The research problem addressed in this study is that racial bias programmed into predictive algorithm recommendations negatively impacts students in historically underrepresented groups. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore the perception of algorithm accuracy among data professionals in higher education and explore the…

Purpose: This study aims to explore the perception of algorithm accuracy among data professionals in higher education. Design/methodology/approach: Social justice theory guided the qualitative descriptive study and emphasized four principles: access, participation, equity and human rights. Data collection included eight online open-ended…

Student privacy is a critical area of higher education that deserves greater focus, particularly as student data digitalization increases. Many colleges and universities use data literacy as a way to prepare students, sometimes from different disciplines, to work with others' data postgraduation. Data literacy can be an avenue for helping all…

Whilst learning analytics is still nascent in most African higher education institutions, many African higher education institutions use learning platforms and analytic services from providers "outside" of the African continent. A critical consideration of the protection of data privacy on the African continent and its implications for…

Online program managers (OPMs) are third-party companies that work with colleges and universities to develop, launch, and deliver online learning. The prevalence of OPMs, however, has important implications for higher education program quality and transparency. In the final piece of our four-part series, higher education scholars establish a…

Based on a review of 48 online program manager (OPM) contracts and 44 chief online learning officer (COLO) interviews, this policy brief highlights potentially problematic contract provisions between colleges and OPMs, raising concerns about their effects on federal compliance, students' learning, and openness about government contracting.…

White-label programs in higher education, designed and supported by online program management (OPM) firms, pose unique challenges to current policy. In part this is because OPM firms and services are either exempt from policy or fall into a gray area that policy has not yet considered. Policymakers, however, do not need to develop entirely new…

The problem addressed by this study is the strategies analysts need in higher education institutions to improve the protection of personally identifiable and sensitive data. The qualitative exploratory design was used to examine the strategies used by nine analysts. The combined experience of the nine analysts in data analytics, cyber security,…

This paper sought to establish the extent to which users' legitimate rights are safeguarded in Learning Management Systems (LMS); specifically, on the Blackboard system used for teaching at Sorbonne University, Abu Dhabi (SUAD). First, the users' legitimate rights that required protection were identified. Second, the security and privacy…

Universities involve parents of college students in the undergraduate experience, but there is limited research on the specific pathways for parent engagement. This study examined how universities involve parents of undergraduate students at large public universities with graduation rates higher than the national average. Through the lenses of…

Big data is an important part of innovation that has recently attracted a lot of interest from academics and practitioners alike. Given the importance of the education industry, there is a growing trend to investigate the role of big data in this field. Much research has been undertaken to date in order to better understand the use of big data in…

Student data privacy as a research focus and practice is relatively under-researched in the context of massive open online courses (MOOCs). Central to researching student data privacy in the context of online service providers are the various user agreements that participants must accept or opt into before they can use a MOOC platform. Such…

Students, families, colleges, and lawmakers need clearer information on postsecondary outcomes to make informed decisions. By leveraging data available at institutions and federal agencies, a nationwide student-level data network (SLDN) would close information gaps that persist in our higher education landscape to answer critical questions about…

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) regulates how schools collect, use, and disclose student information, including disclosures to third-party educational researchers. This article examines how educational researchers can structure their activities to reduce the risk of violating FERPA's disclosure restrictions. In order to do…

Inclusivity in data reports for undocumented students can be difficult to achieve. By nature of those students' status and livelihood, there is contention among academics and practitioners on whether this is a population that should not be formally tracked or identified, for a variety of reasons. Concerns about tracking arise because of the…