Host Researcher: Dr Matthew Thorpe

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) now have access to richer data sets than ever before, because student activity and behaviours are captured through attendance monitoring, assessment data, virtual learning environments, student record systems, library services and lecture capture technologies. However, minimal work has been done to involve the student body as co-investigators into the rationalities that promote data informed practice, or to gain a deeper understanding of student data culture. This project aims to give students a platform to have their voice heard in providing a critical commentary on current and potential data practices within universities.

Students involved in this project will form the core membership of an online working group investigating stakeholder perceptions of data/learning analytics within Manchester Met. They will conduct independent literature reviews and small-scale investigations into the current ethical debates around the use of data in educational settings. They will then form a core membership of an online community investigating multiple stakeholder perceptions of data/learning analytics within Manchester Met.

Students will need to attend an initial workshop on learning analytics, and then contribute to further online meetings and discussion forums as members of the learning analytics working group. There will also be the potential opportunity to present findings at an upcoming academic conference.