Learning analytics: the way ahead Rebecca Ferguson The Open University Nordic LASI, 2017
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Learning analytics: the way ahead
Rebecca FergusonThe Open University
Nordic LASI, 2017
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Learning analytics
The measurement, collection, analysis and
reporting of data about learners and their
contexts, for purposes of understanding
and optimizing learning and the
environments in which it occurs.
Priority areas for education and training
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Open and innovative education and training, fully embracing the digital era.
Strong support for teachers, trainers, school leaders and other educational staff
Relevant and high-quality knowledge, skills and competences developed throughout lifelong learning
Focus on learning outcomes for employability, innovation, active citizenship and well-being and inclusive education, equality, equity, non-discrimination and the promotion of civic competences.
• Our researchers and students shall contribute
insight and communication of knowledge in
public discussions.
• We will challenge the knowledge front and
conventional notions through critical analysis
and knowledge made available to everyone.
• Through research and education, we shall
contribute towards challenging power
structures and promote a diversified and
sustainable society.
• We shall have the reputation of being a
national institution of culture and a crucible for
new ideas, innovation and new ways of
learning.
• We shall be a meeting place for staff, students
and society at large in an attractive arena for
lifelong learning.
• We shall have a strong and vibrant university
democracy characterized by generosity,
openness, diversity and dialogue.
Priority areas for education and training
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• Bringing together different sectors: higher education, schools & workplace learning• Building networks that have outlived the project’s funding period• Helping to develop learning analytics capability• Creating and sharing resources• Developing visions of the future and agreeing how to work towards them
http://www.laceproject.eu/
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http://careers2030.cst.org/jobs/
Preparing for the future
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(Just over) a decade of change
2012: ‘Year of the MOOC’
2007: Launch of the iphone
2006: First tweets
Provocations for visions
of the future
Full report
bit.ly/28X5tq7
Provocation 1: Learners are monitored by their learning environments
Learners are monitored by their learning environments
Just as in bioethics, there are
fundamental human factors at play here
Too much Big Brother vision to
be appealing
I think it is a promising line of work for learning analytics. I think there will be many advances in the use of sensors to
identify aspects that can be applied to
this vision
Provocation 2:Learners’ personal data are tracked
Learners’ personal data are tracked
Wearable sensors are already present, but in
the next future they must be improved,
especially for health purposes, such as
diabetes monitoring or cardiovascular diseases
prevention
Quantified self strongly builds on reflection and self-organisation. This is
good and feasible
A reliable evidence base for the effectiveness of
these measures and some sort of safety control to prevent irresponsible
recommendations
Provocation 3:
Analytics are
rarely used
Analytics are rarely used
There should be strong discussion about the ethical concerns that
apply to each approach to learning analytics
Focus less on analytics to automate, but rather to be
student-centred, to inform the learner and improve their
personal practice. Once analytics provides real, tangible value to the learner, you begin to both
alleviate concerns about privacy AND develop faith that if you can give control of data back to the
learners, they will opt-in to learning analytics.
The research community must concretely show the benefits of the use of data
to improve educational outcomes
Provocation 4:Learners control their own data
Learners control their own data
Absolutely essential.
Organisations must not rely on the data, but try
to build trust with their learners so that learners see
the benefit of sharing
Can we assume that ‘data
owners’ know what to do with
their data? Some people can’t even
manage the money in their
pockets
Users should be entitled to know how their data are
interrogated and used and for what reasons. This
should be made explicit and easy to understand
Greatly limits our ability to effectively use learning
analytics to improve learning for ALL students
Provocation 5:Open systems are widely adopted
Open systems are widely adopted
• Define standards for the information exchange
• Define standards to exploit the information stored
• Define guides about what information is useful
• Define and publish different models to represent the information
Align with corporate and stop thinking that academic is leading!
A multi-pronged approach involving IT services, national
organisations like JISC and ministry of education and
tertiary institutions would all need to be involved
Provocation 6:Learning analytics are essential tools
Learning analytics are essential tools
Very little credible research has demonstrated any real large-scale benefits to learners or institutions
Learning is not only about success is about learning from failure. So, yes, I think that it would be desirable that the
prediction rates are very high, however, I don't think it is the
final goal
What is needed is support for reflection, discussion and debate on the purpose of it
all, especially to curb the excesses of those that see
learning as something teachers do to students. We
need to nurture rich, reflective communities
Provocation 7:Analytics help learners make the right choices
Analytics help learners make the right choices
From bitter experience, I'm aware of the very
slow pace of institutional change
Companies will sell politicians on the
budget savings and lead us here
With learning there is an element that learning is a
process – reducing it to simply outcomes that can be
measured is dangerous
Limited as ignores learning through interactions with both peers and the wider
social environment
Provocation 8:Analytics have largely
replaced teachers
Analytics have largely replaced teachers
Autonomy begets engagement, motivation, persistence, relevance
The collective is as important as the
individual: it is not just about how ‘I’ learn but how ‘we’ learn
Self-directed learning can let students improve a lot according to their needs. But they also need the
instructors to guide them when they are confusing and frustrated during
the learning process
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Learning analytics for European educational policy
LAEP
•What is the current state of the art?
• What are the prospects for the implementation of learning analytics?
• What is the potential for European policy to be used to guide and support the take-up and adaptation of learning analytics to enhance education in Europe?
Action for analytics
Strategy
Research and development
Infrastructure
Context
Standards
Skills
Outreach
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Strategy
Example of a framework for learning analytics: Siemens, G., Gašević, D., Haythornthwaite, C., Dawson, S., Buckingham Shum, S., Ferguson, R., Duval, E., Verbert, K. & Baker, R.S.J.d. (2011). Open Learning Analytics: An Integrated and
Modularized Platform (Concept Paper). Download from solaresearch.org
• Align work on learning analytics with strategic objectives and priority areas for education and training
• Develop a roadmap for learning analytics
• Assign responsibility for development of learning analytics
• Identify and build on work inrelated areas and other countries
• Build on learning analytics work to develop new priorities
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http://evidence.laceproject.eu
Infrastructure
● Increase data-handling capability
●Create organisational structures to support use of learning analytics
●Use Evidence Hub to identify areas for development
●Develop methods of sharing experience and good practice
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Context
●Align learning analytics work with different sectors of education
●Develop practices that are appropriate to different contexts
● Identify successful financial models
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Standards
●Adapt and employ interoperability standards
●Develop and employ ethical standards, including data protection
●Align analytics with assessment practices
●Develop a robust quality assurance process
●Develop evaluation frameworks
http://www.laceproject.eu/deliverables/d7-1-interoperability-studies/
http://www.open.ac.uk/students/charter/essential-documents/ethical-use-student-data-learning-analytics-policy
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Skills
● Identify the skills required in different areas
●Train and support educators to use analytics to support achievement
●Train and support researchers and developers to work in this field
●Develop and support educational leaders to implement these changes
●Educate learners to use analytics to support their own achievement
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Outreach
●Engage stakeholders throughout the learning analytics process
●Support collaboration between academics and commercial organisations
●Promote awareness of learning analytics
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Research and development
Develop the evidence base
• Develop pedagogy that makes good use of analytics
• Develop analytics that address strategic objectives and priorities
• Develop technology that enables deployment of analytics
• Develop frameworks that enable development of analytics
34https://xkcd.com/1739/
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A problem that we can address
Very little hard evidence is currently available that is based on anything other than short-term studies.
Some positive work is cited in the LACE Evidence Hub but, at this stage, there is no overwhelming evidence that learning analytics have fostered more effective and efficient learning processes and organisations.
However, there is convincing evidence in the Inventory and Case Studies that companies and organisations believe they can do this in the future, and are prepared to invest time and resources in order to achieve this.
36Clow, LAK12, http://oro.open.ac.uk/34330/
http://evidence.laceproject.eu/
http://evidence.laceproject.eu/evidence/evidence-flow-map/
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Slides online at www.slideshare.net/R3beccaF
Rebecca Ferguson @R3beccaFhttp://r3beccaf.wordpress.com/