach is transforming her teaching practices.
WGU emphasizes the critical role of effective teacher preparation, focusing on equipping educators with the skills and leadership qualities needed to maximize their impact on students. The university’s model centers on fostering a balanced, supportive learning environment for both educators and their pupils.
“We were inaccurately portraying our students as adult learners. It was probably better to think about the individuals that we are serving as working learners, that if there was one common thing that all of them had is that they already had so many demands on their time, it was really hard for them to fit into their already busy lives, a very traditional postsecondary model, a college model,” said Pulsipher.