We live in an increasingly quantified world. Advances in electronic database architectures, a rapid increase in computing power, and the development of sophisticated strategies for analyzing massive amounts of data have converged to produce analytics as a distinct approach to solving complex problems in a variety of fields. Sitting at the intersection of data warehousing…
Continue ReadingOn Magic Beans: Or, Is Learning Analytics simply Educational Data Science, Poorly Done?
UPDATE 31 January 2017: This blog post was written during 2014. Since that time, Blackboard has made several very important and strategic hires including Mike Sharkey, John Whitmer, and others who are not only well-regarded data scientists, but also passionate educators. Since 2014, Blackboard has become a leader in educational data science, conducting generalizable research…
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Challenges and Opportunities for Promoting Success among the Successful using Blackboard Analytics™
Presentation deck and abstract from my session at Blackboard World 2014. I also posted a few remarks on challenges associated with learning analytics at an institution with already high levels of student success HERE Abstract How can a university that already has very high levels of student performance and retention use data from its Blackboard®…
Continue ReadingDancing in the Classroom (or, What Teachers can Learn from Jack White)
In a recent interview with Rolling Stone Magazine, Musician Jack White showed his cranky side while commenting about the current state of live music: “People can’t clap anymore, because they’ve got a fucking texting thing in their fucking hand, and probably a drink, too!” he says. “Some musicians don’t care about this stuff, but I…
Continue ReadingEducational Technology is not a Rotisserie Oven
An important and fruitful area of discussion in learning analytics involves the use of embedded student dashboards, which are most commonly sold and promoted as tools for leveraging peer pressure to increase student success (like UMBC’s Check My Activity Tool). In my experience with a similar tool over the last year however, it has become…
Continue ReadingUsing Learning Analytics to Promote Success among the Successful
High performing institutions face a unique set of challenges and opportunities when it comes to investing in the use of educational to support student success. Emory University, for example, sees a 6 year graduation rate of 90% and an average freshman retention rate of 96% (2014 US News and World Report Rankings). Looking specifically at undergraduate student…
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LASI 2014: Day One
Doug Clow has provided a comprehensive summary of the talks and events from the first day of LASI 2014, and so rather than reinvent the wheel, I will merely provide a couple of diagrams, illustrating the global reach and tightly knit community that is represented by the Learning Analytics Summer Institutes.
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