Hi everyone!
It was quite interesting to learn about the significance of data and information in distance education this week. Indeed, its importance can be seen in the decision-making process. Prinsloo and Slave (2014) specifically pointed out that online institutions depend a great deal “on data to inform its key strategic decisions across a wide range of issues, including marketing, enrolment, curriculum development, the appointment of staff, and student assessment” (p. 2). Data and information therefore play a pertinent role in all aspects of distance education especially where support is concerned. The researchers specifically explored the use and implications of learning analytics as a data source for support. Although there are problems with its use like privacy and ethical issues, researchers noted that it provides “opportunities for higher education institutions to respond, timeously and appropriately, to identifying students who are at risk of failing or dropping out” (Siemens & Long, 2011, as cited in Prinsloo & Slave, 2014, p. 3). As such, learning analytics offers useful information that can ensure students’ success and reduce their retention. For this reason, it is imperative to offer learning analytics support to faculty and staff. This form of support will heighten their awareness and ability to identify different groups of students like at-risk students and gives them the opportunity to provide better support for these various learner groups.
To assess the quality of learning analytics support, data can be obtained from surveys or questionnaires. In fact, surveys can be used to acquire, harvest, and analyze data or information related to other areas of support highlighted on the scorecard specifically, learning activities and learner interaction, course technology and technical support, learner support services, faculty and staff support programs, accessibility and usability, learning objectives (competencies), assessment and measurement, and instructional materials and content. Essentially, a survey is a widely used research instrument and evaluation tool that enables a large amount of data to be gathered quickly and inexpensively. This data source targets a selected group of people who are required to thoughtfully respond to a set of questions. To ensure accuracy in results, researchers and evaluators are encouraged to pay close attention to the survey questions. Moreover, technological tools like Qualtrics and SurveyMonkey can be used to create free surveys and questions on various forms of support can be incorporated.
Other effective data collection instruments include focus groups (in-person or online), and interviews. One on one interviews can be used to obtain data from faculty pertaining to course technology & technical support, faculty support programs, learning activities and learner interaction, learning objectives (competencies), assessment and measurement, and instructional materials and content. In these structured interviews, interviewers will ask a specific set of questions and adhere to a set format. Essentially, this interview-type can yield comparable results.
Finally, focus groups are another great data source that can be used to gain information from either faculty, staff, or learners. A group of participants can be asked to provide feedback on the various forms of support that they receive. Participants can receive additional incentives to participate in focus group interviews. All in all, focus groups can be used to assess participants’ perceptions on support services and programs.
To sum up, learning analytics, surveys, structured interviews, and focus groups are among the most effective data sources for all the areas of support highlighted on my quality scorecard. Learning analytics can be used to acquire information on student support while surveys, interviews, and focus groups can be used to acquire information on other forms of support provided to faculty, staff, and students.
What are your thoughts on these data sources and what other sources would you recommend. As always, I anticipate your feedback!
Krista
MDE student
University of Maryland Global Campus
University of Maryland Global Campus | UMGC
References
Prinsloo, P., & Slade, S. (2014). Educational triage in open distance learning: Walking a moral tightrope. IRRODL, 15(4), 306-331. Click here to access the article