Key Stakeholders and Roles – Brainstorming Session for Learning Analytics
Professor and DLIT faculty facilitator Garry Brand captures thoughts around LA.
This breakout session was intended to identify key stakeholders related to learning analytics on campus. The ability to carve out roles and responsibilities is an important part of enabling and executing analytics work.
In this activity, resources were reviewed based on this resource (“Academic Analytics”, John P. Campbell and Diana G. Oblinger) here [PDF]. This PDF talks about the 5 steps of Learning Analytics to include:
- Capture
- Report
- Predict
- Act
- Refine
The Abstract in this “Academic Analytics” white paper is as follows:
The importance of student success (commonly measured as degree completion) continues to rise, as does the demand for institutional accountability. Academic analytics can help institutions address student success and accountability while better fulfilling their academic missions. Academic systems generate a wide array of data that can predict retention and graduation. Academic analytics marries that data with statistical techniques and predictive modeling to help faculty and advisors determine which students may face academic difficulty, allowing interventions to help them succeed. This paper highlights what IT and institutional leaders need to understand about academic analytics, including changes it may require in data standards, systems, processes, policies, and institutional culture.
Directions for activity: In yesterday’s activity, you identified and analyzed a key goal(s) for the use of LA at your campus. At this point in the focus session, you’ve heard a good deal about how LA works and about the range of issues associated with it. Using the table below and with your institution, department or course in mind, indicate: who are the key stakeholders and partners you need to assemble to move forward with LA work? What specific role(s) would each play in a LA project? What expertise would they contribute?
Garry Brand, Meegan Willi, and Eric Kunnen brainstormed the following:
| Who | What |
|---|---|
| IRP, IRB | Gather data, generate reports, review research projects |
| IT, DLIT | Create and maintain data warehouse, inform course design, external data |
| SSS, FPD/CTE | Student success and retention, early alert, impact on teaching and learning and training |
| Academic Leadership, Deans, Provost, CLT | Revise curriculum, lead, create policy |
