New pub: Evaluating the Impact of FoLA on Learning Analytics Knowledge Creation

New pub: Evaluating the Impact of FoLA on Learning Analytics Knowledge Creation

Journal, Learning Analytics, Learning Design, Publication, Research Methods, Research topic, Special Issue
Learning analytics provides opportunities to improve the design of learning activities by supplying information on the effects of different learning approaches. Despite the existence of design methods that aim to facilitate the incorporation of learning analytics into learning design, there is a lack of research assessing their efficacy. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the FoLA2 method. In higher education settings, sixty participants utilized the FoLA2 method to develop fourteen learning activities. To gauge the impact, participants completed a technology acceptance test before and after each session. Furthermore, researchers analyzed audio recordings of the sessions using epistemic network analysis to gain insights into the discussions regarding learning analytics and the creation of enhanced learning activities. The results from both the technology acceptance test and the epistemic network analysis…
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New pub: Causal reasoning with causal graphs, published in ETRD

New pub: Causal reasoning with causal graphs, published in ETRD

Journal, Publication, Research Methods, Special Issue
Educational Technology, like many other empirical research fields, needs to provide evidence for the causal effectiveness of their interventions. This is as important for establishing the efficacy of some novel educational technology as it is for theory-building. However, because educational research, especially field research, can be messy, tightly-controlled randomized experiments are not always the best option. Importantly, as our development paper shows, this does not mean that researchers should abandon all claims of causality. Instead, we highlight the importance of explicit causal reasoning, while equipping researchers with a tool to approach this daunting task systematically. Causal graphs (or Directed Acyclic Graphs = DAGs) are a low-barrier approach to reasoning about causality in all research contexts. Using a few construction rules, the resultant graphs allow researchers to figure out whether a…
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New CfP: Multimodal and Immersive Systems for Skills Development and Education (BJET)

New CfP: Multimodal and Immersive Systems for Skills Development and Education (BJET)

Special Issue
Call for Papers: Multimodal and Immersive Systems for Skills Development and Education Guest editor(s):  Daniele Di Mitri, DIPF, Germany Bibeg Limbu, TU Delft, The Netherlands Jan Schneider, DIPF, Germany Deniz Iren, Open University, The Netherlands Michail Giannakos, NTNU, Norway Daniel Spikol, University of Copenhagen, Denmark Roland Klemke, Open University, The Netherlands Rationale for publications During the last decade, we have seen an enormous penetration of multimodal and immersive systems such as virtual, augmented reality and motion-based systems. Such systems, along with rapidly evolving technological affordances (e.g., multimodal interaction, tactile feedback) powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and sensors, are attempting to redefine how we interact and learn with technology. This attempt has long-term implications for human-computer interaction and technology-enhanced learning, enabling new forms of personalised, contextual, and deliberate practice of skills…
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New Pub: special issue “From Sensor Data to Educational Insights”

New Pub: special issue “From Sensor Data to Educational Insights”

Special Issue
We are delighted to announce an editorial of the MDPI Sensors special issue "From Sensor Data to Educational Insights" published in Open Access written by José A. Ruipérez-Valiente, Roberto Martínez-Maldonado, Daniele Di Mitri  Jan Schneider. The editorial introduces 12 novel scientific articles in the field of educational sensors. The full special issue can be found on the MDPI website.
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New Pub: Gendered differences versus doing gender: a systematic review on the role of gender in CSCL

New Pub: Gendered differences versus doing gender: a systematic review on the role of gender in CSCL

Gender, Higher Education, Journal, Literature review, Meta-study, Open access, Publication, Special Issue, Team
How has CSCL research been treating the topic of Gender? Our systematic review on this topic is now published in Unterrichtswissenschaft and available online here. Gender equity in education is an essential UN sustainable development goal. However, it is unclear what aspects of gender are important to consider in regard to research outcomes as well as how findings can be interpreted in the context of gender stereotypes and bias. This lack of clarity is particularly salient in the STEM field. Computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) is a group learning method where learners work together on group tasks that aim at the sharing and co-construction of knowledge. Aside from the cognitive learning gains, the literature reports that CSCL can bring social and psychological benefits, such as fostering positive mutual relationships and increased understanding of equity and…
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New Pub: Connecting the dots – A literature review on learning analytics indicators from a learning design perspective

New Pub: Connecting the dots – A literature review on learning analytics indicators from a learning design perspective

Empirical Study, Higher Education, Journal, Learning Analytics, Learning Design, Lifelong Learning, Literature review, Open access, Publication, Self-Regulation, Special Issue, Target group
[caption id="attachment_4329" align="alignright" width="450"] Occurrences of the most commonly used learning analytic indicators over the past 10 years[/caption] 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 systematic literature review. 161 learning analytics (LA) articles were examined to identify indicators that were based on learning design events and their associated metrics. Through this research, we address two objectives. First, to achieve a better alignment between learning design and learning analytics by proposing a reference framework, where we present possible connections between learning analytics and learning design. Second, to present how…
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Special issue: Adoption of learning technologies in times of pandemic crisis

Special issue: Adoption of learning technologies in times of pandemic crisis

Publication, Special Issue
Despite the promises made and the many and varied national and international projects to adopt and roll out new educational technologies and interventions for elementary, secondary, and higher education, long-lasting institutional technology adoption has been hampered by a lack of continuous funding and resources to achieve the continued buy-in of stakeholders. The real impact of daily learning and teaching practices has been rather small and quickly fades out after a project has been completed. The COVID-19 crisis forced all education providers to move their complete teaching concepts online. This rapid change was also coined as Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT). In this Special Issue, we put a finger on the pulse of this rapid change from traditional to ERT and online learning. We aimed to collect empirical data about behavioural and…
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