How Can We Re-Think Education in the U.S.?

Venture investors have historically avoided edtech for a myriad of reasons.

However, catastrophic societal shifts (e.g. behavior on college campuses) and secular trends have me pretty jazzed about the industry. There is so much that is wrong with education across the US and so much that needs to change.

As with my other posts, this is not intended to be a comprehensive thesis, but rather a handful of semi-half-baked ideas I've jotted down in my nightstand journal and decided to share.

Here are a few of my notes and thoughts on education:

• College Closures: Colleges are closing at a rate at one-per-week It's pretty alarming. Fewer colleges likely mean fewer college graduates (unless they reallocate to other schools, which I don’t think will be the case). I'd imagine this will lead to increased consolidation among large institutions. Will we have a few mega-schools (like ASU), and if so, will they have a much larger impact on their local economies? Or will traditional college closures lead to a rise in trade and vocational school enrollment? There are second-order effects of this such as the impact on local economies and jobs.
• EQ Learning: We need to invest in social-emotional learning in middle and high school. This probably looks like some form of therapy-lite? Or psychology. I am not entirely sure how it is integrated into curriculum, but it is more important now than ever, especially with the rise of AI, other technologies, and with the loneliness epidemic as the backdrop. EQ is more important than IQ in the workplace.
• More Schools Need to Adopt the Flipped Classroom: The Flipped Classroom — a method where teachers record lessons and students watch them at home asynchronously and do their homework in the classroom — improves collaboration and allows for more teacher-student back-and-forth that increases comprehension. It's also more conducive to a classroom where students hold each other accountable — e.g., the class can't move on until everyone understands the topic. In my opinion, this is a great way to promote critical thinking, improve EQ, and combat students using AI alone to complete their work.
• Creating Mentorship Opportunities: Finding mentors is really hard. Chief is a beast of a business and does this really well for professional women. These kinds of networking and building opportunities should be democratized across ages, geographies, demographics, income brackets, etc. Maybe it looks like a new-age YPO network. The downside is that it could create more societal division.
• Homeschooling, Micro-Schools, and New Private Schools: What has happened on college campuses will inevitably have a trickle-down effect and influence parents sending (or not sending) their kids to schools. I think parents will increasingly opt into homeschooling, micro-schooling, or enrolling in entirely new schools where they have more control over the environment and the curriculum. Is there an opportunity to invest directly into a startup private school with ambition to scale (probably via franchise)?
• Increase Involvement in Social Groups: Youth should have access to groups like Tzofim (which is what exists in Israel) in the U.S. to cultivate community engagement, leadership skills, and cultural identity. It's like boy/girl scouts with a facelift. It takes contemporary approaches and focuses on cultural identity. By providing opportunities for social interaction, outdoor education, and hands-on learning, Tzofim offers a holistic approach to youth development. This will be more important as traditional school enrollment contracts. Is this an investable category?
• Personalization With AI: Teaching and learning are not one-size-fits-all. Teachers can supplement themselves with agents that personalize learning to each individual's style and pace, which leads to my next point.
• Teacher Shortage: Teacher burnout is very real. Anecdotally, 5 of 6 friends of mine who were teachers have left the profession in <5 years. Teacher burnout is very real and needs to be addressed. Solutions could include better pay, support systems, and innovative teaching aids like AI. We also most likely need to create stronger incentives to attract more people into the teaching profession, including financial incentives and career development opportunities.
• Democratize the Thiel Fellowship: Providing entrepreneurial opportunities and support to young people from different backgrounds (and not necessarily with college degrees) can lead to more innovation and diverse leadership in various fields. Perhaps it should be government-funded/sponsored.

I definitely want to learn more about this world.

Feel free to reach out if you want to discuss or educate me on any of these topics.