Research based on educational data mining conducted at academic institutions is often limited by the institutional policy with regard to the type of learning management system and the detail level of its activity reports. Often, researchers deal with only raw data. Such data normally contain numerous fictitious user activities that can create a…

Facebook is widely used and researched. However, though the data generated by educational technology tools and social media platforms other than Facebook have been used for research purposes, very little research has used Facebook posts as a data source--with most studies relying on self-report studies. While it has historically been impractical…

LearnSphere is a web-based data infrastructure designed to transform scientific discovery and innovation in education. It supports learning researchers in addressing a broad range of issues including cognitive, social, and motivational factors in learning, educational content analysis, and educational technology innovation. LearnSphere integrates…

The paper argues that learning analytics as a research field can benefit from a theory-informed shared language to describe sensemaking of learning and teaching data. To make the case for such shared language, first, I critically review prominent sensemaking theories to then demonstrate how studies in learning analytics do not use coherent…

Protection of student privacy is critical for scaling up the use of learning analytics (LA) in education. Poorly implemented frameworks for privacy protection may negatively impact LA outcomes and undermine trust in the discipline. To design and implement models and tools for privacy protection, we need to understand privacy itself. To develop…

Despite the increasing interest in data analytics applications within postgraduate education research, there remains a significant gap in research dedicated to exploring mixed methods research for such investigations. This study undertook to bridge this gap by exploring the application and use of mixed methods research to examine data analytics…

Self-regulated learning (SRL) theory comprises cognitive, metacognitive, and affective aspects that enable learners to autonomously manage their learning processes. This article presents a systematic literature review on the measurement of SRL in digital platforms, that compiles the 53 most relevant empirical studies published between 2015 and…

Advances in Information Technology (IT) and computer science have without a doubt had a significant impact on our daily lives. The past few decades have witnessed the advancement of IT enabled processes in generating actionable insights in various fields, encouraging research based applications of modern Data Science methods. Among many other…

The purpose of this study is to review journal papers on educational big data research published from 2010 to 2018. A total of 143 papers were selected. The papers were characterized based on three dimensions: (a) educational goals; (b) educational problems addressed; and (c) big data analytical techniques used. A qualitative content analysis…

There has been an increasing interest in learning analytics (LA) research especially in higher education (HE) in recent years. In this study, we conducted a systematic focused review of research, from 2016 to present, on using analytics in HE (specifically system- or user-generated data) to understand in what way such analytics has been…

The potential of data analytics in higher education is well acknowledged. Yet, there is a notable gap in the literature regarding the practical application of theoretical frameworks for its implementation and evaluation. While research has investigated data analytics for personalised learning, student success prediction, and programme assessment,…

Background: During the past decade, the increasingly heterogeneous field of learning analytics has been critiqued for an over-emphasis on data-driven approaches at the expense of paying attention to learning designs. Method and objective: In response to this critique, we investigated the role of learning design in learning analytics through a…

This collection focuses on the role of higher education institutions concerning datafication as a complex phenomenon. It explores how the universities can develop data literac(ies) shaping tomorrow skills and "formae mentis" to face the most deleterious effects of datafication, but also to engage in creative and constructive ways with…

To examine the similarities and differences between two closely related yet distinct fields -- Educational Data Mining (EDM) and Learning Analytics (LA) -- this study conducted a literature review of the empirical studies published in both fields. We synthesized 492 LA and 194 EDM articles published during 2015-2019. We compared the similarities…

Learning analytics research presents challenges for researchers embracing the principles of open science. Protecting student privacy is paramount, but progress in increasing scientific understanding and improving educational outcomes depends upon open, scalable and replicable research. Findings have repeatedly been shown to be contextually…